Ohio Municipal League
175 South Third Street
Suite 510
Columbus, Ohio 43215

614-221-4349 Office
614-221-4390 Fax

email:
Legislative Inquiries
John Mahoney
General Inquiries
info@omunileague.org

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OML E- BULLETIN
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PLEASE CIRCULATE THIS BULLETIN TO YOUR COUNCIL, DEPARTMENT HEADS & STAFF

A Word of Caution

We have had a number of calls from municipalities who are being solicited to pass resolutions supporting particular plans for electric deregulation in Ohio. The General Assembly is now actively considering the issue of deregulation of Ohio's $11 billion electric industry. As you can well imagine, with a dramatic change in an industry that large the posturing of all those with an interest in this issue is tremendous. And with an industry and issue this complex, the ideas that are flying fast and furious about the issue are just as complex and extremely fluid.

Given that, we would urge caution in picking up on the resolutions which are currently being marketed to municipal councils. The problem is not that some of those proposals may not be good ideas in the end. The problem is really twofold. One is the nature of the issue. Because of its complexity, the outline of any proposal can appear to be both pro-consumer and sensitive to municipal issues. But, the complexity of the issue means that this really is an issue in which the "devil is in the details." Usually, what is being presented for resolution support lacks the details needed to really know what the actual outcome will be with such a proposal once the proposal becomes legislation. The second aspect of this issue's fragility is that whatever any proposal begins as, it is guaranteed that it will not make its way through the General Assembly without substantial change. Thus, you can end up endorsing a proposal, which becomes legislation, which then becomes a law with which you entirely disagree.

This note is not meant to discourage councils from taking a stand on deregulation or any other issue. That it is your right and, on certain issues, the League itself has often asked you to take such positions. We only caution, on the issue of deregulation, that perhaps you may want to consider, if you wish to take a position, a resolution which outlines the elements and principals upon which you think electric dereg ought to occur, rather than backing a particular outline of a proposal put forth by one of the groups which have a direct interest in the issue. We simply would not want your support for such a proposal to come back to haunt you when the details or the changes in such a proposal are fully and finally known.

HOUSE COMMITTEE SCHEDULE FOR WEEK OF FEBRUARY 1, 1999

CRIMINAL JUSTICE, 1:30 p.m., Rm. 114

HB 46 GUN LOCKS (Patton) Prohibits a federally licensed firearms dealer from selling a handgun unless the dealer sells the purchaser a trigger lock for the handgun or a trigger lock is an integral component of the handgun and makes other changes. (1st Hearing)

TRANSPORTATION & PUBLIC SAFETY, 3 p.m., Rm. 116

HB 12 LICENSE PLATES (Hood) Requires that motor vehicles carry only one license plate, to be displayed on the rear of the vehicle. (1st Hearing)

HB 34 RELOCATION EXPENSES (Taylor) Requires the director of Transportation to provide for the relocation of facilities of certain water supply, waterworks, or sewerage systems.

AGRICULTURE & NATURAL RESOURCES, 8:30 a.m., Rm. 116

HB 67 WATER RIGHTS (Coughlin) Provides that a withdrawal of water by certain municipal corporations from either the Lake Erie or Ohio River drainage basin and transfer to another basin is a diversion for the purposes of certain permitting requirements regardless of whether the water is returned to its basin of origin. (2nd Hearing)

HEALTH, RETIREMENT & AGING, 10 a.m., Rm. 017

HB 35 WORK CAMPS (Taylor) Eliminates the requirement that a person who maintains a work camp pay to a municipal corporation, township or county where the camp is located any expenses caused by contagious or infectious diseases that originate or exist in the camp. (1st Hearing)

STATE GOVERNMENT, 2 p.m., Rm. 116

HB 51 EMINENT DOMAIN (Taylor) Requires agencies to pay in just amounts determined by a court the attorney's fees, witness fees, and other actual expenses that a property owner incurs in eminent domain proceedings if the compensation and damages that the jury assesses for the affected property exceed the agency's highest offer for the property by 10% or more. (1st Hearing)

LOCAL GOVERNMENT & TOWNSHIPS, 4 p.m., Rm. 018

HB 40 CONTRACT PREFERENCE (Jolivette) Requires certain political subdivisions to provide a preference, under specified circumstances, when comparing bids for the awarding of public improvement contracts. (1st Hearing)

HB 55 UNCLAIMED PROPERTY (Schuler) Permits municipal police departments of dispose of certain unclaimed property by donating it to public agencies or nonprofit organizations. (2nd Hearing)