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Louis W. Blessing III (born November 11, 1980) is a Republican member of the Ohio Senate for the 8th district, and a former member of the Ohio House of Representatives for the 29th District. He is the son of Lou Blessing, who previously served in the Ohio Senate and the Ohio House of Representatives, before he was forced to step down due to term limits.

Early life, education, and pre-political career

Blessing was born in 1980 in Cincinnati, Ohio, the son of Louis William and Linda Ann (née Lameier) Blessing Jr. He graduated from La Salle High School in Cincinnati in 1999, and then from the University of Cincinnati in 2003, earning a B.A. in Mathematics. He later went on to obtain a B.S. degree in electrical engineering from the University of Cincinnati in 2007.

As a practicing engineer, Blessing earned his professional engineer's license in 2011.

Ohio General Assembly

Ohio House of Representatives

Energy

In 2017 Blessing introduced H.B. 114, legislation aimed at reducing energy efficiency mandates and eliminating renewable energy mandates in Ohio. The bill passed the House with bipartisan support.

Banking and Finance

In 2017 Blessing introduced H.B. 199. This legislation created the Ohio Residential Mortgage Lending Act for the purpose of regulating all non-depository lending secured by residential real estate, limited the application of the current Mortgage Loan Law to unsecured loans and loans secured by other than residential real estate, and modified an exemption to the Ohio Consumer Installment Loan Act.

Heroin epidemic

Along with Representative Jonathan Dever, Blessing jointly sponsored H.B. 171 in the 131st General Assembly. The legislation sought to get drug dealers off of the streets by decreasing the minimum amount of heroin to be considered a first-degree felony trafficking violation.

Education

In 2015, Representatives Blessing and Jeff Rezabek jointly sponsored H.B. 299. The legislation allows children who are with a legal, permanent or temporary custodian to apply for one of the state's Autism Scholarships. A constituent in Blessing's district, who is the legal guardian of a young girl with Autism, had lost the Autism scholarship. The legislation was ultimately passed and signed by governor John Kasich.

Alcohol

Blessing, with fellow Cincinnati Representative Denise Driehaus, introduced H.B. 47, which sought to establish "outdoor refreshment areas": areas designated by local governments that allow for open containers.

In the 132nd General Assembly, Blessing sponsored H.B. 444, which allowed free sampling of alcohol beverages in restaurants.

Ohio Senate

Blessing entered the Ohio Senate on October 9, 2019, after the retirement of his predecessor Louis Terhar.

Committee assignments

During the 14th General Assembly, Blessing was assigned to the following Ohio Senate committees:

• (Chair of) Ways & Means Committee
• (Vice Chair of) Primary & Secondary Education Committee
• Finance Committee
• Transportation Committee

Electoral history

Personal life

Blessing and his wife Heather have two children: Louis William Blessing IV and James Warner Blessing.

References

1. "Senator Louis W. Blessing III (R)". Ohio Senate. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
2. "Ohio Engineers and Surveyors Board". Retrieved 19 April 2018.
3. "Energy bill passes House, but fight expected in Senate". The Harrison Press. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
4. "Ohio House passes bill to change renewable energy mandates". The News Center. Archived from the original on March 31, 2017. Retrieved 23 April 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
5. "Governor Kasich signs 15 bills into Ohio law". ABC 6. 22 December 2017. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
6. "New heroin law takes aim at drug dealers". The Akron Legal News. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
7. "House bill would revise guidelines for Autism Scholarship program". The Akron Legal News. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
8. "Governor Signs House Bill 299 Into Law, Includes Great News for Autism Scholarship". School Choice Ohio. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
9. "Ohio House passes bill allowing drinking in designated public district". WLWT5. 27 March 2015. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
10. "State Passes H.B. 47 "Outdoor Refreshment Area Legislation"". City of Cincinnati. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
11. "Let them drink samples". The Toledo Blade. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
12. "H.B. 444". Ohio House of Representatives. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
13. "Senator Louis W. Blessing, III - Bio | The Ohio Senate". ohiosenate.gov. Retrieved 2022-11-06.
14. "Hamilton County, Ohio Board of Elections". Hamilton County, Ohio Board of Elections. Retrieved 23 April 2018.

v t e Current members of the Ohio Senate
135th General Assembly (2023-2025) President of the Senate Matt Huffman (R) President pro tempore Vacant Majority Leader Rob McColley (R) Minority Leader Nickie Antonio (D)
▌Rob McColley (R) ▌Theresa Gavarone (R) ▌Michele Reynolds (R) ▌George Lang (R) ▌Steve Huffman (R) ▌Niraj Antani (R) ▌Steve Wilson (R) ▌Louis Blessing (R) ▌Catherine Ingram (D) ▌Bob Hackett (R) ▌Paula Hicks-Hudson (D) ▌Matt Huffman (R) ▌Nathan Manning (R) ▌Terry Johnson (R) ▌Hearcel Craig (D) ▌Stephanie Kunze (R) ▌Shane Wilkin (R) ▌Jerry Cirino (R) ▌Andrew Brenner (R) ▌Tim Schaffer (R) ▌Kent Smith (D) ▌Mark Romanchuk (R) ▌Nickie Antonio (D) ▌Matt Dolan (R) ▌Bill DeMora (D) ▌Bill Reineke (R) ▌Kristina Roegner (R) ▌Vernon Sykes (D) ▌Vacant ▌Brian Chavez (R) ▌Al Landis (R) ▌Sandra O'Brien (R) ▌Alessandro Cutrona (R)
▌Republican (25) ▌Democratic (7) ▌Vacant (1) Ohio General Assembly House Senate List of past Assemblies

External links

• Official website

• Living people
• Republican Party members of the Ohio House of Representatives
• University of Cincinnati alumni
• 1980 births
• Republican Party Ohio state senators
• La Salle High School (Cincinnati, Ohio) alumni
• 21st-century members of the Ohio General Assembly