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Home > Blogs > Ohio politics > Archives > 2009 > November > 24
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Columbus-area lawmakers unveil amendment that could halt casino
It’s probably a longshot but four Columbus-area lawmakers on Tuesday, Nov. 24, unveiled a proposed constitutional amendment that appears aimed at blocking a casino for Columbus.
The proposed amendment would require the legislature “to enact laws that authorize the submission of a question to the electors of a county on whether to approve the operation of casino gaming within the county before casino gaming may be conducted in that county.”
Getting the proposed amendment on the May 2010 ballot could be an uphill struggle. It would require approval of three-fifths majorities in the legislature - 60 votes in the 99-member House and 20 votes in the 33-member Senate.
Voters on Nov. 3 approved a constitutional amendment to permit casinos in Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati and Toledo.
However, voters in Franklin County, which includes Columbus, rejected the amendment while voters in the counties containing the other casino cities approved it.
“Cleveland, Toledo and Cincinnati voters should not be in a position to make development decisions for Columbus any more than Columbus residents should be weighing in on Cleveland projects,” Sen. David Goodman, R-New Albany, said in a press release. “This amendment gives local communities more control as Ohio takes its first steps into casino gaming.”
Bob Tenenbaum, spokesman for the pro-casino Ohio Jobs and Growth Committee, had this response:
“We anticipate there will be several proposals that are discussed in the wake of passage of Issue 3. But our focus in on working with the General Assembly to gain passage of legislation that will implement the voters’ approval of four casinos for Ohio and ensure that the state establishes an effective mechanism for regulating the casinos.”
Goodman and Sen. Jim Hughes, R-Columbus, introduced a resolution calling for a vote on the amendment in the Senate while Reps. Cheryl Grossman, R-Grove City, and Kevin Bacon, R-Minerva Park, unveiled the House version.
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Palin recalls her Nutter Center debut in “Going Rogue”
Sarah Palin made her debut as a national candidate at Wright State University’s Nutter Center and the former Alaska governor describes that scene in her new book, “Going Rogue An American Life.”
“The tunnel thundered with ten thousand voices, and the air inside felt electric,” Palin wrote of the Aug. 29, 2008 rally. “I stood behind John and Cindy as he waited for the cue to step onstage at the Ervin J. Nutter Center in Dayton, Ohio.”
She described waiting with her family - husband Todd and four of her five children - as she waited for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., to introduce her to the crowd and to the country as his vice presidential running mate.
“Now the crowd’s roar poured backstage like a powerful locomotive,” Palin wrote. “An electric guitar whined under the steady drum of thousands of stomping feet.”
She got ready.
“We passed a whisper between us: ‘Say a prayer!
“Glancing out through the end of the tunnel, I could see the crowd, and flashes of red, white, and blue. John’s blue-and-gold posters, emblazoned with his campaign message, ‘Country First,’ rippled in the stands.”
Then came McCain’s introduction.
“My friends and fellow Americans, I am very pleased and very privileged to introduce you to the next vice president of the United States - Governor Sarah Palin of the great state of Alaska.”
Here’s how she reacted to the introduction.
“That was amazing, not nerve-wracking, and even sort of funny to me, because it meant John had a little explaining to do right off the bat. Who in the heck is she?”
Then came Palin’s moment in the Nutter Center spotlight.
“I gave my speech, and it was an absolute blast. The kids had fun, and Piper waved to the world. And as my family left the stage, I whispered to my husband, ‘Happy anniversary, Todd! Twenty years ago today - who’d have thought?”
Related links:
- Photos: McCain unveils Palin as his running mate during visit to Nutter Center
- Photos: See who was spotted at the John McCain rally at the Nutter Center
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Rep. Lehner bill would help some seniors stay out of nursing homes
Rep. Peggy Lehner, R-Kettering, on Tuesday, Nov. 24, helped launch a bipartisan effort to help some Ohioans receive care at home instead of in nursing homes.
“It recognizes their desire to be in their homes,” Lehner said after a Statehouse press conference.
The proposed legislation is narrowly focused and would affect possibly “hundreds” not thousands of Ohioans, said Sen. John Carey, R-Wellston.
It would allow Ohioans who qualify for Medicaid - the federal-state government health insurance program - and who are at imminent risk of being admitted to nursing homes to instead receive services at home, Carey and Lehner said.
Lehner said an example might be a 90-year-old man in the hospital with a broken hip who was ready to be released but had no one at home capable of caring for him. He would qualify for home care under the companion bills to be introduced in the House and Senate, she said.
The proposals would expand an existing program that allows Ohioans living in nursing homes immediate access to home and community care, she said. Now the 90-year-old man in her example would first have to be admitted to a nursing home before becoming eligible to be released to get home care, she said.
The plan would save money, Lehner and Carey said. It costs about $20,000 a year to care for someone at home, compared to $60,000 in a nursing home, they said.
Carey estimated that the plan could save as much as $60 million annually.
Lehner and Carey appeared at the press conference with Sen. Dale Miller, D-Cleveland.
