YOUNGSTOWN CITY COUNCIL Ordinance on background checks for candidates gets first reading

Three of seven council members voted against the proposal.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
CITY HALL REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- A councilman introduced a proposal requiring those seeking elected city positions to have criminal-history checks before filing as candidates, a policy that some members of the legislative body say isn't legal.
Councilman Paul Pancoe, who introduced the legislation Wednesday, said he's "disappointed and upset" that three members of council -- Artis Gillam Sr., D-1st; Rufus G. Hudson, D-2nd, and Richard Atkinson, R-3rd -- voted against it. The proposal, which Pancoe has been working on for a while, received a first reading Wednesday by a 4-3 vote.
The legislation requires "candidates seeking elected office in the city to undergo and receive a criminal-history background investigation check prior to filing as a candidate with the Mahoning County Board of Elections." The sheriff's department has said it can conduct the checks through the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation and the FBI for about $35 to $50 for each check.
Pancoe, D-6th, acknowledges the legislation's language is vague and fails to address who pays for the checks, the penalty for refusing to consent to a check, and the precise time frame for the check, besides "prior to filing as a candidate." It also doesn't make it illegal for felons to run in Youngstown.
Pancoe plans to add to and amend the proposal.
If the proposal isn't approved by six of the seven members of council, it would require two additional readings with a simple majority voting in favor of it to make it law. Council's next two meetings are tentatively set for July 19 and Aug. 16.
Criticism
Law Director Iris Torres Guglucello said last month that Pancoe's proposal isn't enforceable. On Wednesday, she had no comment on the legislation.
State law doesn't forbid felons from running for office, but they can't hold an elected position unless they get their criminal record sealed or get a presidential pardon, according to the Ohio Secretary of State's Office.
Hudson questions if the proposal is legal and enforceable. He also wants to know who would pay for the background checks, and questions if it's fair to have people pay for checks before the county elections board certifies them as candidates.
Councilman Mark Memmer, D-7th, voted in favor of the proposal, but said he did so to hopefully get the attention of members of the General Assembly to change this law on the state level.
skolnick@vindy.com