Catching Our Eye News Roundup, Sept. 8, 2026

Every morning in the Ohio Capital Journal’s free newsletter, The Eye-Opener, we round up the news and commentary from across Ohio and around the country and world that is catching our attention. We call this feature Catching Our Eye, republished here.

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Catching Our Eye

• The Mayors. The Statehouse News Bureau’s Jo Ingles reports, “Bipartisan Ohio mayors’ group has recommendations for incoming governor and new lawmakers.”

The Ohio Mayors Alliance has a four-part proposal it wants lawmakers to consider:

• An investment fund to offer grants and zero-interest loans for site preparation, infrastructure and redevelopment, created by reserving 20% of the state’s annual growth in sales and use tax collections

• A program for workforce housing, along with funds to help finance water, sewer, transportation and other infrastructure

• A fund to help communities hire, train and retain first responders, totaling 10% of what cities and local governments spend on police and fire payrolls

• A “reset” of the partnership between state and local governments, including a bipartisan task force looking into state revenue-sharing programs, a Home Rule Commission and a forum for collaboration between the state and local governments

• Springfield ICE lawsuit. WYSO’s Kathryn Mobley reports, “ACLU of Ohio files lawsuit against ICE agents on behalf of Springfield man.”

A Springfield man is working with the ACLU of Ohio to sue seven Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers for what he claims is retaliation that violates his First Amendment rights to record officers in public.

• Politicizing Ohio higher education. Ideastream’s Conor Morris reports, “Ohio public universities are ramping up offerings at ‘intellectual diversity’ centers.”

After a slow start last year, five Ohio public universities say they are ramping up programming and are seeing increased student enrollment at the civic education centers established by Republican state lawmakers.

Ohio Senator Jerry Cirino (R-Kirtland) also introduced a bill in June, Senate Bill 461, that would beef up requirements around the centers, including a requirement that all students take at least one three-credit-hour civics course through the centers to graduate. The centers, meant to promote “intellectual diversity,” were created by a Cirino-sponsored bill in 2023 in a bid to combat alleged liberal bias on college campuses. Cirino also sponsored Senate Bill 1, which outlawed campus diversity, equity and inclusion programs last year.

• Another Flock down. WVXU’s Isabel Nissley reports, “Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office pauses Flock camera program.”

The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office is pausing use of Flock Safety cameras amid growing scrutiny over the automated license plate readers.

Sheriff Charmaine McGuffey announced Thursday her department will temporarily suspend use of its 75 cameras and shut down access to the information the technology provides.