COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The Ohio Senate passed legislation Wednesday that would make it harder for citizens to mount petition drives to repeal laws, by putting a clamp on the number of days in which signatures could be collected.

Supporters of Senate Bill 47 said it's all about fairness and uniformity, while opponents say it would suppress the longstanding right of Ohioans to petition the government.

The bill, sponsored by Republican Sen. Bill Seitz, includes a provision that would restrict the time in which organizers can collect signatures for a particular measure to 100 days. Based on recent history, the bill would cut the signature-gathering window by at least 16 days.

Under the provision, organizers still would have 90 days to collect signatures for a referendum before submitting the petition to the secretary of state for required authentication and an additional 10 days if the secretary of state deems there are not enough signatures to put a measure on the ballot. But SB47, which passed with a 23-10 party-line vote, squelches the ability to collect signatures during the secretary of state's verification process.

That ban is the crux of contention among lawmakers.

Seitz likened the move to a football game in which action is suspended while referees review a play.

The Cincinnati senator said since 1997, the verification process has taken anywhere from 16 to 58 days, giving certain groups an unfair advantage in the number of days they have to collect signatures while the initial petitions are reviewed. The signature requirement for a referendum campaign is 6 percent of the number of votes in the most recent gubernatorial election.

SB47 would level the playing field by removing the ability to bolster petitions during that time, Seitz said.

"The principle is, in the name of uniformity, everyone will get the same period of time within which to collect petitions," Seitz said. "Now sometimes this will help your cause, and sometimes it will not."

Sen. Nina Turner believes the move can do no good.

"This is just another layering of efforts to suppress the voices of the people in the state, but they can cloak it however they want to," said Turner, a Cleveland Democrat.

Groups including the League of Women Voters of Ohio and We Are Ohio have also expressed outrage over the bill.

"Sen. Seitz is like the Wizard of Oz and we are pulling the curtain away," said Dennis Willard, communication director for We Are Ohio. "Nothing is broken. What are they trying to fix? 'Uniformity' is just a code word for 'we don't have anything better to say'."

Seitz could not cite specific examples in which groups unfairly benefited or suffered under the current law, but said SB47 would prevent any gamesmanship from secretaries of state who could choose to drag their feet or sprint during the review process to favor or obstruct a particular petition.

Seitz said he found it interesting that some who are raising questions about the bill think it is part of a nefarious GOP reaction to the 2011 petition-initiated repeal of Senate Bill 5's collective bargaining overhaul, or last year's legislative repeal of House Bill 194, which restricted early voting and had been targeted for a voter referendum.

We Are Ohio, backed by Democrats and labor groups, led the push for an SB5 referendum, helping to gather 1.3 million signatures before the bill's repeal.

"In reality, its about none of these things," Seitz said of SB47, which is set to move to the House for consideration. "It is about having one set of simple, easily understood rules that apply no matter your cause."