City of Cincinnati v. Hillenbrand

Citations

• 103 Ohio St. (N.S.) 286

Syllabus

<p>Initiative and referendum — Injunction — Expenditures for election — Compliance with mandatory provisions — Constitutionality of proposal not determined, when — Municipal initiative and referendum— Section if, Article II, Constitution — Power to be exercised, how — Sections 4227-1 to 4227-12, General Code — Petitions to contain ordinances, etc. — Section 4227-4, General Code.</p> <p>1. Injunction is the proper remedy to prevent the expenditure of public money by a board of deputy state supervisors of elections in submitting to the electors a statute or ordinance pursuant to an initiative petition, where mandatory provisions of the constitution or statute prescribing the necessary preliminary steps to authorize such submission have not been complied with.</p> <p>2. This court has no authority to pronounce a judgment or decree upon the question whether a proposed law or ordinance will be ■ valid and constitutional if enacted by a legislative body or adopted by the electors. And where the mandatory provisions of the constitution or statute prescribing the necessary preliminary steps to authorize the submission to the electors of an initiative statute or ordinance have been complied with the submission will not be enjoined. (Pfeifer v. Graves, Secretary of State, 88 Ohio St., 473, approved and followed.)</p> <p>3. Section If, Article II of the Constitution, especially reserves the initiative and referendum powers to the people of each municipality on all questions which municipalities are now, or hereafter may be, authorized by law to control by legislative action, and provides “that such powers shall be exercised in the manner now or hereafter provided by law.” Sections 4227-1 to 4227-12, General Code, inclusive, prescribe the manner in which such powers shall be exercised.</p> <p>4. Section 4227-4, General Code, provides that .any initiative or referendum petition may be presented in separate parts but each part of any initiative petition shall contain a full and c