by Marc Kovac
Capital Bureau Chief
Columbus --The Republican head of the Ohio Senate will be waiting to hear how Gov. Ted Strickland intends to fill future budget holes, should his plan to put slot machines at the state's horse racing tracks not come to fruition.
"I think the governor needs to have an answer," Senate President Bill Harris, from Ashland, told Statehouse reporters last week.
He added later, "I think that if it doesn't work, we'll certainly work with him, but I think it's his responsibility to bring us recommendations."
Harris' response came after reporters asked whether further spending cuts would be needed, given anticipated lawsuits aimed at stopping state-administered video lottery terminals at racetracks.
The slots plan was included in the state's biennial budget, signed by Strickland earlier this month after mostly party-line votes in the Ohio House and Senate. The administration estimates the video lottery terminals, which they hope to be up and running by next May, will generate close to $1 billion.
But opponents have announced their intentions to launch legal action to stop the plan. One group, LetOhioVote.org, filed suit with the Ohio Supreme Court with hopes of stopping the slots implementation until residents can vote on the issue in November 2010.
Justices have asked that additional filings in the case be made within the next week.
Other lawsuits, including one planned by the American Policy Roundtable and supported by church leaders, could tie up the governor's plan in legal actions for months or years.
Harris said. "... There's no reason that this could not have been sent to the ballot, and that was my recommendation to the governor.
"For whatever reason, he decided to do the executive order, which was his prerogative," he said. "And I'm just concerned how much money it will cost the state in legal expenses in relationship to the lawsuit."
Marc Kovac is the Dix Newspapers Statehouse Bureau chief. E-mail him at mkovac@dixcom.com or on Twitter at OhioCapitalBlog. His Capital Blog can be found online at blogs.dixcdn.com/capitalblog/.