Lawmakers Already Talking About Changes to Issue 3

Issue 3 the constitutional amendment that would place casino’s in Ohio’s four largest cities passed with 53 percent of the vote yesterday. Lawmakers are already discussing changes to the amendment.

Franklin County was the only county slated for a casino to vote down the proposal. Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman said this.

[Coleman] who opposed Issue 3, said lawmakers should move quickly to put a new amendment on the ballot to raise the tax rate, put the casino licenses up to bid and let cities regulate their locations and operations.

“If this passes, my hope is that the legislature will step in,” Coleman said last night.

Ohio House Speaker Armond Budish whose support for Issue 3 was lukewarm at best said the following.

[Budish] is committed to passing legislation that ensures the best deal for the state, spokesman Keary McCarthy said last night.

Governor Strickland an Issue 3 opponent weighed in.

“The voters have spoken, and state leaders and legislators must now implement the constitutional amendment while making sure it benefits the people of this state and puts more Ohioans to work.”

The Columbus Dispatch seemed almost adamant that the amendment be changed.

It’s now up to Ohio’s political leaders to decide whether to mount a legal challenge or launch an effort to pass another constitutional amendment next year to replace parts of the measure approved yesterday.

I think these comments reflect how poorly Issue 3 was written. Still, Ohioans did vote for casinos. Some Democratic politicians were afraid to come out against Issue 3 because of the support from the unions. Others just stayed silent. Regardless, there already seems to be a movement to legislatively or constitutionally change Issue 3.

Source:
Ohio OKs casinos, Political leaders now must decide whether to challenge the issue in court or try to pass another amendment

•