Ohio Supreme Court dismisses slots lawsuit

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The Ohio Supreme Court has dismissed the remaining lawsuit against a plan to put slot machines at horse racing tracks.

The court today dismissed the suit brought by the Ohio Policy Roundtable, citing its previous decision that the plan be subject to a referendum on the 2010 ballot.

The earlier decision prompted Gov. Ted Strickland to scrap plans to use revenue from the slot machines to cover a state budget deficit. Strickland’s budget plan now calls for delaying a 4.2 percent reduction in income taxes.

The Ohio Roundtable, which had argued it was unconstitutional to expand the Ohio Lottery to include slot machines, says it will refile the suit once the referendum process is resolved.

Strickland has said that he wants the court to issue a declaratory judgment about slots so he knows whether he can pursue that option in the future.