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Written Testimony of Jan Nespor, PhD — HB291 Creates the Ohio International Trade Commission

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Written testimony of Jan Nespor, PhD, a professor of Education Policy at the Ohio State University, against HB291, which creates the Ohio International Trade Commission, to the Development Committee, dated June 16, 2025. Nespor states that the testimony is submitted as a private citizen and not on behalf of Ohio State. The testimony argues that the bill is about creating tighter links with Israel and that the bill would fund the partnership in an opaque fashion by allowing the Commission to accept gifts, grants and bequests. It urges the committee to vote NO on HB291.

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“Written Testimony of Jan Nespor, PhD — HB291 Creates the Ohio International Trade Commission.” Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/2025-06-18-development-testimony-testimony-10459-e76edb1f3d/, SHA-256 dba7f8c232449bd6ea98727b96aaa00348838c5c15e442c4c9ab327ca260e1c3.

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                              Written Testimony of Jan Nespor, PhD
                        HB291 Creates the Ohio International Trade Commission
                                           State of Ohio
                                     Development Committee
                                           June 16, 2025

Chair Hoops, Vice Chair Lorenz, Ranking Member Abdullahi, and members of the Development
Committee

Thank you, Chair and members of the committee, for the opportunity to testify against HB291. My
name is Jan Nespor, and I am a professor of Education Policy at the Ohio State University. I do not
represent Ohio State, but rather am submitting testimony as a private citizen.

Although other countries are mentioned in the proposed legislation (Ireland, for no obvious reason,
and Japan, already the country with the largest FDI in the state), this bill is about creating tighter
links with Israel, “particularly regarding electronic and cyber warfare capabilities.” The proposed
Commission would deepen the state’s already unwise investment in the military economy1 -- there’s
a negative correlation between military expenditures and economic growth.2 It would also tighten
the state’s ties to Israel’s cyber warfare industry at a moment when that industry is actively involved
in multiple wars, under stress from international sanctions, and being bought up by western
corporations and private equity.3 The bill would fund this dangerous military partnership in an
opaque fashion, allowing the Commission to raise money “through direct solicitation or other fundraising
events alone, or with other groups, and accept gifts, grants, and bequests from individuals, corporations, foundations,
governmental agencies, and public and private organizations and institutions.” This suggests that the
Commission would mainly serve those groups that contribute large sums to its operation, and that in
turn it would function as a vessel though which these “corporations, foundations,” and
“government agencies” – apparently even those of foreign countries – could insinuate them into
policy and practice regarding the state’s critical infrastructure. The bill thus invites foreign influence
into Ohio policy, inserts Ohio in Israel’s ongoing wars, and does these things without transparency,
oversight, or public input or benefit.

If the legislature wants to improve foreign trade it should pursue deeper relations with the state’s top
export markets – Canada, Mexico, China, Japan, and Brazil4 -- and develop better relations with the
countries from which most of its foreign-born citizens come (India, Mexico). If Ohio wants to
develop particular industries that would promote a livable future for its citizens there are many
better alternatives than cyber warfare. Please stand with Ohio families and vote NO on HB 291.

Sincerely,


1 https://cyber.ohio.gov/home ; https://www.tabletmag.com/feature/american-vulcan-palmer-luckey-anduril
2 Elshafei, A. S. M. A., Shrahili, M., Kayid, M., & Mohammad, S. (2025). Military expenditure and economic growth in

the largest military spending country: Using machine learning analysis. Journal of Radiation Research and Applied Sciences,
18(2), 101429. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrras.2025.101429
3 For example, https://www.israelhayom.com/2025/04/04/how-the-us-led-to-israels-offensive-cyber-collapse/

https://www.dropsitenews.com/p/google-acquisition-tech-wiz-israel-gaza-8200?
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/r1er11mi61e
4 https://www.worldstopexports.com/ohios-top-10-exports/

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