Capitol lockout stirs up Hagan
The Vindicator (Youngstown)
Groups of protesters gathered Tuesday outside the statehouse in Columbus to voice their opposition for Senate Bill 5, which would eliminate collective bargaining for state workers in Ohio, Only about 1,500 people were allowed inside the building, which left more than 3,000 people standing out in the cold.
Rep. Robert F. Hagan, D-Youngstown. (AP Photo/Larry Phillips)
Rep: House, Senate should make the call
By Marc Kovac
COLUMBUS
Democratic lawmakers still are holding out the possibility of legal action to keep the Statehouse open to the public, after thousands of protesters were locked out Tuesday.
And one member, state Rep. Bob Hagan from Youngstown, plans to introduce legislation to give leaders of the Ohio Senate and House the authority to control the premises.
“This is the people’s house,” Hagan, D-60th, said Wednesday. “When the executive branch decides to lock the doors and to keep some people out and let some in, that’s wrong.”
More than 5,200 protesters, many of them union members, traveled to the Statehouse on Tuesday to protest Senate Bill 5, legislation that would make sweeping changes to the state’s collective-bargaining laws. More than 1,500 were allowed into the building, but the remainder were locked out.
Senate President Tom Niehaus praised Ohioans’ involvement in the legislative process. “We welcome them back. They’re an important part of the process, and we look forward to hearing from them again,” he said.
But he said the Ohio State Highway Patrol made the call to limit access to the building for safety reasons. And he said there were issues with the crowd inside the building.
“In any group, you have a few that will spoil the process for others,” Niehaus said. “Unfortunately, we have documented instances where people defecated in the building. We have documented instances where they have written on the walls. This is the people’s house. I used to say, ‘Treat the house like it’s yours.’ Well, I don’t want them to treat the house like it’s theirs if that’s the way they treat their own home. They should be a little more respectful of the people’s house.”
The lockout prompted Democratic lawmakers to threaten legal action, and Columbus attorney Don McTigue said he had the necessary paperwork ready for filing.
But McTigue said Wednesday morning that the filing was on hold pending discussions with the attorney general’s office about how protesters would be handled.
“What we’d like to see is people having access to the Statehouse like they would on any other day,” he said. “We believe that there was plenty of room available. ... On any other day, anybody from the public can walk in and walk out as they please. ... We want to see unfettered access to the Statehouse during normal business hours.”
Hagan’s bill would give the majority and minority leaders of both chambers control over the Statehouse, authority currently held by the Capital Square Review and Advisory Board.
“Those decisions have to be made by those of us who come here daily,” Hagan said. “When you lock people out, when you keep them from protesting and exercising their constitutional right to assemble, to protest, to speak their mind, to address the issues that are very important to them, then you’re dealing very closely with disturbing the rights of so many people and the constitutions of the state of Ohio and the United States.”