State and Local Government Law Commons^™

Bans On Bags Or Bans On Bans?: A Home Rule Analysis Of Recent Attempts In Ohio To Enact Legislation Eliminating Plastic Bags From Stores, Christine Mika, Karin Mika

Cleveland State Law Review

This Article addresses how Ohio’s Home Rule provision in the Ohio Constitution has played out as legislators grapple with efforts to ban plastic bags from stores. It discusses the complexities of the Home Rule doctrine in Ohio, especially as it relates to the competing authority of state, county, and municipal governments. The Article discusses the history of Home Rule in Ohio, and the pre-emptive relationships between the competing governmental entities stemming from the existence of County and Municipal Charters that also grant legislative powers. It explains that the opting out of plastic bag bans by Ohio municipalities is a valid …