Ohio Governor John Kasich appointed Steve Buehrer as Administrator/CEO of the Ohio Bureau of Workers’
Compensation in January 2011. He leads an agency of 2,000 employees that serves more than 225,000
employers and 1.3 million injured workers.
Known for his focus on fiscal responsibility, creating jobs, and emphasizing technology, Steve has
helped engineer significant improvements within various levels of government over the past 20 years.
He also has extensive experience with workers’ compensation, previously serving as BWC’s Chief of Human
Resources. As a senator, Steve served as chairman of the Insurance, Commerce and Labor
committee which oversaw all workers’ compensation legislation.
Steve was a member of the Ohio Senate from 2007 until 2011. In addition to serving as the chairman of the
Insurance, Commerce and Labor committee, he also was vice chairman of the Senate Highways & Transportation
committee. In addition, Steve’s colleagues elected him majority whip, the fourth ranking leadership position
in the Senate. He also received the Technology Advocate Legislator of the Year award for 2010 from Technology
for Ohio’s Tomorrow. He won five Watchdog of the Treasury awards and was named National Legislator of the Year
by the American Legislative Exchange Council in 2002. A nationally recognized leader, he serves as the
chairman of the Midwest Council of State Government (CSG) and has served as national CSG vice chair.
Steve also served as a state representative for Ohio's 82nd House District (Defiance, Fulton and Williams
counties). First elected in 1998, he was subsequently re-elected in November 2000, when his district
became the 74th, and again in November 2002 and 2004. Steve’s peers in the House recognized his leadership
by electing him assistant majority floor leader for both the 124th and 125th General Assembly.
As chairman of the State Government committee, he had responsibility for all workers’ compensation legislation.
During his second and third terms as representative in the Ohio General Assembly, Steve authored and passed
Ohio's two-year transportation budget, which provided funding for highway projects across the state. This
legislation recreated the state’s transportation funding structure and provided additional transportation-related
support for state and local governments.
Beyond his legislative experience and accomplishments, Steve also has extensive experience in state government.
Aside from serving as the Chief of Human Resources at BWC, he also was the Director of Legislative Affairs
at the Ohio Bureau of Employment Services. Following that assignment, Steve served six months at the Ohio
Department of Human Services, at the request of Governor George Voinovich, assisting with multiple
management-improvement initiatives. He later accepted a position as Deputy Director at the Ohio Department
of Administrative Services where he oversaw the communications and legislative offices and later the State
Human Resources Division.
Steve earned a bachelor’s in social studies education graduating summa cum laude from Bowling Green State
University. He later earned his juris doctor from Capital University Law School graduating cum laude.
He’s married to his wife Cathy and has three sons, Benjamin, Simon and Daniel.
  
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