Ballot wording approved for statewide Issues 1, 2

Wording for two statewide ballot issues Ohioans will decide at the Nov. 7 election was approved Thursday by the Ohio Ballot Board.

While there has been an expensive war of words over Issue 2, known as the Drug Price Relief Act, it took relatively few words to describe it.

It would “Require the State of Ohio, including its state departments, agencies and entities, to not pay more for prescription drugs than the price paid by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.” The issue is an initiated statute.

The wording also includes a provision that would require the state to pay the legal cost of defending the act against court challenges. However, the proposal also would require those proposing the law to pay the state $10,000 if it is challenged and found by the courts to be unenforceable.

Secretary of State Jon Husted, the state’s top elections official, is chairman of the Ohio Ballot Board, which includes three state legislators and a member of the public.

The ballot fight over Issue 2 has already proven expensive, with more than $13 million spent by supporters and opponents of Issue 2 by the end of as June. Much of the outlay has gone for television commercials.

Proponents project a savings of 20 percent to 40 percent annually and say the issue could help 4 million Ohioans. Opponents say the state already negotiates discounts for Medicaid recipients and others, the promise of savings is slim, and the initiative actually could result in higher drug costs for virtually all Ohioans.

The wording approved by the Ballot Board for Issue 1, otherwise known as Marsy’s Law, would “require that the rights of (crime) victims be protected as vigorously as the rights of the accused.” it promises victims’ rights to privacy, timely notification in criminal cases, “reasonable protection from the accused,” and prompt conclusion to the case, among other things. The issue is a constitutional amendment.

The Issue 1 campaign finance report showed a single contributor: Dr. Henry Nicholas, who gave more than $3 million. Nicholas is the brother of Marsy Nicholas, who was stalked and killed by her boyfriend in California in 1983.