Read the full stored bill text
As Introduced
136th
General Assembly
Regular
Session
H. B. No. 164
2025-2026
Representatives Robinson, Miller, J.
Cosponsors: Representatives White,
E., Rader, Piccolantonio, Brennan, McNally, Brownlee, Russo
A
BILL
To
enact sections 103.44, 103.45, 103.46, 103.47, 103.48, 103.49, and
103.50 of the Revised Code and to repeal Section 733.40 of H.B. 166
of the 133rd General Assembly to
reinstate
the Joint Education Oversight Committee and to make an appropriation.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section
1.
That
sections 103.44, 103.45, 103.46, 103.47, 103.48, 103.49, and 103.50
of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:
Sec.
103.44.
As
used in sections 103.45 to 103.50 of the Revised Code:
(A)
"Other public schools" includes the state school for the
deaf, the state school for the blind, community schools established
under Chapter 3314. of the Revised Code, STEM schools established
under Chapter 3326. of the Revised Code, and college-preparatory
boarding schools established under Chapter 3328. of the Revised Code.
(B)
"State institution of higher education" has the same
meaning as in section 3345.011 of the Revised Code.
Sec.
103.45.
(A)
The joint education oversight committee of the house of
representatives and senate is hereby created. The committee shall
authorize a plan of work, which shall include research, review,
study, and analysis of current or emerging education policy issues
important to the state, the available policy options to address such
issues, and the available data and research to support such analysis
and options.
(B)
The committee also may select, for review and evaluation, education
programs at school districts, other public schools, and state
institutions of higher education that receive state financial
assistance in any form. The reviews and evaluations may include any
of the following:
(1)
Assessment of the uses school districts, other public schools, and
state institutions of higher education make of state money they
receive, and a determination of the extent to which that money
improves student, district, school, or institutional performance in
the areas for which the money was intended to be used;
(2)
Determination of whether an education program meets its intended
goals, has adequate operating or administrative procedures and fiscal
controls, encompasses only authorized activities, has any undesirable
or unintended effects, and is efficiently managed;
(3)
Examination of pilot programs developed and initiated in school
districts, at other public schools, and at state institutions of
higher education to determine whether the programs suggest
innovative, effective ways to deal with problems that may exist in
other districts, schools, or institutions of higher education, or to
create opportunities for success, and to assess the fiscal costs and
likely impact of adopting the programs throughout the state.
(C)
The committee may prepare a report of the results of each review and
evaluation it conducts, make recommendations to the general assembly
and transmit the report and its recommendations to the general
assembly under section 101.68 of the Revised Code. It also may submit
the report and its recommendations to the chairpersons and members of
the standing committees of the house of representatives and the
senate principally responsible for education policy.
(D)
If the general assembly directs the joint education oversight
committee to submit a study to the general assembly by a particular
date, the committee, upon a majority vote of its members, may modify
the scope and due date of the study to accommodate the availability
of data and resources.
Sec.
103.46.
The
joint education oversight committee may review bills and resolutions
regarding education that are introduced or offered in the general
assembly, and may prepare a report of its review. The committee shall
transmit its report to the general assembly under section 101.68 of
the Revised Code. The report may include the committee's
determination regarding the bill's or resolution's desirability as a
matter of public policy.
The
committee's decision on whether and when to review a bill or
resolution has no effect on the general assembly's authority to act
on the bill or resolution.
Sec.
103.47.
The
joint education oversight committee chairperson may, subject to
approval by the speaker of the house of representatives or the
speaker's designee and the president of the senate or the president's
designee, employ professional, technical, and clerical employees as
are necessary for the joint education oversight committee to be able
successfully and efficiently to perform its duties. All the employees
are in the unclassified service and may be terminated by the
chairperson, subject to approval of the speaker of the house of
representatives or the speaker's designee and president of the senate
or the president's designee. The committee may contract for the
services of persons who are qualified by education and experience to
advise, consult with, or otherwise assist the committee in the
performance of its duties.
Sec.
103.48.
The
chairperson of the joint education oversight committee may request
that the director of education and workforce or the chancellor of
higher education appear before the committee. If so requested, the
director or the chancellor shall appear before the committee at the
time and place specified in the request.
Sec.
103.49.
(A)
The chairperson of the joint education oversight committee may
request any state agency or political subdivision to provide to the
committee such data, statistics, and other information that is
determined to be useful to the work of the committee pursuant to the
committee's statutory purposes. Subject to division (B) of this
section, and to the extent permitted under section 3319.321 of the
Revised Code and the "Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
of 1974," 20 U.S.C. 1232g, as amended, any state agency or
political subdivision shall provide the committee with the
information requested.
(B)(1)
Upon the joint written request of the chairperson and
vice-chairperson of the committee, the director of education and
workforce shall, within a reasonable time period, provide the
committee with data and information that is in the director's
possession or is readily accessible to the director.
(2)
Upon receiving a written request from the chairperson and
vice-chairperson of the committee, the director may request
clarification from the committee regarding the request in order to
facilitate a timely response. The committee shall cooperate with the
director to determine the scope of the data and information
requested, taking into account the committee's need and urgency for
the information, the director's ease or difficulty of accessing the
data and information, the quantity of the information requested, and
any other practical considerations that apply.
