If a citizen feels that an issue is not addressed properly (or at all) in the Ohio Revised Code, he or she can follow the procedures outlined in the Ohio Constitution and Ohio Revised Code to submit a proposed law (statute) to the people of Ohio for a statewide vote. This differs from a Constitutional Ballot Initiative in that it amends the Ohio Revised Code and not the Ohio Constitution. A statute initiative takes 132,887 valid elector signatures from at least 44 of Ohio's 88 counties. That submits it to the Ohio General Assembly and by law, they have 4 months to act upon the petition. If they fail to act, another 132,887 valid signatures are required to put it on the ballot for the next election. To start this process Ohioans must collect 1,000 valid signatures to submit to the Ohio Attorney General.

HERE IS A LINK TO THE ENTIRE PROCESS

The “No Taxation Without Representation Act” would amend the Ohio Revised Code Section 3701.13, which currently provides for emergency powers for the Ohio Department of Health, to ensure that the Ohio General Assembly’s constitutional duties are not abrogated by the Department of Health or by the Governor. Among other things the Act would:

1. Provide the Ohio Department of Health the power to call an emergency joint session of the Ohio General Assembly, when authorized by the Governor, when the Governor declares a public health emergency.
2. Provide that when a public health emergency is declared the Ohio Department of Health has the power to submit legislative and appropriation bills during an emergency joint session of the Ohio General Assembly to resolve the public health emergency.
3. Require the Ohio General Assembly to vote on public health emergency legislative bills submitted by the department of health within twenty-four hours from the introduction in an emergency joint session of the Ohio General Assembly.
4. Provide either or both chamber[s] of the Ohio General Assembly a mechanism to end the Governor’s emergency declaration.
5. Provide a penalty to the Ohio State government for usurping the constitutional powers of either chamber of the Ohio General Assembly for more than fourteen days by suspending the imposition of State Tax for Ohioans during such usurpation.
6. Provide a mechanism to determine when the Ohio House of Representatives or the Ohio Senate have had their constitutional powers usurped and when they have been restored.
7. Repeal unilateral powers of the Ohio Department of Health during a public health emergency to create and enforce orders for the preservation of life, quarantine, or isolation.
8. Repeal the ability of the Ohio Department of Health to make and enforce orders in local matters or reassign substantive authority for mandatory programs from a general or city health district to another general or city health district when an emergency exists, or when a local or regional board of health refuses to act, or when a local or regional board of health does not exist.
9. Repeal the ability of the Ohio Department of Health to set a condition precedent for local and regional boards of health to receive funding and removes any requirement that a local or regional board of health must apply for accreditation or be accredited by the Ohio Department of Health or another accreditation body.
10. Remove the requirements for past evaluation by the director of the Ohio Department of Health of local and regional boards of health.
11. Would essentially allow County Health Departments to work more independently.

The Act would NOT:

1. Grant powers to any individual or organization to circumvent the Ohio Constitution.
2. Violate the separation of powers afforded by the Ohio Constitution.
3. Prevent the Governor from declaring a public health emergency.
4. Prevent the Ohio department of health from giving timely information and advice to Ohio legislators.
5. Repeal any emergency mandates imposed by the governor without a vote in either chamber of the Ohio General Assembly.
6. Give the governor the unilateral power to declare a public health emergency.
7. Give the Ohio Governor any powers he does not already have.
8. Grant any powers to the governor or Ohio Health director to impose health orders or fines without the approval of the General Assembly.

Be it Enacted by the People of the State of Ohio that Section 3701.13 of the Ohio Revised Code shall be amended to provide as follows:

[New language is underlined, repealed language is struck through, and unchanged language is not underlined and not struck through]

3701.13 Department of health - powers.

A) When the Governor has declared a public health emergency the department of health shall have the power, when authorized by the governor by proclamation, to call a physical or electronic emergency joint session of the General Assembly for the purpose of considering legislation to resolve the public health emergency.

B) The department of health shall have the power to introduce legislative and appropriation bills directly to the public health emergency joint meeting of the General Assembly.

C) Bills introduced by the department of health during a public health emergency joint session of the General Assembly must be passed or defeated by both chambers of the General Assembly within twenty-four hours from introduction.

D) At any time during a public health emergency joint session of the Ohio General Assembly, a majority vote in either chamber of the General Assembly may end the Governor’s declaration of a public health emergency.

E) Any declared public health emergency orders that usurp any constitutional powers of the General Assembly for more than fourteen days shall suspend the imposition of all state-imposed taxes incurred by Ohio residents and businesses during the usurpation. Taxation shall resume when the usurpation of the Ohio General Assembly’s constitutional powers has ended.

F) The constitutional power of the General Assembly will be deemed to be usurped when a resolution passed by both or either chamber[s] of the General Assembly declares their power to be usurped or an Ohio court has ruled that the General Assembly’s constitutional powers have been usurped. The General Assembly’s constitutional powers will be deemed restored when both or either chamber[s] pass a resolution declaring their constitutional power restored or the emergency and emergency orders are ended by the Governor.

The department of health shall have supervision of all matters relating to the preservation of the life and health of the people and have ultimate authority in matters of quarantine and isolation, which it may declare and enforce, when neither exists, and modify, relax, or abolish, when either has been established. The department may approve methods of immunization against the diseases specified in section 3313.671 of the Revised Code for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of that section and take such actions as are necessary to encourage vaccination against those diseases.

The department may make special or standing orders or rules for preventing the use of fluoroscopes for nonmedical purposes that emit doses of radiation likely to be harmful to any person, for preventing the spread of contagious or infectious diseases, for governing the receipt and conveyance of remains of deceased persons, and for such other sanitary matters as are best controlled by a general rule.

G) Whenever possible, the department shall work in cooperation with the health commissioner of a general or city health district.

The department may make and enforce orders in local matters or reassign substantive authority for mandatory programs from a general or city health district to another general or city health district when an emergency exists, or when the board of health of a general or city health district has neglected or refused to act with sufficient promptness or efficiency, or when such board has not been established as provided by sections 3709.02, 3709.03, 3709.05, 3709.06, 3709.11, 3709.12, and 3709.14 of the Revised Code. In such cases, the necessary expense incurred shall be paid by the general health district or city for which the services are rendered.

The department of health may require general or city health districts to enter into agreements for shared services under section 9.482 of the Revised Code. The department shall prepare and offer to boards of health a model contract and memorandum of understanding that are easily adaptable for use by boards of health when entering into shared services agreements. The department also may offer financial and other technical assistance to boards of health to encourage the sharing of services.

As a condition precedent to receiving funding from the department of health, the director of health may require general or city health districts to apply for accreditation by July 1, 2018, and be accredited by July 1, 2020, by an accreditation body approved by the director. The director of health, by July 1, 2016, shall conduct an evaluation of general and city health district preparation for accreditation, including an evaluation of each district's reported public health quality indicators as provided for in section 3701.98 of the Revised Code.

H) The department may make evaluative studies of the nutritional status of Ohio residents, and of the food and nutrition-related programs operating within the state. Every agency of the state, at the request of the department, shall provide information and otherwise assist in the execution of such studies.