When two farmers in a small town in Ohio were concerned about construction of a huge new corporate plant in their community, they gathered enough signatures to put the zoning changes up for a public vote. But, twice, state officials blocked the project from going on the ballot. Taylor Barnes for Inkstick Media, with support from the Fund, revealed that a lobbyist for Anduril (the corporation that wanted to build a weapons plant) had emailed a state lawmaker’s aide proposing the exact language exempting the project from referendums, and the language appeared in the state budget bill six days later. Barnes notes this is part of a broader pattern in Ohio, where state lawmakers have repeatedly stripped local governments of authority at the request of powerful industry interests.
Ohio legislators block corporate from development from public vote; grantee obtains evidence of interference
