By Gongwer Staff
Posted: January 27, 2023 5:46 PM

A controversial proposal to ask voters to make it more difficult to amend the Ohio Constitution remains a live topic of discussion in the House, Speaker Jason Stephens said Friday.

The Kitts Hills Republican, however, told reporters he does not favor putting the issue on the May ballot – something that would require action by both chambers by Wednesday.

"I don't think it's dead by any means," Rep. Stephens said of the proposal (HJR 6, 134th General Assembly) that was considered last session. "I think the idea of protecting our Constitution is extremely important regardless of which side of the aisle we're on."

A revised version of the resolution was filed earlier this month by supporters of Rep. Derek Merrin (R-Monclova Twp.), who lost a bitter fight for the speaker's gavel with Rep. Stephens to open the month. (See Gongwer Ohio Report, January 11, 2023)

Under the amendment proposal, the threshold for passage of future constitutional amendments – whether via citizen-led or legislative-led effort – would be increased to 60% from the current simple majority.

Rep. Stephens said that successor proposal and any similar plans likely will be discussed in the new House Constitutional Resolutions Committee, which will be led Rep. Scott Wiggam (R-Wooster), a Merrin supporter.

The speaker said only parts of the state are set to vote in primary elections this May, making the inclusion of a statewide ballot issue problematic.

"If you're going to amend the Constitution, I think you need to broaden who is voting on it," he said.

Rep. Stephens said while he would not be opposed to the issue being considered on the November ballot, many counties have not budgeted for or hired staff for May elections.

The speaker said he is open to considering a compromise proposal that would set stricter requirements to amend the Ohio Constitution while also making it more difficult for the legislature to repeal citizen-initiated statutes.