FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Monday, November 14, 2011, 11:00 AM PUBLIC MEETING ON BALLOT INITIATIVE TO CHANGE CITY COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP SET FOR WEDNESDAY, 6:15PM, AT OHIO HISTORICAL CENTER (Columbus, OH) The Columbus Coalition for Responsive Government, a nonprofit Ballot Initiative Committee, is hosting a public meeting on Wednesday, November 16th, at 6:15PM, in the Auditorium at the Ohio Historical Center (I-71 and 17th Avenue -- 800 E. 17th Avenue, Columbus, OH 43211). We will be discussing the proposed amendment to the Charter of the City of Columbus that was filed with the City Auditor on Tuesday, November 8th, we will outline the actions we will undertake over coming months, and we will seek people willing to join us to help in this effort. The Ballot Initiative legislation we propose would create an 11 member Columbus City Council, with 4 members elected through city-wide elections (at-large), and 7 members elected from within the District in which they reside. Districts would be drawn every ten years by an Apportionment Board, with members of that Board being appointed from the City electorate. This proposed Council structure would replace the antiquated system of 7 part-time council members elected by the city at-large, which was created in 1914 in a successful effort to concentrate power and dilute new-immigrant voices. This is not 1914, this is 2011: Columbus now has over 870,000 residents far more than the 181,000 residents of nearly a century ago. Our city and our neighborhoods would benefit from a contemporary system of representation that includes council members at large, and council members who represent the diverse areas in which they live. Columbuss current system is archaic: district-based systems are the modern form of governance in place in 22 of the largest 25 cities in America. The Ballot Initiative process we are engaged in allows citizens to propose legislation to City Council. With approximately 12,000 valid signatures, this proposal would be sent to Columbus City Council for a vote. If Council does not vote in favor of the Ballot Initiative legislation, the measure will be placed on the ballot for a vote by the citizens of Columbus. More information is available at www.columbuscoalition.info , where we encourage you to: 1) Read about the proposal; 2) Enlist as a potential volunteer in one of several capacities ranging from communications, to campaign strategy, to gathering signatures; and/or 3) Donate money to support this citizen-initiated campaign for reform. The Wednesday meeting at the Ohio Historical Center will be the start of our campaign of education and action. Please consider learning more about this initiative to create a more responsive and more accountable Columbus city government. We welcome your involvement in this citizens initiative.

For more information: www.columbuscoalition.info, or 614-595-2986. Columbus Coalition for Responsive Government 1815 Franklin Park South Columbus, OH 43205 Jonathan C. Beard, Treasurer