Ohio Issue 3, Casino Authorization and Tax Distribution Initiative (2009)
| Ohio Issue 3 | |
|---|---|
|
|
|
| Election date |
|
| Topic Gambling policy |
|
| Status |
|
| Type Initiated constitutional amendment |
Origin |
Ohio Issue 3 was on the ballot as an initiated constitutional amendment in Ohio on November 3, 2009. It was approved.
A "yes" vote supported authorizing one casino facility within Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, and Toledo, levying a fixed tax of 33% of gross casino revenue, and establishing the distribution of tax revenue. |
A "no" vote opposed authorizing one casino facility within Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, and Toledo, levying a fixed tax of 33% of gross casino revenue, and establishing the distribution of tax revenue. |
Election results
|
Ohio Issue 3 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
|
|
1,713,288 | 52.99% | ||
| No | 1,519,636 | 47.01% | ||
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title for Issue 3 was as follows:
| “ | To adopt Section 6 to Article XV of the Constitution of the State of Ohio. This proposed amendment would: 1. Authorize only one casino facility at a specifically designated location within each of the cities of Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, and Toledo. 2. Levy a fixed tax of 33% of gross casino revenue received by each casino operator of the four casino facilities. 3. Distribute the casino tax as follows:
4. Require each initial licensed casino operator to pay a single $50,000,000 fee to be used for state job training purposes and make a minimum initial investment of $250,000,000 in its facility. 5. Permit approved types of casino gaming authorized by Michigan, West Virginia, Indiana, and Pennsylvania as of January 1, 2009 or games subsequently authorized by those states. 6. Authorize the casinos to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at the discretion of the casino operator and require that the casino facilities shall be subject to all state and local laws and provisions related to health and building codes, but that no local zoning, land use laws, subdivision regulations or similar provisions shall prohibit the development or operation of the casinos at the designated sites. 7. Create the Ohio casino control commission which will license and regulate casino operators, management companies retained by such casino operators, key employees, gaming-related vendors, and all gaming authorized by this constitutional provision. A “YES” vote means you approve of amending the Ohio Constitution to permit one casino each in Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, and Toledo. A “NO” vote means you disapprove of amending the Ohio Constitution to permit one casino each in Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, and Toledo. A majority YES vote is required for the amendment to be adopted. Shall the proposed amendment be approved? | ” |
Path to the ballot
An initiated constitutional amendment is a citizen-initiated ballot measure that amends a state's constitution. Eighteen (18) states allow citizens to initiate constitutional amendments.
In Ohio, the number of signatures required for an initiated constitutional amendment is equal to 10% of the votes cast in the last gubernatorial election. A simple majority vote is required for voter approval.
Ohio also requires initiative sponsors to submit 1,000 signatures with the initial petition application. Ohio has a signature distribution requirement, which requires that signatures be gathered from at least 44 of Ohio's 88 counties. Petitioners must gather signatures equal to a minimum of half the total required percentage of the gubernatorial vote in each of the 44 counties. Petitions are allowed to circulate for an indefinite period of time. Signatures are due 125 days prior to the general election that proponents want the initiative on.
See also
External links
Footnotes
| ||||||||||
