SECTION 14 POWER TO INITIATE ORDINANCES.

   The electors shall have power to propose any ordinance except an appropriation ordinance, and to adopt or reject the same at the polls, such power being known as the initiative. Any proposed ordinance may be submitted to the commission by petition which, to be sufficient, shall be signed by 500 registered voters from the City of Piqua. All petition papers circulated with respect to a proposed ordinance shall be uniform in character and shall contain the proposed ordinance in full. The form of the petition shall be as follows:

PETITION TO INITIATE AN ORDINANCE TO [purpose of proposed ordinance]

This Ordinance reads as follows: [exact language of ordinance in its entirety].

This petition is being circulated by [name] as a committee member for the petitioners. Your signature indicates that you desire to have the above initiated ordinance submitted and voted upon by the City Commission or adopted or rejected at the polls by a vote of the electors.

To sign this petition, you must be a registered voter of the City of Piqua with the Miami County Board of Elections. A false signature may result in prosecution under the law.

Printed Name      Signature      Address   Registered Voter

1.                           Y/N

The following are the names and addresses of the full Committee:

The petition shall also contain the affidavit as required in Section 27 of this Charter.

(Adopted by electorate, November 3, 2009 – Amending Ord. No. 11-09)

SECTION 15 CONSIDERATION OF INITIATED ORDINANCE BY COMMISSION.

   If an initiative petition or amended petition, be found sufficient by the city clerk he shall immediately so certify and promptly submit the proposed ordinance therein set forth to the commission which shall at once read it and refer it to an appropriate committee, which may be a committee of the whole. Provision shall be made for public hearings upon the proposed ordinance before the committee to which it is referred. Thereafter the committee shall report the proposed ordinance to the commission, with its recommendations thereon, not later than sixty days after the date on which it was submitted to the commission by the city clerk. Upon receiving the proposed ordinance from the committee, the commission shall proceed at once to consider it and to take final action thereon within thirty days from the date of such committee report.

SECTION 16 SUBMISSION OF INITIATED ORDINANCE TO ELECTORS.

   If the commission fails to pass an ordinance proposed by initiative petition or passes it in a form different from that set forth in the petition therefor, the committee of the petitioners hereinafter provided for may require that it be submitted to a vote of the electors either in its original form or with any change or amendment presented in writing either at a public hearing before the committee to which the proposed ordinance was referred or during the consideration thereof by the commission. If the committee of petitioners require the submission of a proposed ordinance to a vote of the electors they shall certify that fact to the city clerk, and file in his office a certified copy of the proposed ordinance in the form in which it is to be submitted, within ten business days after final action on such proposed ordinance by commission.

(Adopted by electorate, November 3, 2009 – Amending Ord. No. 11-09)

SECTION 17 ELECTION ON INITIATED ORDINANCE.

   Upon receipt of the certified coy of a proposed ordinance from the committee of the petitioners the city clerk shall certify that fact to the commission at the next regular meeting. If any election is to be held not more than one year nor less than thirty days after the receipt of the clerk’s certificate by the commission, the proposed ordinance shall be submitted to a vote of the electors at the first such election unless the commission provides for submitting it to the electors at a special election to be held within the time aforesaid. If no other election is to be held within one year and not less than thirty days after the receipt of the clerk’s certificate as aforesaid, the commission shall provide for submitting the proposed ordinance to the electors at a special election to be held within that time. If, when submitted to the electors, a majority of those voting on a proposed ordinance vote in favor thereof, it shall be an ordinance of the city. Initiated ordinances adopted by the electors shall be published, and may be amended or repealed by the commission, as in the case of other ordinances.

SECTION 18 INITIATED ORDINANCE PASSED BY COMMISSION IN AMENDED FORM.

   When an ordinance proposed by initiative petition is passed by the commission in a changed or amended form, and the committee of the petitioners require that such proposed ordinance be submitted to a vote of the electors as provided in Section 16 hereof, the ordinance as passed by the commission shall not take effect until after such vote and, if the proposed ordinance so submitted be approved by a majority of the electors voting thereon, the ordinance as passed by the commission shall be deemed repealed.