Michael Stinziano

Michael Stinziano (born November 23, 1979) is a Columbus Democrat who serves as the Franklin County Auditor. He took office on March 11, 2019 after winning the election in November 2018.[1] Stinziano was president pro tem of the Columbus City Council, serving the entire City of Columbus from 2016-2018. Before that, Stinziano previously served in the Ohio House of Representatives representing Ohio's 18th District from 2013-2016 and, before redistricting in the 2012 election, served as the representative for Ohio's 25th district from 2011-2013.[2]

Michael Stinziano
Auditor Franklin County, Ohio
Assumed office
March 11, 2019
Member of Columbus City Council
In office
January 4, 2016 – February 22, 2019
Member of the Ohio House of Representatives
from the 18th district
In office
January 3, 2011 – January 1, 2016
Preceded byDan Stewart
Succeeded byKristin Boggs
Personal details
Born (1979-11-23) November 23, 1979
Columbus, Ohio, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
ResidenceColumbus, Ohio, U.S.
Alma materThe Ohio State University, George Washington University, University of Richmond
ProfessionAttorney
Websitehttps://www.michaelstinziano.com/

Early life and education

Michael Stinziano was born November 23, 1979, at Mount Carmel West Hospital in Franklinton and grew up on King Avenue in the Short North and University District communities. He developed a strong understanding of public service from his father, Mike Stinziano, who served 22 years in the Ohio General Assembly.[3] Following his graduation from high school in Columbus, Stinziano earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Richmond and master's degree in public administration from George Washington University. After returning to Columbus, Michael graduated from The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law and became an attorney.[4]

Stinziano served as State Representative for the 18th house district, representing Columbus communities of Bexley, Franklinton, German Village, Grandview Heights, the Hilltop, Olde Towne East, Ohio State University and Italian Village.[5] His prior experience includes work as the Director of the Franklin County Board of Elections; as an assistant to the general counsel for Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner; as a law clerk for the Ohio House Democratic Caucus; as a legal extern for the Supreme Court of Ohio; as a research assistant for two members of the British Parliament; and as a congressional intern in Washington.[4]

Michael and his wife Caroline McNamee Stinziano, son Cooper (age 6), and daughter Riley (age 4) live in University Community/ Short North with their two rescue pugs, Wrigley and Fenway, and belong to St. Francis of Assisi Parish. Stinziano is a member of the Ohio Commodores, the Columbus Italian Club, the Shamrock Club of Columbus, the Hilltop Kiwanis, the Short North Civic Association, Sigma Chi Fraternity, a graduate of the Columbus Civilian Police Academy, an Executive Committee Member of the Franklin County Democratic Party and a Certified Tourism Ambassador for the City of Columbus.[6]

Public service and political career

With incumbent Representative Dan Stewart unable to seek another term due to term limits, Stinziano, whose father, Mike Stinziano had held the same seat for two decades, entered the race. Stinziano faced a primary challenge in John Sowers, a local business owner, but won by about 3,200 votes. Originally, Stinziano was going to face Republican Scott Hubbard in the general election, however, Hubbard dropped out, leaving Stinziano with a clear path to the Statehouse.[7] On January 3, 2011, Stinziano was sworn into his first term.

Stinziano won a second term in 2012 over Republican Bill Colgan with 73.39% of the electorate, and a third in 2014 with 74% of the vote.

In November 2018 election for Franklin County Auditor, he successfully ousted Clarence Mingo, a Republican.

Some of his accomplishments as Franklin County Auditor include: In June 2019, Stinziano implemented a six-week paid parental and caregiver leave policy.[8] Stinziano streamlined the process for farmers impacted by inclement weather to still receive their tax breaks under the Current Agricultural Use Value (CAUV) program.[9] Tax breaks were also distributed to residents and businesses that suffered property value reductions due to inclement weather.[10] Stinziano developed a Real Estate Sales Dashboard that shows recent home sales on a GIS map. The Dashboard can show the month's total sales amount, median sales price, and number of sales by municipality, school district, or area commission.[11] In May 2019, Stinziano inspected the gas pumps in Franklin County to ensure there were no credit card skimming devices, no such devices were found.[12] The deadline to license a dog in Franklin County was extended to March 31, giving residents more time and flexibility to license their dogs.[13] He created an electronic version of the real estate title form DTE 100 and made the Auditor's Office website available in multiple languages to make the services provided by the office more accessible.[14][15]

