Voters approved two Cincinnati charter amendments this election — one related to public safety hiring, and one related to campaign finance reporting.
Issue 2: Public safety hiring
Voters approved this charter amendment with nearly 73% support.
It is aimed at incentivizing young people to join the Cincinnati Police Department or Fire Department. Recruits to these public safety jobs require an entry exam through the Civil Service; the city charter offers extra points on that exam for some people, including members of the military and anyone who has graduated from a public safety academy through Cincinnati Public Schools.
Issue 2 adds new categories of people eligible to receive extra points:
- anyone who has completed the Police Understudy Program or Summer Cadet Program;
- completed at least two years in the Cincinnati Police Public Safety Cadet Program;
- anyone who has completed the Fire Cadet Program or Fire Summer Cadet Program.
CPD has been understaffed for years, with officers retiring more quickly than new ones can be recruited and trained. As of Sept. 29, CPD has 946 sworn officers — well below the budgeted complement of 1,059.
Issue 3: Campaign finance reporting
Voters approved this charter amendment with about 80% support.
It changes campaign finance reporting requirements for candidates running for mayor or City Council.
Council member Evan Nolan introduced the amendment. He says the purpose is to align local reporting rules with statewide regulations, simplifying the process for candidates and clearing up possible confusion among voters.
Nolan says the rules in Cincinnati are more complex than in other parts of the state, and the reason behind these rules is no longer valid.
"It had to do with easier ways to track compliance with contribution limits, but because of the technology that we have today, particularly in the Office of Ethics and Good Governance, they are able to do that work without these separate reports," Nolan said.
Candidates for public office in Ohio are required to file several campaign finance reports, including annual, semi-annual, pre-general election, and post-election. Candidates for Cincinnati City Council and mayor also have to file a pre-election and a post-election report, and mayoral candidates also file an additional report if there's a primary election that year.
City-required reports may have the same deadline as state-required reports, but cover different time periods.
"When the reporting periods don't align, we have information being published after one reporting period that is then published again after a different reporting period," Nolan said. "Media has then reported on those as if they were separate reports, when in fact they were one in the same."
The charter amendment would align city reporting deadlines with the state deadlines; that means the Cincinnati Elections Commission would receive much more frequent campaign finance information for local candidates.
Nolan says the amendment also would increase access to the ballot for new candidates who may find the complicated reporting system confusing.
"My hope is that folks running for office are spending their time engaging with the community and focusing on policy and not worrying about these additional reporting requirements that really fail to add anything to the public good," Nolan said.
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