(3)
Except as provided in division (B)(4) of this section, if the
director and the chairperson and vice-chairperson are unable to
resolve their differences regarding a written request within thirty
days of the director's receipt of the request from the chairperson
and vice-chairperson, the chairperson and vice-chairperson may
jointly insist in writing on receiving the data and information from
the director, and the director, upon receiving that written request,
shall promptly make that information available to the chairperson and
vice-chairperson.
(4)
If the director requests clarification from the committee under
division (B)(2) of this section regarding a written request for a
large data set, as determined by the director, the director may
inform the chairperson and vice-chairperson of the state director's
determination that the request is for a large data set and request
that the period of time in which the director and the chairperson and
vice-chairperson must resolve their differences regarding the request
under division (B)(3) of this section be extended beyond thirty days
of the director's receipt of the request. At no time, however, shall
the time period in which the director and the chairperson and
vice-chairperson must resolve their differences regarding the request
under division (B)(3) of this section be longer than ninety days
following the director's receipt of the request.
Sec.
103.50.
The
joint education oversight committee shall consist of the following
members:
(A)
Five members of the house of representatives appointed by the speaker
of the house of representatives, three of whom are members of the
majority party and two of whom are members of the minority party;
(B)
Five members of the senate appointed by the president of the senate,
three of whom are members of the majority party and two of whom are
members of the minority party.
The
term of each member begins on the day of appointment to the committee
and ends on expiration or other termination of the member's term as a
member of the house of representatives or senate. The speaker of the
house of representatives and president of the senate shall make
subsequent appointments not later than fifteen days after the
commencement of the first regular session of each general assembly.
Members may be reappointed. A vacancy on the committee shall be
filled in the same manner as the original appointment.
In
odd-numbered years, the speaker of the house of representatives shall
designate one of the majority members from the house of
representatives as chairperson and the president of the senate shall
designate one member from the senate, who is not from the same
political party as the chairperson, as the ranking member. In
even-numbered years, the president of the senate shall designate one
of the majority members from the senate as the chairperson and the
speaker of the house of representatives shall designate one member
from the house of representatives, who is not from the same political
party as the chairperson, as the ranking member.
In
appointing members from the minority, and in designating ranking
members who are from the minority, the president of the senate and
speaker of the house of representatives shall consult with the
minority leader of their respective houses.
The
committee shall meet at the call of the chairperson. The committee
shall meet not less often than once each calendar month, unless the
chairperson and ranking member agree that the chairperson should not
call the committee to meet for a particular month.
Notwithstanding
section 101.26 of the Revised Code, the members, when engaged in
their duties as members of the committee on days when there is not a
voting session of the member's house of the general assembly, shall
be paid at the per diem rate of one hundred fifty dollars, and their
necessary traveling expenses. These amounts shall be paid from the
funds appropriated for the payment of expenses of legislative
committees.
The
chairperson, when authorized by the committee and the president of
the senate and speaker of the house of representatives, may issue
subpoenas and subpoenas duces tecum in aid of the committee's
performance of its duties. A subpoena may require a witness in any
part of the state to appear before the committee at a time and place
designated in the subpoena to testify. A subpoena duces tecum may
require witnesses or other persons in any part of the state to
produce books, papers, records, and other tangible evidence before
the committee at a time and place designated in the subpoena duces
tecum. A subpoena or subpoena duces tecum shall be issued, served,
and returned, and has consequences, as specified in sections 101.41
to 101.45 of the Revised Code.
The
chairperson may administer oaths to witnesses appearing before the
committee.
Section
2.
All
items in this act are hereby appropriated as designated out of any
moneys in the state treasury to the credit of the designated fund.
For all operating appropriations made in this act, those in the first
column are for fiscal year 2026 and those in the second column are
for fiscal year 2027. The operating appropriations made in this act
are in addition to any other operating appropriations made for these
fiscal years.
Section
3.
1
2
3
4
5
A
JEO
JOINT EDUCATION OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE
B
General
Revenue Fund
C
GRF
047321
Operating
Expenses
$376,663
$378,668
D
TOTAL
GRF General Revenue Fund
$376,663
$378,668
E
TOTAL
ALL BUDGET FUND GROUPS
$376,663
$378,668
OPERATING
EXPENSES
The
foregoing appropriation item 047321, Operating Expenses, shall be
used to support expenses related to the Joint Education Oversight
Committee under sections 103.45 to 103.50 of the Revised Code.
On
July 1, 2026, or as soon as possible thereafter, the Joint Education
Oversight Committee may certify to the Director of Budget and
Management an amount up to the unexpended, unencumbered balance of
the foregoing appropriation item 047321, Operating Expenses, at the
end of fiscal year 2026 to be reappropriated to fiscal year 2027. The
amount certified is hereby reappropriated to the same appropriation
item for fiscal year 2027.
Section
4.
Within
the limits set forth in this act, the Director of Budget and
Management shall establish accounts indicating the source and amount
of funds for each appropriation made in this act, and shall determine
the manner in which appropriation accounts shall be maintained.
Expenditures from operating appropriations contained in this act
shall be accounted for as though made in, and are subject to all
applicable provisions of, the main operating appropriations act of
the 136th General Assembly.
Section
5.
That
Section 733.40 of H.B. 166 of the 133rd General Assembly is hereby
repealed.