Klopfenstein, left, and Markward, right
PAULDING — Rep. Roy Klopfenstein, R-Paulding, is seeking re-election in Ohio’s 82nd House district in a rematch against his former opponent, Magdalene Markward.
The freshman representative spent years working as a county commissioner in Paulding County before joining the General Assembly.
He said the experience inspired him to work on legislation that would allow county commissioners to contract with another county’s engineer when their county engineer office is vacant, though the bill remains in committee.
Markward did not respond to requests for an interview. Her website lists support for abortion rights, renewable energy, universal healthcare, a living wage, paid family and paid sick leave and universal gun background checks, among other issues.
The 82nd District encompasses Paulding, Putnam and Van Wert counties, as well as the southern portion of Defiance County.
Klopfenstein’s first bill signed into law created an exemption for nursing mothers to be excused from jury duty, prompted by a call from a mother of a 1-month-old baby who said she was told to bring formula to jury duty, he said.
Lawmakers considered similar legislation in the past but “never got (it) across the finish line,” Klopfenstein said, adding: “If a mother is nursing a young child, she should have the ability to be exempted” from jury duty.
A farmer himself, Klopfenstein sponsored legislation to remove milkweed from the noxious weed list so monarch butterfly gardeners wouldn’t face criminal charges for harvesting or selling milkweed seed.
He’s now working on legislation to create a temporary tax credit for gas stations to sell ethanol-based fuel. The bill would make the tax credit available for four years with a $10 million limit, whichever comes first, Klopfenstein said.
“In many cases, when you try to help an industry, it becomes an open-ended tax credit,” Klopfenstein said.
If re-elected, Klopfenstein said he would like to finish work on legislation prohibiting foreign adversaries such as China from purchasing real estate near military bases. He cited the example of a Chinese company that purchased land near the Grand Forks Air Force base in North Dakota, which raised security concerns.
In some cases, Klopfenstein said Chinese entities have purchased water plants and other essential infrastructure through shell companies, which conceal ownership.
“I don’t believe their intentions are to live the capitalist dream here in America,” Klopfenstein said. “It was strategically placed to spy on our military base.”
Klopfenstein would like to see the General Assembly reign in its budget next session too.
ONLY ON LIMAOHIO.COM
See more stories about what’s on the November ballot at LimaOhio.com/tag/election.
