After The Buckeye Institute-championed Ohio House Bill 15—the best energy reform policy in a generation—was signed into law, the state has attracted more than $4 billion in private investment with six projects that will generate nearly 2,000 MW of energy already approved by the Ohio Power Siting Board or moving through the approval process.

The Buckeye Institute filed a supplemental brief in Ream v. U.S. Department of Treasury—its case seeking to overturn the federal ban on home distilling—in response to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ordering the government to address the constitutional claims at stake.

In The Lima News, The Buckeye Institute outlines the household debt crisis facing millions of Americans. “The average Ohio household now carries more than $9,000 in credit card debt alone, and delinquency is increasing,” warns The Buckeye Institute. “Professional debt settlement may offer some borrowers a third way to reduce balances with creditors and avoid disruptive bankruptcy, but Ohio’s outdated debt-settlement laws restrict that option and should be revised.”

After The Buckeye Institute filed its appeal asking the Ohio Supreme Court to hear Sheldon v. OAPSE, Freedom Foundation, Liberty Justice Center, Mackinac Center for Public Policy, and National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation filed an amicus brief in support of The Buckeye Institute’s client Matthew Sheldon, urging the court to take the case and put an end to illegal union wage theft.

The Buckeye Institute commented on the November 2025 jobs report from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, saying, “Despite the improved unemployment rate, November’s private-sector employment is 14,000 jobs below August’s peak, confirming that Ohio’s job market is weakening.” The federal government shutdown led to the cancellation of the October jobs report and a delay in the release of the November report. 

“After several years of headline-grabbing decisions that reshaped national political debate—from abortion and affirmative action to religious liberty and presidential power—in its October 2024 Term, the United States Supreme Court largely stepped back from the culture war flashpoints and focused on institutional structure, procedural discipline, and interpretive clarity.” In Structure Over Spectacle, The Buckeye Institute’s David C. Tryon and the Defense of Freedom Institute for Policy Studies’ Donald A. Daugherty look back on the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2024 term.

The Buckeye Institute commented after Governor Mike DeWine signed a trio of bills—House Bill 186, House Bill 309, and House Bill 335—which will help lower property taxes on Ohioans. “The Buckeye Institute applauds the General Assembly and Governor DeWine for giving Ohio taxpayers the biggest property tax reform in half a century...These Buckeye Institute-recommended policies will help homeowners struggling with skyrocketing property tax bills.”

The Buckeye Institute filed its fourth amicus brief with the Ohio Supreme Court in Bowling v. DeWine, urging the court to affirm, once and for all, that Ohio’s Cooperation Statute does not require the governor to accept federal money every time it is offered. The statute is crystal clear in stating that nothing “precludes the director from ceasing to participate in any voluntary, optional, special, or emergency program offered by the federal government.”

In 2025, Ohio maintained its 35th place ranking in the Economic Freedom of North America 2025 (EFNA) report for the second year in a row. The report, released by The Buckeye Institute in partnership with Canada’s Fraser Institute, ranks all states and provinces in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, as well as the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, based on economic freedom, measured by government spending, taxation, and labor-market freedom. 

The Buckeye Institute commented on the September jobs report from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, saying, “While Ohio’s unemployment rate fell from five to 4.8 percent, the September jobs report showed that Ohio’s job market took a step backward, as the private sector lost 2,000 jobs and more workers left the job market, leading to a decline in the labor force participation rate to 62.4 percent, which tied the national average.”