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| To establish the Commission for the Future of Local | 1 |
| Veterans Posts in Ohio to develop recommendations | 2 |
| on local veterans posts' economic status, tax and | 3 |
| regulatory issues, local economic and civic | 4 |
| impact, state funding issues, and sustainability. | 5 |
| Section 1. (A) The Commission for the Future of Local | 6 |
| Veterans Posts in Ohio shall develop recommendations for the | 7 |
| successful and sustainable operation of local veterans posts in | 8 |
| Ohio. In developing its recommendations, the commission shall | 9 |
| analyze, but is not limited to analyzing only, the following: | 10 |
| (1) The economic status of local veterans posts throughout | 11 |
| the state; | 12 |
| (2) Relevant tax and regulatory issues impacting local | 13 |
| veterans posts in the state, and comparable tax and regulatory | 14 |
| issues impacting local veterans posts in other states; | 15 |
| (3) Relevant tax and regulatory costs impacting local | 16 |
| veterans posts in the state compared to support provided by the | 17 |
| state and by its political subdivisions, and comparable relevant | 18 |
| tax and regulatory costs impacting local veterans posts in other | 19 |
| states compared to support provided by the other states and by | 20 |
| their political subdivisions; | 21 |
| (4) The local economic and civic impact of local veterans | 22 |
| posts in communities throughout the state; | 23 |
| (5) The existing relationship between state headquarters and | 24 |
| local veterans posts and the impact that state funding support of | 25 |
| statewide veterans organizations has on local veterans posts and | 26 |
| services to veterans; | 27 |
| (6) The sustainability of local veterans posts in the state. | 28 |
| (B) There is a Commission for the Future of Local Veterans | 29 |
| Posts in Ohio, consisting of nine members. The President of the | 30 |
| Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives each shall | 31 |
| appoint one member from their respective houses who shall serve as | 32 |
| co-chairpersons of the commission. The Minority Leader of the | 33 |
| Senate and the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives | 34 |
| each shall appoint one member from their respective houses. The | 35 |
| President of the Senate shall appoint, upon recommendation of the | 36 |
| organization, a representative of AMVETS of Ohio. The Speaker of | 37 |
| the House of Representatives shall appoint, upon recommendation | 38 |
| of the organization, a representative of the Veterans of Foreign | 39 |
| Wars of Ohio. The Minority Leader of the Senate shall appoint a | 40 |
| veteran who is a member of a local veterans post not otherwise | 41 |
| represented on the commission. The Minority Leader of the House | 42 |
| of Representatives shall appoint, upon recommendation of the | 43 |
| organization, a representative of the American Legion of Ohio. | 44 |
| The Director of Veterans Services is an ex officio member of the | 45 |
| commission. | 46 |
| Initial appointments to the commission shall be made not | 47 |
| later than September 1, 2009. Vacancies shall be filled in the | 48 |
| manner provided for original appointments. | 49 |
| Members of the commission are not entitled to compensation | 50 |
| for their services. | 51 |
| The commission shall conduct public meetings on the | 52 |
| development of its recommendations, and in particular on the | 53 |
| subjects it is required to analyze under division (A) of this | 54 |
| section. The initial meeting of the commission shall be called by | 55 |
| the co-chairpersons of the commission in October 2009. | 56 |
| (C) The commission shall report its recommendations and | 57 |
| reasons supporting them to the President of the Senate, the | 58 |
| Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Minority Leader of | 59 |
| the Senate, the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, | 60 |
| and the Governor not later than March 31, 2010. The commission | 61 |
| ceases to exist upon submitting its recommendations. | 62 |