1. United States
2. Ohio
3. Letter

The final version of the Ohio state budget has raised some concerns. The funding for our state to rejoin the Midwest Interstate Passenger Rail Commission has been cut, and the requirement for a passenger rail representative on the Ohio Rail Development Commission has been removed. I find this alarming as, especially in a state the size of Ohio with many rural areas, people may find themselves unable to travel in cases where travelling by car is impossible or unideal; for example, disabled individuals who cannot drive due to their dis ability— such as myself— and elderly individuals like my own grandmother, who may find things like driving at night more treacherous with age. Freedom of movement is paramount to residents' ability to find jobs, visit family, experience the culture of other parts of the US, and much more. In addition, the improvements made to freight rail infrastructure when that same infrastructure is used for passenger rail, which has stricter guidelines, reduces the risk of accidents like the derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. Please consider doing what you can to see if these aspects of the budget are able to be modified.