Ohio voters could decide whether to allow up to four new casinos if a petition filed last week with the state attorney general is approved and enough signatures are then gathered to get the question on the November ballot.
The petition — filed by a group of businessmen that includes the owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers and a company that owns a dozen casinos across the country — would amend the state’s constitution to allow four casinos in major cities: Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus, and Toledo.
The group sponsoring the proposal calls itself the Ohio Jobs and Growth Committee. If the attorney general approves the language of the petition, the committee will have until July 1 to gather the 402,000 signatures necessary to get the measure on the ballot.
The proposal includes a tax on casino revenue that supporters estimate would generate $600 million annually. Ohio voters have rejected four casino proposals in the last 18 years, including one on last November’s ballot.
