The fiscal officer had argued the underlying resolution was exempt from referendum because council had passed it as emergency legislation. According to a Facebook post from Teays Valley Against Overgrowth, a group that has organized opposition to large-scale housing and data-center development in the region, a Circleville City Schools parent named Ashley Willison began reviewing Circleville City Council’s legislative record after the Ashville ruling came down. The group said its review found that “declaring an emergency” is a recurring phrase in the city’s 2026 legislation. “Nobody is saying Circleville has already decided to declare this annexation an emergency,” the group wrote. McNamara-Smith v. Grube, and records from Circleville City Council, including its rules of order and a Jan. 20, 2026 ordinance.