Ohio House OKs bill on township roads

COLUMBUS -- Townships would be able to designate certain roads for nonmaintenance and would be able to vacate other roads, under a bill passed Tuesday in the Ohio House of Representatives.
State representatives approved 94-0 and sent the measure to the Senate.
Bill sponsor Bob Gibbs, R-Lakeville, said in many rural townships there are mere paths that could be designated as roads that the townships must then maintain. "We want to fix it so there isn't an unfunded maintenance status," Gibbs said. Under an analysis of the bill, once a township places a road on an "unmaintained" status, the owner nearest it may be required to pay the costs to upgrade the road back to township standards. The bill has not yet been assigned to a Senate committee for further study.