As a state representative he piloted several pieces of legislation stemming directly from constituent ideas presented at his weekly community hours.[16]

When a constituent shared the news of a student-athlete who ended up in a wheelchair after returning to play too soon after suffering a concussion, Stinziano sponsored legislation to prevent sports-related head injuries along with Representative Sean O'Brien.[17] House Bill 143 established return-to-play standards after an athlete exhibits signs and symptoms of a concussion and has been recognized as national model legislation among the more than 25 other states that have adopted similar laws to help protect our young athletes from serious injury with a return-to-play law.[18]

Other ideas suggested by constituents that are now Ohio law include: HB 117 Operation of Captive Insurance Companies in Ohio; HB 126 Living Will Changes; HB 170 Naloxone; HB 265 Accessible Language in ORC and Signage; HB 365 Tax Overpayment Notification; HB 344 Create Ohio Statehouse License Plate; and HB 448 Infant Mortality Education & Prevention.[19][20][21][22][23]

Stemming from his background in election law and as the Director of the Board of Elections, Stinziano is a vocal advocate for participation in the electoral process. Stinziano has supported a statewide process for dealing with and counting provisional ballots during elections, and sponsored legislation to create online voter registration for Ohioans.[24][25]

Election history
Ohio House 18th District: 2010 to 2014
Year Democrat Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct
2014 Michael Stinziano 16,125 74.46% Rob Sharrah 5,532 25.54%
2012 Michael Stinziano 33,380 73.39% William Colgan 12,101 26.61
2010 Michael Stinziano 20,144 100.00%

References
  1. Kovac, Marc. "Democrats win Franklin County commissioner, auditor races". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  2. "Rep. Stinziano Talks Homelessness, Transportation and Transformation in Campaign for City Council". Columbus Underground. Columbus, Ohio. 2015-02-25. Retrieved 2015-03-05.
  3. "Serving in Ohio legislature often a family tie that binds". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2016-05-09.
  4. bio of Stinziano
  5. "Race begins for filling open 18th House District seat". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2016-05-05.
  6. "Rep. Michael Stinziano | Ohio Future Caucus". Millennial Action Project. Retrieved 2016-05-05.
  7. Stinziano runs unopposed, will represent 25th House District
  8. Franklin County auditor’s office extends its paid family leave to six weeks
  9. Franklin County auditor cuts red tape for farmers hurt by heavy rains
  10. Franklin County auditor: Property-tax relief available for weather damage
  11. Real Estate Sales Dashboard
  12. No skimmers found during inspections of Franklin County gas pumps
  13. Franklin County dog-license deadline extended to March 31
  16. "10 Columbus city council candidates name their biggest issues". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2016-05-05.
  17. Bischoff, Laura (2011-03-08). "New bill focused on brain injuries". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved 2011-03-10.
  18. "Ohio law and OHSAA rule on when high school and youth athletes can return to play from concussions amount to guidelines". cleveland.com. Retrieved 2016-05-05.
  19. "New Ohio captive insurance market: Good for business development & industry growth : Ohio Insurance Institute – Oii". www.ohioinsurance.org. Retrieved 2016-05-05.
  20. "Johnson Introduces Bill To Expand Access To Narcan | Representative Terry Johnson (R) | The Ohio House of Representatives". www.ohiohouse.gov. Retrieved 2016-05-05.
  21. "Vindy.com - Lawmakers want to remove 'handicapped' from signs, Ohio law". Vindy.com. Retrieved 2016-05-05.
  22. "Reps. Duffey, Stinziano Introduce Law To Require Notifying Taxpayers Who Overpaid Their State Taxes | Representative Mike Duffey (R) | The Ohio House of Representatives". www.ohiohouse.gov. Retrieved 2016-05-05.
  23. "The Akron Legal News". www.akronlegalnews.com. Retrieved 2016-05-05.
  24. Siegel, Jim (2011-01-23). "Ohio House moving fast on voter photo-ID bill". Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2011-03-23.
  25. "Online voter registration would save money, reduce errors, Ohio officials say". cleveland.com. Retrieved 2016-05-05.
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