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Departments Ohio Columbus Coalition for Responsive Government to file initiative petition to revise Columbus City Charter November 7, 2011 A newly-formed organization named “Columbus Coalition for Responsive Government” announces it will be filing an initiative petition on November 8th, to revise the Columbus City Charter tomorrow, and in so doing, reform Columbus City Council. The Columbus Coalition will tomorrow file a certified copy of a petition to be circulated to Columbus voters, which if sufficient valid signatures are garnered, would require Columbus City Council to vote on an ordinance to revise the way that council is currently configured. The proposed ordinance would change council from the 7 members now elected “at-large” in a city wide election, to a hybrid model of 11 council members where just 4 council members would be elected at-large in a city-wide election, and the other 7 members would be elected by the voters within 7 city Districts proposed to be established by an apportionment board comprised of citizens who are not elected officials but would be appointed to the board by council. The initiative will be discussed at a press conference on the south stairs of City Hall at 3:30 PM on Tuesday, November 8th, after the Local Ballot Issue Petition has been submitted to the City Auditor. As a multi-party effort, the issue is being submitted to the City Auditor on election day -- rather than before or after the election -- so it does not become a political issue affecting voters without debate, and so it does not appear to be a response to the outcome of tomorrow’s elections. Jonathan Beard, one of the five members on the Ballot Issue Committee says “Columbus really has an archaic system of representation. When you look at the largest 25 cities in America, Columbus is one of just three cities that have “at-large” representation where all council members require a city-wide vote. What might have been appropriate when the City Charter was adopted in 1914 and had 181,000 citizens is not appropriate today with 780,000 residents. You cannot realistically expect seven individuals with city-wide responsibilities to attend to the needs of our neighborhoods” Willis Brown, another committee member says, “the at-large system is failing the neighborhoods. When you look at all the unanimous Council votes on such contentious issues as the Cooper Stadium race track or the public bailout of the Nationwide Arena which Franklin County residents have voted down 5 times, you realize there really isn’t an ability for these politicians to reflect the diversity of thought in Columbus.” James Moore, another member of the Ballot Committee says, “Columbus is now over 220 square miles, with hundreds of neighborhoods of all sizes, complexions, and character. Nearly every major city in America provides for its citizens to elect people who represent their district, but Columbus does not. That forces people to have to raise huge sums of money to run City-wide, and not everybody can raise that money to run competitive races, so money distributed among candidates buys favor and influence in council’s decision-making.” Indeed, in an article posted on his campaign website, Council President Andrew Ginther reported raising $405,562 through June 30th, and his Democratic council colleague Michelle Mills had raised the least at $19,230. At that time, Ginther’s spokesperson said Mills had been assured she'll get financial help from Ginther. Beard points to that as an area of concern, saying “when we went to council to get help with some community safety concerns, we couldn’t even talk to the Judiciary and Public Safety Committee Chair – who wouldn’t return phone calls or written correspondence. Instead, we got statements through the Council President’s Office which made us wonder who is really in charge of that committee. And you hear her radio ads on urban format radio stations, and sure enough – the message was paid for by “Friends for Ginther.” We need people who can have their own voices on council. You get that when you have council members running for election in their neighborhoods, where people will know their reputation and performance, and where they can’t duck and hide from citizens.” Robert Fitrakis, the fifth member of the Ballot Committee says “the people of Columbus are not being well-served by a one-party system. We need more diverse voices that actually reflect the diversity of thought and opinion in the City of Columbus.” The Advisory Committee that drafted the initiative ordinance language balanced the benefits of having at-large council members whose primary duty is to the city as a whole, with District representatives who have specific neighborhood accountability in addition to their responsibility to the city as a whole. Fitrakis, a founder of the Charter amendment movement said, “you don’t want to get crazy about it and have 50 different Districts, and in a time of fiscal stress you certainly want to be prudent about the number of officials you are seeking to seat. Our working group which included members of four different political parties working together, successfully balanced improved representation for neighborhoods and increased accountability of elected officials with fiscal responsibility.” With this proposal, Columbus seeks to join the growing chorus of communities that try to get the influence of campaign money out of public decision-making. Let’s face it, it costs a lot less to run a campaign in 30 square miles with 110,000 residents, then it does to run a campaign in more than 220 square miles trying to reach 780,000 residents. This will bring higher-quality candidates to the table – people who have been well-known by their neighbors for their work in their communities over the years. We won’t be getting political animals, but people genuinely with proven commitment to improving their neighborhoods. Beard asked rhetorically, “when was the last time we had a blue-collar council member? I’ve been in Columbus more than 20 years, and I can’t even remember a council member who had a blue collar job.” The next public step in the voter initiative process is Wednesday, November 16th, at 6:15PM. The Columbus Coalition is hosting an open meeting at the Ohio Historical Center, 1982 Velma Avenue, to discuss the proposal, solicit volunteers to gather signatures, and begin raising funds for the Charter improvement campaign. Columbus has changed a lot in the past 97 years. The Columbus Coalition for Responsive Government believes it is time for government to change as well. ------------------- More information about the voter initiative, as well as volunteer and giving opportunities, are available at Columbus Coalition, or by calling Jonathan Beard, Treasurer, at 614-525-2986. |
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