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    Columbus Has Issues: A Guide to the 2014 Ballot Issues

    If you are following the 2014 election season closely, you’re probably familiar with the candidates for governor, attorney general, secretary of state and other major statewide offices. Even the most educated Central Ohio voter, however, may be unfamiliar with the three issues to appear on ballots in Franklin, Fairfield and Delaware counties.

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    Issues 6, 7 and 8 seek to make changes and updates to the Columbus City Charter, and were proposed based on the recommendations of the Charter Review Commission. So if you are voting this year, and if you plan to vote on the ballot issues, here are some details about issues 6, 7, and 8 you should be aware of.

    Issue 6

    Issue 6 proposes a long list of changes to city administration, including a grant of authority to the city council to make “limited, non-substantive technical changes” to the city charter with a unanimous vote, a requirement that members of the Recreation and Parks Committee be Columbus residents and prohibiting discrimination of city employees based on race, sex, sexual orientation, gender identification, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, age, disability or military status.

    The measure would also require the mayor’s budget estimate to be electronically published for people to view, as opposed than the current system in which copies are distributed to the public libraries. The city clerk would likewise be required to publish the annual report of the city electronically for the public to access and view. Issue 6 also calls for the appointment of a commission to review the city charter in 2022 and every 10 years after.

    A full version of Issue 6 can be found here.

    Issue 7

    Issue 7 includes amendments to the charter with regard to city elections which, according to the Charter Review Commission’s website, are “the first real updates to city elections in over 80 years.” Those updates include allowing the city to regulate campaign finances and the disclosure of campaign contributions, as well as applying state law to things like the form of ballots and the replacement of candidates in case of withdrawal, disqualification or death.

    The measure would also make detailed changes to the system for circulating petitions for initiatives, referendums, recalls and charter amendments. These include a call for the city clerk to produce petition templates, requirements for petition font sizes and identification of a petition circulator’s employer. For initiatives and referendums, signatures from five percent of the votes cast in the previous mayoral election will be required on a petition before an ordinance or referendum can be initiated. If a petition is sufficient, the city council would be required to act on the proposal within 30 days.

    A full version of Issue 7 can be found here.

    Issue 8

    Changes in Issue 8 apply to city officeholders. They include a requirement that council and committee minutes, council’s journal, ordinances, resolutions and the city bulletin be maintained as electronic public records, the establishment of a five person commission to recommend the salary for city officeholders every four years and a call for consistent language on the requirements for holding city office.

    If passed, Issue 8 would also put in place harsher punishments for officeholders or city employees who engage in public corruption like bribery or theft in office. Well, a harsher punishment: loss of office or employment.

    A full version of Issue 8 can be found here.

    More information about the 2014 charter amendments will be available at a community meeting held tonight at 6 pm at the Barnett Recreation Center.

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    Jesse Bethea
    Jesse Betheahttps://columbusunderground.com
    Jesse Bethea is a freelance features writer at Columbus Underground covering neighborhood issues, economics, science, technology and other topics. He is a graduate from Ohio University, a native of Fairfax, Virginia and a fan of movies, politics and baseball. Jesse is the winner of The Great Novel Contest and the author of Fellow Travellers, available now at all major retailers.
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