WYSO Today: June 30, 2026

Last week, people filled City Hall Plaza in downtown Springfield. They advocated for all Haitian immigrants, especially those here on TPS. On Wednesday, work permits connected to Haiti and Syria's TPS designation will become invalid. Next Monday, driver's licenses connected to those work permits will become invalid. A lot of people will be fired, and I'm afraid that can lead to a humanitarian crisis. A crisis, Rose Tamar Joseph says no group in Springfield is financially prepared to handle. Joseph is the operation director for the Springfield Haitian Support Center. She says clients and her friends are anxious.

Joseph's TPS is connected to her asylum application, thus she has some protection at this time. A nation with claims to have its roots. in Christianity and the principles of Jesus Christ, love God with all of our being and love our neighbor as ourselves. Somebody say, amen. Jeff Rojean is a client of the Haitian Support Center. In 2017, he moved to Springfield on TPS. He has a job and has built a comfortable life. While he doesn't know what he'll do next, he enjoyed the rally and appreciates the outpouring of support from people who don't even know him. We got a lot of people that stand with us, and that's mean we're not allowed.

Advocates urge TPS holding immigrants to seek counsel from an immigration attorney to explore possible visa options and asylum. Meanwhile, some Springfield churches may designate themselves as sanctuary locations. They and other nonprofits are accepting donations of all kinds. Reporting for WYSO News, I'm Catherine Mowgli.

The Agraria Center for Regenerative Practices has joined 24 plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the USDA. They're calling for the reinstatement of terminated grants. After a successful initial suit in August of last year, these additional plaintiffs hope to restore funding to their programs that work to secure affordable farmland, capital, and markets for next generation farmers. WISO Shefranc has more on how the local nonprofit is working to restore $500,000. Farm stand, Earth Justice, Farmers Justice Center, and the Southern Environmental Law Center are leading the lawsuit. The second round of plaintiffs are challenging the legality of the USDA's termination of funding after the agency cleaned the programs offered little improvement to land access and excessive spending. But the U.S. District Court in D.C. granted a preliminary injunction restoring six grants in the first case,

suggesting other similar grants canceled could be eligible for the same relief. That's according to Hannah Wolf. She is a staff attorney with farm stand. What the government did was arbitrary and capricious, which is basically like they did not go through the proper, like, reasoned decision making in terminating these grants. Tia Stewart of Agraria says without these funds, they can't offer as much technical assistance or education to farmers need. She and Agraria board member Sarah Hall hope this suit will reinstate the same. the program's funding to assist farmers in a time of need. A spokesperson for the USDA declined to comment on the pending litigation. For WYSO News, I'm Shea Frank. The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld a

Mississippi law that allows a five-day grace period for mail-in ballots that are postmarked by election day. However, that ruling will not have any effect on Ohio's new law that eliminated a grace period for mail-in ballots. State House correspondent Joe Ingalls reports. Ohio Secretary of State spokesperson Ben Kendall says the Supreme Court ruling gives states the rights to govern their own elections. So Ohio law requiring ballots to arrive by Election Day will stand. Jen Miller with the League of Women Voters of Ohio says the court's ruling means Ohio voters will have stricter voting laws than necessary. Once again, Ohio voters are facing more barriers to the ballot box than those in surrounding states. says voters should call on lawmakers to restore the former grace period for mail-in ballots,

but Kendall says the court gives Congress the right to make a federal law to clarify this policy, and he says federal lawmakers should do that. Joe Ingalls at the Ohio Public Radio State House News Bureau. A state commission once again green-lit fracking under Ohio's state parks and public lands. This time, more than 10,000 acres. And it was again met with shouts, from environmental activists. State House correspondent Sarah Donaldson has this. Ohio's Oil and Gas Land Management Commission okayed more than 20 extraction bids, including the drill under Egypt Valley Wildlife Area, Jockey Hollow Wildlife Area, and Salt Fork State Park. Their unanimous votes were often drowned out by this.

Is there any further discussion amongst the commissioners before we proceed? What will pay for? Hearing none may have a motion to select bid number seven is the highest of best bid. As activists with Save Ohio Parks who have become regulars at these meetings, heckled commissioners. Kathy Cowen-Becker says she's worried about the environmental effects. It creates a lot of pollution, but it's also noise. There's a lot of light. There's a lot of chemicals that go into this.

The committee denied four nominations for mineral rights under Egypt Valley. Sarah Donaldson at the Ohio Public Radio State House News Bureau. Extreme heat warning in effect for today, Wednesday, and Thursday. Air temperatures getting into the mid to upper 90s with heat index levels around 105 degrees dangerous weather expected for much of this week. Some relief may come Friday and into the Independence Day weekend in the form of rain, which will provide temporary relief from the heat. And that's WISO today for Tuesday, June 30th. I'm Mike Fraser.