COLUMBUS, Ohio — News 5 viewers and readers have sent in dozens of questions about the GOP proposal to make it more difficult to amend the Ohio Constitution. This resolution is being streamlined to an August special election and is meant to stop abortion from becoming legal, both Republican and Democratic lawmakers say.
This is a complicated situation, so News 5 posted a request for additional viewer questions on the station's social media pages and brought them to legal expert Jonathan Entin and Statehouse leaders.
Fast Facts
Ballot language that would allow voters to decide if Ohioans have the right to an abortion was certified in early March.
Republicans in the House and Senate are now trying to up the threshold for voters to change Ohio's constitution.
House Joint Resolution 1 and Senate Joint Resolution 2 would make it harder to amend the Ohio constitution. They would require constitutional amendment initiative petitions to receive a 60% supermajority vote to pass, instead of the simple 50% +1. This means that about 40% of the state would get to choose the law.
The resolution has more rigorous signature requirements. Instead of getting signatures in just 44 counties, the lawmakers want to raise it to all 88.
Lawmakers also put forward a bill to reinstate August special elections, hoping to get their resolution on a ballot ahead of the November abortion vote. The legislators just voted a few months ago to get rid of them because they cost the state $20 million and have low voter turnout.
GOP leaders, including Senate President Matt Huffman, one of the bill sponsors, and a group of House Republicans, have all addressed how this would make it more difficult or even stop abortion from becoming legal in Ohio. Some have added that it wouldn't just be abortion but also for other concerns like redistricting reform and recreational marijuana.
Questions
Q: How can the resolution apply retroactively to a ballot that was already certified? Asked by Dana from Cleveland
"The certification isn't the final call about putting something on the ballot," Entin said.
The abortion rights advocates need to have at least 442,958 signatures by July 5. Sec. of State Frank LaRose would need to validate those signatures.
"That could take a fair amount of time," the expert said.
It is likely the verification won't come before the August election, he added.
Q: For the signature gathering change, would this impact the abortion petition? Asked by Laura from Cleveland
Senate President Matt Huffman (R-Lima) said no.
"That doesn't go into place until January of 24, because I think there would be constitutional problems with putting that into place for the signature-gathering effort," the Republican said.
Q: When will we know for sure whether or not there will be an August election with this on the ballot? Asked by Twitter user 'Ohio Legislative Watch'
"The Legislature has to pass something by May 10," Entin said.
May 10 is the deadline for both the resolution and the August special election bill. But Speaker Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) said the legislation is up in the air in the House right now.
"You want to make sure that you've got the votes before you put something like that on the floor," he said. "There's a lot of counting noses going on."
Q: When voters defeat HJR1 at the ballot, will the legislature commit to not advancing SJR2 to another ballot? Asked by Nick from Columbus
Each of the bill sponsors gave a response.
"All of my efforts have been directed towards getting HJR1 on the ballot in August, where I believe it will be passed," state Rep. Brian Stewart (R-Ashville) said on Friday. "I have not given any thought to anything else beyond that."
But a few months ago, he gave a more direct answer.
"If it goes to the ballot and would not be approved, I can't imagine that I or anybody would be attempting it anytime soon," Stewart said in December.
State Sen. Rob McColley echoed Stewart's statements from Friday.
“At this point, we are purely focused on getting either HJR1 or SJR2 out of the House," McColley said. "Once either resolution comes out of the House, I am confident Ohioans will agree in August that these protections to Ohio’s constitution are long overdue and justified."
His cosponsor, state Sen. Theresa Gavarone (R-Bowling Green) has a "sole focus" on making sure Ohioans get to vote in August.
"Senator Gavarone doesn’t deal in hypotheticals," her spokesperson said.
Q: Do the Ohio voters get the final say if this happens or the legislature? Asked by Twitter user 'The Cincy Buckeye'
As of right now, the lawmakers are in control. Ultimately, the citizens will decide if the proposal is adopted.
To expand:
There are a few different ways forward. News 5 reached out to House Clerk Brad Young to explain what the procedures may look like.
If the House passes H.J.R. 1, it will be sent over to the Senate. The Senate, having already passed its version, is able to send theirs over at any point.
"In Ohio, we don’t really have a reconciliation process for companion bills or resolutions that have originated and passed in each chamber," Young said. "The legislature will pick either the House or Senate bill or resolution to become the vehicle for passage (bill) or adoption (resolution) and go with that."
If the House takes up S.J.R. 2, it would need to go through the committee hearing process, just like a bill would.
On the other hand, the Senate doesn't have that rule.
"Upon reading a resolution from the House, such resolution shall be considered immediately by either being adopted or referred to the Committee on Rules and Reference," the rules state.
There is a way that the House could save themselves all the trouble. The House could suspend theirs to bring up S.J.R. 2 for immediate adoption. That would require the affirmative votes of 2/3 of all the House members present to suspend the rules, Young confirmed.
Or, Speaker Stephens could kill the legislation by just not bringing the bills up or canceling session until after May 10.
If the resolution and bill are passed in the House and signed by Gov. Mike DeWine, citizens will decide whether to make the Constitution harder to amend ahead of the abortion vote.
What's next?
Thursday, April 27 will be a day to watch the Statehouse. That is the next day session scheduled for the House.
As mentioned in numerous previous News 5 articles, Stephens is facing backlash from his detractors for not being a fan of the resolution and for not liking the bill to reinstate August special elections after just getting rid of them a couple of months ago.
Stephens has been pinned (metaphorically) against a wall by the Senate and by his detractors within the House GOP. Democrats, his allies and the reason he won speakership are on the other side — urging him to stay true to their deal from January.
To read more about the House drama and the pressure Stephens is facing, CLICK HERE.
For previous in-depth reporting by Morgan Trau on this issue, see below:
- Amid mass bipartisan protest, Ohio Senate passes resolution to make it harder to amend constitution
- Special interest groups seek to protect constitution from special interest groups, special interest groups say
- With abortion possibly on Nov. ballot, Ohio GOP revives measures to make it harder to amend Constitution
Follow WEWS statehouse reporter Morgan Trau on Twitter and Facebook.
