The Buckeye Institute commented on the August 2026 jobs report from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS), saying, “While Ohio’s unemployment rate fell to 3.3 percent in August, the labor force participation rate also fell to 61.3 percent, meaning more Ohioans are no longer looking for work. Although Ohio has a lower unemployment rate than the national average, the national job market significantly outpaced Ohio in August, with more workers looking for jobs, a declining unemployment rate, and 127,000 new private-sector jobs.”

The Buckeye Institute filed its response brief in McNutt v. U.S. Department of Justice—one of The Buckeye Institute’s two cases challenging the unconstitutional federal prohibition on home distilling—with the U.S. Supreme Court. In its response, The Buckeye Institute urged the Supreme Court to grant review of McNutt and also Ream v. U.S. Department of Treasury. “The importance of the fundamental constitutional questions in these two cases being addressed together can hardly be overstated.”

In a new policy brief, Don’t Pull the Plug: A Better Blueprint for Ohio’s Data Center Future, The Buckeye Institute argues against short-sighted blanket bans on data centers and instead calls on state and local governments to address the challenges data centers pose without unnecessarily discouraging—or killing—investment in this vital new industry. “While Ohio policymakers should not dismiss legitimate public concerns about data centers, they should reject moratoriums on their construction.”

The Buckeye Institute filed its amicus brief in Hall v. Fleming, calling on the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case and overturn Locke v. Davey, which wrongly interpreted the U.S. Constitution’s establishment clause and endorsed an unprecedented suspicion of religion in public life. “The Buckeye Institute urges the Supreme Court to take this case and tell Virginia it cannot deny publicly available scholarship funds to college students who major in religious subjects.”

The Buckeye Institute filed its amicus brief in Jouppi v. Alaska, calling on the U.S. Supreme Court to tell Alaska that seizing a plane over a six-pack of beer is the embodiment of an excessive fine that the U.S. Constitution’s Eighth Amendment prohibits. “For 14 years, the state of Alaska has been trying to seize Mr. Jouppi’s plane over a six-pack of beer. A $95,000 plane, forfeited for a six-pack of Budweiser, exemplifies the type of financial incentives that are corrupting our criminal justice system.” 

The Buckeye Institute filed its amicus brief in Grand v. University Heights, Ohio, calling on the U.S. Supreme Court to protect the property rights and religious liberty rights guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution. “From the Pilgrims secret meetings in Scrooby Manor, to John Locke’s theories of linking property and religious liberty, to James Madison’s belief that the free exercise of one’s religion is itself a property right, property and freedom of conscience have flowed together throughout American history and must be protected from government tyranny.”

The Buckeye Institute joined Washington Legal Foundation and the National Federation of Independent Business Small Business Legal Center in filing a second amicus brief in Ohio Telecom Association v. Federal Communications Commission, after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit agreed to rehear the case en banc (by the full court), calling on the court to affirm congressional authority over federal rulemaking. 

Robert Alt, president and chief executive officer of The Buckeye Institute, received the prestigious 2026 Thomas A. Roe Award for Excellence in Leadership. Established in 1992 and named after the late businessman and generous philanthropist, State Policy Network’s Thomas A. Roe Award pays tribute to those who have advanced public policy solutions grounded in free-market principles—particularly in the state policy movement—and recognizes leadership, innovation, and accomplishment.

The Buckeye Institute filed its amicus brief in Viramontes v. Cook Co. and Grant v. Higgins, calling on the U.S. Supreme Court to tell Cook County and other jurisdictions that arbitrary firearm bans violate the U.S. Constitution. “Contrary to popular belief, detachable magazines are nothing new. The public’s visceral reaction against them does not give Cook County, or other jurisdictions, a license to violate the constitutional rights of Americans.”

The Buckeye Institute filed its third amicus brief in the National Prescription Opiate multidistrict litigation case (In re OptumRx) before Judge Dan Polster in the U.S. Court for the Northern District of Ohio. In its brief, Buckeye calls on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit to issue a writ of mandamus ordering the district court  to strictly adhere to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure that govern all civil court cases.