Cleveland Sues Ohio to Keep Its Trans Fat Ban
Cleveland Mayor Frank Johnson filed a complaint Tuesday against Ohio in response to a recent state law that bans municipalities from regulating the ingredients restaurants use to prepare foods.
The battle over trans fat began last April when, as part of its Healthy Cleveland initiative, the Cleveland City Council passed a law to ban restaurants from using cooking oils containing trans fat, the Plain Dealer reports.
Fueled by pressure from lobbyists, including The Ohio Restaurant Association, state lawmakers overruled the ban in an amendment to the state budget last June.
“The health and well-being of Cleveland is the responsibility of the City of Cleveland, and we are taking proactive steps to help make everyone in Cleveland healthier,” Jackson said at a news conference. “One of those steps was a ban on industrially-produced trans fat in local restaurants and food shops.
“The state’s subsequent amendment to the Ohio Revised Code taking away our ability to enforce this important health regulation is yet another attempt by the state to erode the Home Rule Authority that we have a constitutional right to,” he said.
