Ohio Chamber of Commerce Supports Anti-Business, Anti-Freedom RegulationsStatement from Citizens for Community Values President Aaron BaerCOLUMBUS – “Every day Ohioans of all religions do business, go to school, and live life with their LGBT neighbors. Ohio is a diverse state. We should be celebrating that, yet HB 160 creates division.By supporting HB 160, the Ohio Chamber of Commerce endorsed a bill that has shut down and intimidated small businesses nationwide.Supporters of the bill make baseless claims about the economic benefits of this bill. I would expect an organization like the Chamber that is ‘all for creating a stronger state’ would recognize junk economics when it sees it, and reject the needless and harmful regulations proposed in HB 160.Supporters of HB 160 tout biased polling to ‘prove’ economic benefits of the bill. Yet no one can provide real data that shows these bills provide any substantive economic gains.However, for example, in Forbes Magazine’s rankings of ‘Best States for Business,’ 8 out of the top 10 states do not have regulations like HB 160, while each of the bottom 10 states does have these regulations.What is undeniable is that laws like HB 160 have been used to threaten and intimidate people of faith in the marketplace. These business owners are merely trying to live their lives, run their businesses, and serve (everybody) in their community; but they may not want to participate in certain religious ceremonies or communicate certain messages.HB 160 also violates the privacy rights of women and children by allowing biological men in women’s restrooms and locker rooms.I pray the Ohio Chamber of Commerce reconsiders their support for this harmful and needless regulation. And I pray that Ohio’s lawmakers stand up for all Ohioans and reject HB 160.”