(COLUMBUS, Ohio) — Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed the following bills into law:
- House Bill 281, sponsored by State Representatives Dontavius L. Jarrells and Tom Young, updates terminology in the Revised Code regarding people with mental illnesses and people with disabilities, changes the name of a commission to the Commission on African-Americans and modifies the membership of the Commission, and names this act the Mental Health and Disability Terminology Act.
- House Bill 343, sponsored by State Representative Andrea White, make changes relative to the rights of crime victims.
- House Bill 501, sponsored by State Representative Thomas Hall, makes various township law changes, subjects small solar facilities to local regulation, and makes an exception to the Uniform Depository Act for the treasurer and governing board that is a member of the Little Miami Joint Fire and Rescue District for certain investments of interim funds.
- House Bill 504, sponsored by State Representative Mark Johnson and former Representative Rick Carfagna, increases the penalty for “disturbing a lawful meeting” when committed with the intent to disturb or disquiet an assemblage for religious worship or to prevent, disrupt, or interfere with a virtual meeting or gathering for religious worship.
- House Bill 509, sponsored by State Representatives Marilyn John and Sarah Fowler Arthur, revises and streamlines the state’s occupational regulations, extends the authorization for two boards set to expire under Sunset Review Law, and amends the version of section 4723.481 of the Revised Code that is scheduled to take effect on September 30, 2024, to continue the change on and after that date.
- House Bill 545, sponsored by State Representatives Cindy Abrams and Brian Baldridge, allows for privileged testimonial communications between a peer support team member and an individual receiving peer support services or advice from the team member.
- House Bill 554, sponsored by Representatives Mary Lightbody and Adam Bird, requires the State Board of Education to issue temporary educator licenses to applicants with expired professional teacher’s certificates and professional educator licenses, with regard to the composition of the Educator Standards Board and its subcommittees, STEM school classroom facilities project funding, full-time equivalency for students enrolled in certain community schools for the 2022-2023 school year, the provision of intervention services under the Autism Scholarship Program, children of military families participation in the college credit plus program, high school graduation requirements for transfer and chartered nonpublic school students, and regarding the education of children experiencing developmental delays and state operating funding for districts and schools educating them; expands where multiple community school facilities may be located under a community school sponsor contract; and permits state universities to develop a policy regulating student organizations’ use of university logos.
- House Bill 558, sponsored by State Representatives Bill Roemer and Kris Jordan, modifies the laws governing the drug repository program for donated prescription drugs and the laws governing access to overdose reversal drugs, authorizes a pharmacist to modify a prescription to include a drug delivery device, registers pediatric transition care programs, designates March as “Bleeding Disorders Awareness Month,” and designates the fourth Wednesday of February as “Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Awareness Day.”
- House Bill 567, sponsored by State Representatives Brian Stewart and Richard D. Brown, regards records kept by the clerk of the court of common pleas, court of common pleas court orders made out of court, and common pleas court clerk maintenance of court materials, and provides immunity to clerks of court who post online a case document with personal identifiers; provides that documents received, created, or converted by the clerk of court in electronic format are considered the official version of the record; revises the duties of the board of county commissioners in relation to the clerk of the court of common pleas; amends the law regarding notaries public; allows the Tiffin-Fostoria municipal court and the Seneca County court of common pleas to continue to exercise concurrent jurisdiction in operating a drug addiction recovery program indefinitely; and exempts peace officers from the notary application criminal records check, and makes changes to the notarization requirements for motor vehicle and watercraft certificate of title documents when a licensed motor vehicle dealer is involved in the transfer of title.
- House Bill 569, sponsored by State Representatives Adam Holmes and Andrea White, authorizes institutions of higher education to establish Ohio Hidden Hero Scholarship Programs.
- House Bill 575, sponsored by State Representative Al Cutrona, modernizes fraternal benefit society solvency regulation and oversight.
- House Bill 578, sponsored by State Representative Bill Roemer, creates and amends various specialty license plates and designates and amends various memorial highways and bridges.
Governor DeWine today also vetoed House Bill 513, regarding local regulation of tobacco products and alternative nicotine products. Governor’s Veto Message