Hicks-Hudson Condemns Concurrence of S.J.R. 2

Today, state Senator Paula Hicks-Hudson (D-Toledo) issued a statement after the Ohio Senate voted along party lines to concur with the changes made by the House of Representatives to Senate Joint Resolution 2, which would raise the threshold for Ohioans to pass citizen-initiated constitutional amendments from a simple majority to 60%.

“In the disguise of freedom, the Ohio majority passed SJR 2 out of fear,” said Hicks-Hudson. “This is blatantly anti-democratic and shows the extreme extent to which the Ohio GOP will go in order to stifle the voice of the people.”

On Tuesday, the House Rules and Reference Committee amended S.J.R. 2 to put the resolution before voters during the next special or general election. However, because Republicans voted to eliminate almost all August special elections in House Bill 458 during the 134th General Assembly, the resolution wouldn’t have appeared on the ballot until the November general election.

During Wednesday’s House session, S.J.R. 2 was amended again to include language that the resolution would be put before voters on August 8. In addition to changing the required threshold for voters to approve constitutional amendments, S.J.R. 2 requires signatures of at least 5% of the electors in each of Ohio’s 88 counties, instead of 44, and eliminates the 10-day period to file additional signatures for an initiated constitutional amendment.

The General Assembly will now file the resolution with the Secretary of State.