Cleveland-Marshall College of Law Dean Emeritus, and current Senior Policy Advisor of the Ohio Constitutional Modernization Commission, Steven Steinglass was recently quoted extensively in an article on Cleveland.com, published May 22, 2017. The article, New State, New Constitution is part of a series exploring the issues of potentially carving a new state out of Northern Ohio. The May 22nd article focuses on creating a new state constitution, mentioning several options for structuring the potential government. The article also briefly discusses the history of Ohio’s constitutions and the changes that were made over time. Steinglass emphasizes that any new constitution “should reflect the values and ideals of its citizens” and “be transparent and understandable.”
Steinglass suggests that many changes are possible. For example, the current Ohio Constitution contains several provisions that may be better to have in the statutes instead. Another possible change is establishing a unicameral legislature, or even a parliamentary system, rather than the bicameral legislature currently in place. Changes could also be made to the executive branch, such as making the secretary of state an appointed, rather than elected, position. According to Steinglass, there is an ongoing debate about that issue across the nation, since the secretary of state oversees elections.
Check out the rest of the series for an exploration of the pros and cons of creating a new state.
