Matt Huffman

Matt Huffman
Member of the Ohio Senate
from the 12th District
Elect
Taking office
January 3, 2017
Succeeding Keith Faber
Member of the Ohio House of Representatives
from the 4th district
In office
January 2, 2007 – December 31, 2014
Preceded by John R. Willamowski
Succeeded by Robert Cupp
Personal details
Born (1960-04-01) April 1, 1960
Lima, Ohio
Political party Republican
Residence Lima, Ohio
Alma mater University of Notre Dame, University of Cincinnati
Profession Lawyer
Religion Catholic

Matt Huffman is the former Speaker Pro Tempore of the Ohio House of Representatives, a member of the Republican Party, representing the 4th District (Allen County) since 2007. Prior to his service in the House, he served as president of Lima City Council for seven years. He is an attorney with Lima law firm, Huffman, Kelley, Brock & Gotschalk. He is serving Chair of the House Rules and Reference Committee 130th Ohio General Assembly.

Career

A graduate of the University of Notre Dame and the University of Cincinnati, Huffman is an attorney with Lima law firm Huffman, Kelley, Brock & Gotschalk and previously served as president of Lima City Council for seven years.

Ohio House of Representatives

When John R. Willamowski was ineligible to run for another term, Huffman entered the race to succeed him.[1] Huffman ultimately won in the overwhelmingly Republican district, and took a seat on January 2, 2007. He won reelection in 2008, and 2010.

In the 128th General Assembly, Huffman was chosen by House Republicans to serve as the Chairman of the Ohio House Republican Organizational Committee. After a strong showing and a take-back of the Majority for the 129th General Assembly, Huffman is serving as majority floor leader.[2] He also is a member of the Education Committee; the Judiciary and Ethics Committee; the State Government and Elections Committee and the State Government and Elections Subcommittee on Redistricting (as Chair); as a member of the Joint Legislative Ethics Committee, and on the Ohio Legislative Service Commission.

Huffman won a fourth term in 2012 with 67% of the vote against Democrat Robert Huenke.

Positions and policies

Huffman has introduced measures that would increase from 70 to 75 the maximum age at which an attorney could seek election as a judge.[3] Proponents include the Supreme Court of Ohio, the Ohio State Bar Association and the Association of Municipal/County Judges. Ultimately, the legislation passed the Ohio House of Representatives 70–17 and with passage by the Senate, will go to the ballot in November 2011.[4] In talking of his support of the measure, Huffman has acknowledged that in the 129th Ohio General Assembly, the Ohio House of Representatives has members ranging from ages 21 to 77.[5]

He has also sought to abolish a Bureau of Motor Vehicles program which randomly sends out about 5,400 letters each week requiring Ohio drivers send in proof of insurance, stating "chronically uninsured," people who can't afford insurance or have multiple license suspensions, find ways around the verification program because they need to drive to work. "We're not going to solve that problem."[6]

A supporter of S.B. 5 which looks to limit collective bargaining, Huffman says that the bill controls government, and brings fairness and transparency to the public.[7]

Huffman is a supporter of a provision that is set to allow drilling in state parks, saying that it could be an asset to helping to reinvigorate Ohio's lackluster economy if it takes off. He voted for its passage out of the Ohio House of Representatives.[8]

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/10/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.