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Ohio Supreme Court dismissed a complaint from six Youngstown residents on the anti-fracking charter amendment
COLUMBUS
The Ohio Supreme Court dismissed a complaint filed by six Youngstown residents challenging the authority of the Mahoning County Board of Elections to not certify an anti-fracking charter amendment in the city.
In a 7-0 decision Friday, the court wrote the complaint was moot because of its ruling a day earlier in a similar case filed by the city against the board.
In that also-unanimous decision, the court agreed with the city that the board didn’t have the power to take the proposal off the Nov. 3 ballot because its members believed it to be unconstitutional.
“Such an amendment becomes void and unenforceable only when declared unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction,” the judges wrote in Thursday’s decision.
The board will formally vote to put the charter amendment on the ballot shortly, but based on the court decision it will include the anti-fracking proposal on overseas ballots that will start to be mailed Saturday, said Mark Munroe, its chairman.
“We will follow the court’s order now, prepare ballots and certify at a later date,” he said.
The court decision puts an end to any debate about the board having discretion to remove the charter amendment proposal, Munroe said.