Buckeye Institute: Legislative Update

Policy win by The Buckeye Institute will enhance
private property protections

 

The Buckeye Institute achieved another policy victory this week, as the Ohio House of Representatives passed a measure reforming civil asset forfeiture, a procedure under Ohio law that allows the government to take property from individuals who have not even been charged with a crime.

 

On Wednesday, lawmakers approved House Bill 347, which eliminates civil asset forfeiture in most cases involving property worth less than $25,000, and strengthens what the government must prove for property to be forfeited.

The Buckeye Institute provided policy guidance on this issue to legislative leadership, including the House Judiciary Committee Chairman. Buckeye's experts also testified about cases in which property was wrongly seized by the government costing innocent citizens thousands of dollars.

"This policy is a significant step forward in protecting property rights, which at the same time preserves the ability of the government to seize property from those actually convicted of crimes," Daniel Dew, The Buckeye Institute's Criminal Justice Fellow, said.

 

"Government exists to protect private property of the innocent, not to confiscate it," Robert Alt, president and CEO of The Buckeye Institute, said. "More can and should be done to protect the property rights of innocent Ohioans. Buckeye will continue to champion additional reforms to protect these rights."

House Bill 347 will next go to the Senate, where it will likely be reviewed after the November election.

Click here to read The Buckeye Institute's testimony on reforming civil asset forfeiture.

# # # Founded in 1989, The Buckeye Institute is an independent research and educational institution--a think tank--whose mission is to advance free-market public policy in the states.