Information on Policy Matters Ohio

by Avantika P.

Speakers at the 6/21/22 City Club of Cleveland Meeting

On Tuesday June 21, 2022, Cleveland residents gathered in Public Square to listen to the City Club of Cleveland discussion between moderator Andy Chow and Hannah Halbert, Executive Director of Policy Matters Ohio. 

Policy Matters Ohio was started in 2000 by Amy Hanauer as a non-profit policy research institute as a means to create a more inclusive and equitable Ohio. Halbert joined Policy Matters Ohio in 2010 as a policy liaison and was named project director in 2018 to administer work and wages research. In 2020, Halbert became Executive Director of Policy Matters Ohio. 

Halbert grew up in rural Kentucky. Before joining Policy Matters Ohio, Halbert earned a master’s degree in nonprofit management, a law degree from Hamline University, and a bachelor’s degree from Transylvania University. She also spent nearly four years protecting homeowners during the housing crisis with the Equal Justice Foundation and the Legal Aid Society of Columbus. 

Policy Matters Ohio has contributed greatly to policy changes such as raising the minimum wage and indexing it to inflation, researching Medicaid expansion benefits, and organizing an advanced energy standard. Policy Matters Ohio has been presented with many awards from organizations like the northeast Ohio chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, the Mandel Center for Nonprofit  Organizations, the Ohio Association of Nonprofit Organizations, the Ohio Federation of Teachers, and many more.

Halbert has used her position as Executive Director at Policy Matters Ohio to protect workers against wage theft. During the City Club meeting, Halbert classified wage theft as any circumstance where workers are paid less than the minimum wage or are not fairly paid for the time worked. 

Halbert has also worked on raising the minimum wage. She stated that the wage gap has more than tripled since 1979. When asked how to pass such acts through the Republican majority, Halbert urged listeners to vote on the ballot. 

Although Policy Matters Ohio gladly accepts the label of being “progressive”, Halbert stated that she hopes such matters like building a fair and reasonable economy will not be considered radical or politicized in the future.