Dayton commission declines to place public-hospital tax levy on November ballot; citizens plan petition drive

The Dayton City Commission on July 23 declined to submit a citizen initiative proposing a 1‑mill tax levy for a public hospital to the ballot, voting 2 in favor, 2 against and 1 abstention, a result supporters said will send them back to the streets to collect signatures for a voter-led petition.

The motion to submit “Ordinance No. 32152‑25” (as read into the record) — described by supporters as a proposal to place a 1‑mill levy before city voters to fund a public hospital — failed on a roll-call vote: Mayor Jeffery Mims and Commissioner Turner Sloss voted yes; Commissioner Joseph and Commissioner Shaw voted no; Commissioner Fairchild abstained. Commissioner Regina Blackshear had presented an amended clerk’s report on the citizen initiative earlier in the meeting, which the commission approved before the subsequent motion to submit the levy to voters.

Supporters of the ballot measure addressed the commission during the public‑comment period. Bishop Richard Cox urged commissioners to “let the voters decide” and stressed the initiative’s benefits for disabled and underinsured residents, saying, “We appeal to your compassion.” Pastor Rodney Carter and several other speakers similarly urged the commission to put the measure before voters. Nancy Keel (spelled in the record variously as Kiel/Keel) said petitioners have collected about 5,500 signatures so far and described distrust among some residents about participating in the process. At the meeting’s end Keel said organizers planned a new 20‑day signature drive to collect 1,250 valid City of Dayton resident signatures between July 24 and August 11 to refile the measure with the city.

Commissioners who opposed putting the levy on the ballot said the proposal lacked key details. Commissioner Joseph and Commissioner Shaw said they had not seen a clear site, complete funding plan or formalized outside partnerships that would be required to build and operate a hospital. In his remarks, Commissioner Shaw said the levy funding cited by supporters was “woefully insufficient” and warned that if the city were forced to fill any long‑term funding gaps, it could jeopardize core municipal services. Shaw also expressed concern that a high‑profile ballot fight could harm passage of an unrelated human‑services levy on upcoming ballots.

The commission had approved the clerk’s amended review and report of the citizen‑initiative petition earlier in the meeting; that administrative step cleared an amended petition for consideration by the commission but did not itself place the question on the ballot.

After the vote, several speakers told the commission they would pursue the citizen‑petition route. Nancy Keel told the audience the organizers would begin collecting the required 1,250 valid signatures and provided contact information and a plan for collection from July 24 to August 11.

The commission’s action does not eliminate the initiative: Ohio law and the organizers’ stated plan allow petitioners to collect signatures and refile to place the measure before voters if they meet the legal signature threshold.

What happens next: Petitioners said they will begin a 20‑day signature drive immediately. The commission did not set any additional hearings or take further steps on the proposal at the July 23 meeting.