On August 12, the Ohio Supreme Court unanimously rejected a challenge to the validity of a statewide initiative petition. Here is the 3-page decision. Opponents of the initiative had charged that the petition is invalid because not all of the paid petition circulators filed a compensation statement. Opponents had also charged that the petition is invalid because some of the circulators had listed as their employer the name of the group that is sponsoring the initiative, instead of listing the company that had been hired to gather the signatures. The case is Rothenberg v Husted, 2011-4003.

The initiative will now appear on the November 8, 2011 ballot. It adds a state constitutional provision that says “No federal, state or local law shall compel, directly or indirectly, any person, employer, or health care provider to participate in a health care system.”