INITIATIVE UPDATE: STATE SPENDING LIMIT, ELECTION REFORM BACKERS REPORT GOOD PROGRESS TOWARD FALL ISSUES; OTHER GROUPS SEE MIXED RESULTS

Citizens for Tax Reform, a group led by Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell seeking a constitutional amendment to limit state spending, has collected more than half of some 323,000 signatures needed to qualify for the Nov. 8 ballot, according to a spokesman. A separate coalition seeking a Nov. 8 vote on independently created legislative and congressional districts and election law reforms also reports significant progress.

CTR and Reform Ohio Now's apparent early success in the petition circulation process comes as supporters' hopes of getting the Legislature to endorse a combined bond issue for research, development and local infrastructure projects (HJR 2) sought by Governor Bob Taft have dimmed further. (See separate story)

With less than seven weeks remaining before the Aug. 10 deadline to submit the tax expenditure (TEL) issue, CTR spokesman Gene Pierce said, "We're slightly better than halfway there."

The group needs to collect 322,899 signatures, or 10% of the gubernatorial election vote of 2002, and those must include at least 5% of the vote in 44 counties.

Mr. Pierce said CTR, which is employing both volunteers and paid petition circulators in the effort, is currently collecting between 50,000 and 75,000 signatures a week. The group is taking advantage of a temporary restraining order it won in court by challenging a provision in last year's election law rewrite (HB1, Special Session, 125^th General Assembly) that banned the practice of paying by the signature. "We're doing just fine" in terms of funding for the effort, Mr. Pierce added.

CTR's apparent progress toward a fall ballot issue comes as the Legislature struggles to put the combination "Third Frontier" research initiative and local infrastructure bond issue on the ballot due to a lack of supermajority support in the House, and after Speaker Jon Husted (R-Kettering) signaled the General Assembly wouldn't offer its own version of a TEL in noting the budget bill (HB 66) entails less growth than the CTR proposal would allow.

"So why do they have a problem? Why worry about it?" Mr. Pierce said of legislative leaders' resistance to constitutional spending limits. "If you can govern well under 3%, there shouldn't be a concern."

CTR is apparently having more success than some other groups with ballot aspirations, although a labor-backed effort to overhaul campaign contribution limits and take politics out of the redistricting process is encouraged by its progress thus far.