Effective: September 29, 2007
Latest Legislation: House Bill 119 - 127th General Assembly
The Ohio ballot board shall do all of the following:
(A) Examine, within ten days after its receipt, each written initiative petition received from the attorney general under section 3519.01 of the Revised Code to determine whether it contains only one proposed law or constitutional amendment so as to enable the voters to vote on a proposal separately. If the board so determines, it shall certify its approval to the attorney general, who then shall file with the secretary of state in accordance with division (A) of section 3519.01 of the Revised Code a verified copy of the proposed law or constitutional amendment together with its summary and the attorney general's certification of it.
If the board determines that the initiative petition contains more than one proposed law or constitutional amendment, the board shall divide the initiative petition into individual petitions containing only one proposed law or constitutional amendment so as to enable the voters to vote on each proposal separately and certify its approval to the attorney general. If the board so divides an initiative petition and so certifies its approval to the attorney general, the petitioners shall resubmit to the attorney general appropriate summaries for each of the individual petitions arising from the board's division of the initiative petition, and the attorney general then shall review the resubmissions as provided in division (A) of section 3519.01 of the Revised Code.
(B) Prescribe the ballot language for constitutional amendments proposed by the general assembly to be printed on the questions and issues ballot, which language shall properly identify the substance of the proposal to be voted upon;
(C) Prepare an explanation of each constitutional amendment proposed by the general assembly, which explanation may include the purpose and effects of the proposed amendment;
(D) Certify the ballot language and explanation, if any, to the secretary of state no later than seventy-five days before the election at which the proposed question or issue is to be submitted to the voters;
(E) Prepare, or designate a group of persons to prepare, arguments in support of or in opposition to a constitutional amendment proposed by a resolution of the general assembly, a constitutional amendment or state law proposed by initiative petition, or a state law, or section or item of state law, subject to a referendum petition, if the persons otherwise responsible for the preparation of those arguments fail to timely prepare and file them;
(F) Direct the means by which the secretary of state shall disseminate information concerning proposed constitutional amendments, proposed laws, and referenda to the voters;
(G) Direct the secretary of state to contract for the publication in a newspaper of general circulation in each county in the state of the ballot language, explanations, and arguments regarding each of the following:
(1) A constitutional amendment or law proposed by initiative petition under Section 1g of Article II of the Ohio Constitution;
(2) A law, section, or item of law submitted to the electors by referendum petition under Section 1g of Article II of the Ohio Constitution;
(3) A constitutional amendment submitted to the electors by the general assembly under Section 1 of Article XVI of the Ohio Constitution.