Local News

Franklin County, Columbus, Ohio – As Franklin County Administrator Kenneth N. Wilson prepares to transition from his two-year term as President to Immediate Past President of the National Association of County Administrators (NACA) this summer, he has been elected to a new national leadership role that continues his service to public administration at the highest levels. At the 2025 Annual Forum …

COLUMBUS, OH & INDIANAPOLIS, IN – A pair of tractor-trailers with automated truck platooning technology began traveling Interstate 70 between Columbus, Ohio, and Indianapolis, Indiana, today delivering shipments for EASE Logistics. This deployment is a collaboration between the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT)’s DriveOhio initiative and the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) to advance the adoption of truck automation technologies in the logistics …

The Licking County Health Department’s (LCHD) Safe Communities Coalition reported one local crash fatality in March 2025. In March 2024, there was also one reported crash fatality. Year-to-date (March 31, 2025), there have been four crash fatalities in Licking County. At this time last year, there were three crash fatalities year-to-date (March 31, 2024). Our sincere condolences to the families …

SWACO has unveiled a new and improved version of its Business Recycling Champion program at a special screening of the movie, Beyond Zero, in conjunction with the Columbus Chamber of Commerce.  Beyond Zero focuses on the efforts of a billion-dollar business to reduce its environmental impact to nothing and, eventually, to even less than that.  SWACO’s Business Recycling Champion program …

(COLUMBUS, Ohio)— Ohio Governor Mike DeWine today announced $3 million in funding for 38 local law enforcement agencies to help their drug task forces combat illegal drug activity and enforce the state’s drug laws. Grants from the 2025 Ohio Drug Law Enforcement Fund will support drug task forces in their work to prevent drug trafficking, pharmaceutical diversion, and other organized criminal …

COLUMBUS – April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, and while distracted driving remains a significant concern in Ohio, new data indicates that two years after the state’s “phones down” law took effect, Ohio is seeing positive, lifesaving results. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed Senate Bill 288 in 2023. The bill strengthened the state’s distracted driving laws by making it a primary offense …

COLUMBUS, Ohio)—Ohio Governor Mike DeWine hosted a press conference today in support of legislation that would ban the use of cell phones in public schools in Ohio. Sponsored by Sen. Jane Timken (R-Jackson Township), Senate Bill 158 incorporates language first introduced by Governor DeWine in his executive budget – prohibiting student use of cell phones during the school day. “It’s clear that …

(COLUMBUS, Ohio) — Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost is seeking a lead role in a securities class-action lawsuit accusing the pharmaceutical company GSK, formerly known as GlaxoSmithKline, of concealing the cancer risks of its once-bestselling drug, fueling billions in losses for investors. Yost on Monday filed a motion to have the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System appointed as co-lead plaintiff alongside the …

Microsoft has indefinitely postponed its plans to build three data centers in Licking County, including sites in Heath, New Albany, and Hebron. The Heath location, which was set to be developed on farmland, will now remain in agricultural use for the time being. Heath Mayor Mark John stated that the city wasn’t dependent on the project’s timeline. Microsoft confirmed it …