New rules give mayor a 'pocket veto'

Democratic council members David C. Crowley and Laketa Cole got all of the attention for their opposition to rule changes adopted by Cincinnati City Council this week.

But Republican Leslie Ghiz -- while not as public in her criticism of the Rules Committee -- also voted against two rule changes, including one that could give the mayor what she calls a "pocket veto."

A sentence on council procedures in Rule 8.1 makes a subtle but important change to how items get to a vote: "Once approved by a committee, the item is sent to the mayor through the clerk of council for placement on the council agenda." (Emphasis added.) Previously, the clerk automatically put any item passed by a committee on the agenda.

That change, Ghiz said, could theoretically allow the mayor to preempt council action by simply refusing to schedule a vote. And while the charter gives him a veto power over ordinances, the mayor could conceivably use the rule to extend that power to block resolutions, motions and other council business he was previously powerless to stop.

"I wasn't comfortable voting for rules that could theoretically give the mayor a pocket veto," Ghiz said. "If those particular rules are changed to protect future councils from a potential pocket veto, I'll vote for them."

Mayor Mark Mallory told City Council on Wednesday that he would not refuse to place an item on the agenda absent some extraordinary circumstance. It's the same power the speaker of the House or the Senate president has in Columbus and Washington, his council allies say.

And Rules Committee Chairman Jeff Berding said City Council does have recourse to check the power of a future mayor who would abuse the rules: A council member could move to suspend the rules and ask for immediate consideration -- a non-debatable motion that requires six votes.

That's the same margin it takes to override a veto.