Political briefs – June 19

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Politics

BROWN APPLAUDS TREASURY’S MOVE TO FEATURE A WOMAN ON NEW $10 BILL — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) – ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs – issued the following statement after U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew’s announced that a woman will be featured on the redesigned $10 bill. The new $10 bill will be issued in 2020 during the 100th anniversary of the Constitution’s 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote.

“America’s currency is one of the most visible means we have for commemorating our nation’s greatest leaders, and it’s about a time that a woman receives this honor,” Brown said. “There are too few reminders in our everyday lives of the tremendous contributions women have made in building and shaping our nation. In addition to ending the monopoly of men on our paper currency, the new bill will have tactile features to make it easier for millions of blind and visually impaired Americans to identify and organize their money.”

The Treasury Department is asking Americans to suggest possible symbols and notable women to include via the website TheNew10.Treasury.gov or through social media using the hashtag #TheNew10.

DEWINE’S OFFICE WINS NATIONAL AWARD – Following a unanimous ruling in Ohio’s favor earlier this week, a national group has recognized Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine’s office for the high quality of the office’s work in the United States Supreme Court. The National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) has awarded a Best Brief Award to the Ohio Attorney General’s Office for its work in Ohio v. Clark, which was decided earlier today with a unanimous ruling in favor of Ohio’s arguments.

“I am honored that our office has received this important award,” said Attorney General DeWine. “I know that we have some of the best lawyers in the country working to protect Ohioans, and it is especially important that Ohioans have top-notch advocacy in the U.S. Supreme Court.”

The National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG), annually bestows “Best Brief Awards” to recognize excellence in briefwriting in the U.S. Supreme Court by state attorneys. The award is meant to honor excellent legal writing and to highlight briefs that should serve as a model for lawyers across the country. The award was presented during the NAAG Summer Meeting on Thursday.

The Ohio Attorney General’s Office has an Appeals Section, led by a State Solicitor, devoted to handling the State’s major appeals, such as those in the U.S. Supreme Court and the Ohio Supreme Court. The Best Brief Award was given to the team that wrote the award-winning brief for Ohio v. Clark, including State Solicitor Eric Murphy and Deputy Solicitor Sam Peterson. In addition to writing the court brief, the Ohio Attorney General’s Office provided extensive legal research, argument preparation, and coaching in advance of the oral arguments.

The winning brief asked the Court to overturn another court’s ruling, which had thrown out a child abuse conviction because it said the child’s statement to a teacher about the abuse could not be used as evidence. Ohio’s brief argued that the statement was allowed and did not violate the U.S. Constitution. The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously agreed with Ohio’s position. This victory greatly assists prosecutors in convicting child abusers and other criminals.

AS AIRLINES CONSIDER REDUCING CARRY-ON BAG SIZES, BROWN CALLS FOR FREE CHECKED LUGGAGE FOR CONSUMERS – In response to a proposal by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) that would reduce the size of carry-on bags for airline passengers, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) joined Senate colleagues in calling on major airlines to reduce or eliminate checked luggage fees for consumers if they plan on adopting the IATA’s standard. The senators wrote to Alaska Airlines, Allegiant Air, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Frontier Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Spirit Airlines, United Airlines, and Virgin America.

“Airline travel has become increasingly expensive for the average American,” said Brown. “Consumers shouldn’t have to shoulder the extra cost of checking their bags if an airline makes it more difficult to travel with a carry-on luggage.”

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