Ohio has been in the news a lot lately for the Learn and Earn petitions and all that has gone on with them. But when it comes down to what has finally made it onto the ballot, there is much more at stake than just the initiative. Voters have been spending so much time thinking about the slot machine issues, that the smoking ban has ended up taking a back seat to the initiative. There are as many as five different issues on the Ohio November ballot, two for smoking bans, one for slot machines, one for raising the state’s minimum wage, and the last for making changes to the Ohio Worker’s Compensation Laws.  

The slot machine initiative is a big one, and not just because of the group that was spearheading it. The slot machines are already allowed in Pennsylvania, and this means major competition for the state’s own slots. The new slot machines would not be in every neighborhood bar, however, they would only be found in the seven racetracks that already exist, and in two free standing slot machine parlors in Cleveland.  

The other issues are just as important, but because of all the media attention on the slot machine initiative, they have not gotten their just desserts. The two smoking bans are similar, but one wants to ban smoking in all public places - the other just wants it banned in public places other than bars and restaurants. The minimum wage initiative would raise the old wage from $5.15 to $6.85 an hour. And finally, the Worker’s Comp law would help with those injured workers filing claims.

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