Tag: ohio fairs

With a pandemic still in full swing, Gov. Mike DeWine vetoed a bill that would have reopened county fairs. Senate Bill 375, which would have voided a July public health order to restrict Ohio fairs to junior fairs only, passed the Ohio legislature in December with largely partisan votes and discussions.

A bill intended to update fair rules and help Ohio fairs work around budget challenges and update state law about fairs and amusement rides recently passed the state legislature.

Shortly after midnight Dec. 18, the Ohio House passed Senate Bill 375, a bill that seeks to void a July 30 health order limiting fairs to junior fairs only.

Amid an intense election day and rising COVID-19 cases, two Ohio state senators introduced a bill seeking to overturn a July 30 health director order that limited fairs to junior fairs only.

Between the pandemic's impact on the 2020 fair season and on off-season event centers and other rentals, fairs have been hit hard this year.

The challenges of this year’s fair season have presented opportunities for some fairs, like the Carroll County Fair, to experiment, and to cast a wider net for junior fair support.

Today, Gov. Mike DeWine ordered that all Ohio fairs starting July 31 and after must be limited to junior fairs only, following COVID-19 case increases and outbreaks connected to two county fairs.

Following Gov. DeWine's July 22 press conference, and a report on the Pickaway County Fair, other fairs in Ohio have modified their plans for 2020, some completely canceling their senior fairs, under guidance from local health departments.

Yesterday, Gov. Mike DeWine criticized early county fairs, saying a COVID-19 outbreak has already been connected to one, though he did not say which one. He also issued a statewide mask mandate for Ohio.  This morning, the Pickaway County Fair, the first Ohio fair to proceed with a full or modified fair in June, disputed local health district reports linking the fair to an outbreak.

Less than halfway into the 2020 fair season, Gov. Mike DeWine called on Ohio county fairs to do a better job of sticking to state guidelines for fairs amid increasing COVID-19 cases in his press conference July 22. He also announced a statewide mask mandate, to go into effect July 23, which will include the fairs.