Ohio Fireworks Safety Coalition — Senate Bill 113, Ohio House Commerce and Labor Committee

Summary

Comments of the Ohio Fireworks Safety Coalition, dated June 22nd, 2021, addressed to Chairman Stein and Members of the Ohio House Commerce and Labor Committee, expressing concerns with Senate Bill 113. The comments say the bill is similar to House Bill 172, which passed the committee in April, and that the coalition remains concerned over any legalization of fireworks discharge. They encourage changes expanding local government powers, including allowing local governments to 'opt-in' to allowing discharge instead of the current 'opt-out' structure. They say a similar change to House Bill 253 in the prior General Assembly resulted in the coalition being neutral on that bill, and list organizations on whose behalf they are submitted.

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“Ohio Fireworks Safety Coalition — Senate Bill 113, Ohio House Commerce and Labor Committee.” Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/2021-06-23-commerce-labor-testimony-testimony-8372-d29e9ae469/, SHA-256 2ea1a0aae24e87e024df2e64a849723c916638c9f8f4e7ef7612f5f9d5508ad7.

Full text

Ohio Chapter

Testimony of Bill Cotton, MD, FAAP
use Bill 29 – Dextromethorphan Sales to Minors
February 11th, 2020
anning, Vice Chair Brenner, Ranking Member Maharath and
the Senate Local Government, Public Safety, and Veterans
mittee, thank you for the opportunity to testify in favor of
29, which would prohibit the sale of drugs that contain
orphan to minors. My name is Bill Cotton and I am here today
f the nearly 3,000 members of the Ohio Chapter of the
cademy of Pediatrics.
June 22nd, 2021
ion represents a simple, common sense solution to a problem
The Honorable Dick Stein
s thousands of teens each year. As a Pediatrician who has
Chair, Commerce and Labor Committee
n active emergency department,
Ohio House of I can attest to the dangers
Representatives
roducts pose
Ohiowhen abused and the need for strong laws to
Statehouse
ors from obtaining these43215
Columbus, Ohio products without parental consent
ess.
Dear Chairman Stein and Members of the Ohio House Commerce and Labor Committee—
orphan, or DXM, is a common ingredient in over-the-counter
On behalf of the Ohio Fireworks Safety Coalition, a statewide organization with more than fifty
old products. Dextromethorphan is used as a non-addictive
members, we are writing today to express our concerns with Senate Bill 113. We greatly
ressant and, if used the
appreciate appropriately,
opportunity to is quite
share safe.
these However,
comments andin are grateful for your time and
it has become a drug
attention of issue.
to this abuse, increasingly used and abused
nts and young adults to get high. There are a number of
names it goes including
As you know, SB “triple c’s”, allow
113 would robo, for
skittles, velvet
fireworks syrup,in the state of Ohio. This legislation
discharge
is similar to House Bill 172, which passed
D. DXM can also be used in drugs such as methylenedioxy this committee in April. One important difference is
SB called
tamine, also 113 limits theor
Molly days
MDMA.that discharge
Some userscan will
occurmix
to specified
DXM holidays throughout the year.
While this is an improvement, we remain concerned over any legalization of fireworks
as well, creating a dual threat for intoxication and abuse.
discharge in the Buckeye State.

Further, while local governments can prohibit discharge within their boundaries, they are
limited on adopting other safeguards or protocols for discharge. SB 113 also includes several
changes related to fireworks industry regulation that we are not concerned with. The
exception is language allowing ground-based fountain devices, sometimes called ‘ground
sparklers,’ to be sold in traditional retail settings. This seems to conflict with federal
classifications for consumer grade (1.4g) fireworks.
Historically, our coalition has fought successfully to protect Ohio’s prohibition on discharge.
Our concerns are straightforward: legalization of discharge will lead to an increase in
fireworks-related injuries, property damage, and fatalities. Fireworks are inherently
dangerous, and a statewide prohibition sends a clear message to Ohioans regarding these
dangers. Like speed limits and distracted driving, we know that some Ohioans disregard the
law and discharge fireworks anyway. This is unfortunate as it puts everyone nearby at risk.

We encourage the committee to consider changes to the bill that would expand local
government powers related to regulating discharge, including allowing local governments
to ‘opt-in’ to allowing discharge as opposed to the current ‘opt-out’ structure in SB 113.
A similar change was made to House Bill 253 in the prior General Assembly and that
resulted in our coalition being neutral on the bill. There is still time to find a middle ground
and compromise on this issue and we look forward to continued participation in this process.

Thank you for your thoughtful consideration and dedication to the health and safety of all
Ohioans.

Submitted on behalf of—

Ohio Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics
Prevent Blindness Ohio
Ohio Academy of Family Physicians
Ohio Chapter, American College of Emergency Physicians
Ohio Insurance Institute
Ohio Ophthalmological Society
Ohio State Medical Association
Ohio Osteopathic Association
Academy of Medicine of Cleveland and Northern Ohio

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