Read the full stored bill text
hb943_00_IN
As Introduced
136th
General Assembly
Regular
Session
H. B. No. 943
2025-2026
Representatives Salvo, Baker
To
amend
section 3715.99 and to
enact
sections
3715.811
,
3715.812
,
and
3715.813
of the Revised Code
to
prohibit the sale of over-the-counter diet pills and dietary
supplements for weight loss or muscle building to minors.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section
1.
That
section
3715.99 be amended and
sections
3715.811
,
3715.812
,
and
3715.813
of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:
Sec.
3715.811.
(A)
As used in sections 3715.811 to 3715.813 of the Revised Code:
(1)
"Delivery sale" means any sale to a buyer if either of the
following apply:
(a)
The buyer submits the order for the sale via telephone or other
method of voice transmission, mail, electronic mail, internet web
site, online catalog, software application, or other internet
service, or the seller is otherwise not in the physical presence of
the buyer when the order is made.
(b)
The sale is delivered to the buyer by the United States postal
service, common carrier, private delivery service, or other method of
remote delivery, or the seller is otherwise not in the physical
presence of the buyer when the buyer obtains possession of the sale.
(2)
"Dietary supplement for weight loss or muscle building"
means a dietary supplement as defined in 21 U.S.C. 321 that is
labeled, marketed, or otherwise represented for the purpose of
achieving weight loss or building muscle.
(3)
"Identification card" means a document issued by the United
States government or a state, county, or municipal government, or a
subdivision or agency of any of the foregoing, including a driver's
or commercial driver's license, an identification card issued under
sections 4507.50 to 4507.52 of the Revised Code, a military
identification card, or any other form of identification that bears
the name, date of birth, description, and picture of the person
identified.
(4)
"Over-the-counter diet pill" means a drug as defined in 21
U.S.C. 321 that is labeled, marketed, or otherwise represented for
the purpose of achieving weight loss for which a prescription is not
required under the federal "Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act,"
21 U.S.C. 301, et seq.
(5)
"Retailer" means a place of business that offers consumer
products for sale to the general public, including pharmacies,
grocery stores, other retail stores, and places of business that
accept orders placed by telephone, mail, electronic mail, internet
web site, online catalog, or software application.
(B)
No person shall knowingly sell, offer to sell, hold for sale,
deliver, or otherwise provide an over-the-counter diet pill or
dietary supplement for weight loss or muscle building to an
individual who is under eighteen years of age.
Sec.
3715.812.
(A)
A retailer shall require any individual who attempts to purchase an
over-the-counter diet pill or dietary supplement for weight loss to
present an identification card, unless from the individual's outward
appearance the employee making the sale reasonably presumes the
individual to be twenty-five years of age or older.
(B)(1)
A retailer who makes delivery sales of over-the-counter diet pills or
dietary supplements for weight loss or muscle building shall do all
of the following:
(a)
Obtain the full name, birth date, and residential address of the
individual placing the delivery sale order and verify this
information using a commercially available database or aggregate of
databases, consisting primarily of data from government sources
regularly used by government and businesses for the purpose of age
and identity verification and authentication, to ensure that the
individual is at least eighteen years of age;
(b)
Use a method of shipping that requires both of the following:
(i)
A signature to accept the delivery at the delivery address from
either the individual who placed the delivery sale order or another
individual who is over eighteen years of age;
(ii)
The presentation of an identification card bearing a photograph of
the individual signing for the delivery to verify that the individual
is over eighteen years of age.
(2)
No database used for age and identity verification under division
(B)(1)(a) of this section shall be in the possession or under the
control of the retailer making the delivery sale, or be subject to
any changes or supplementation by the retailer making the delivery
sale.
Sec.
3715.813.
When
determining if a supplement is labeled, marketed, or otherwise
represented for the purpose of achieving weight loss or muscle
building, the director of agriculture shall consider the following:
(A)
Whether the product contains any of the following:
(1)
An ingredient approved by the United States food and drug
administration for weight loss or muscle building;
(2)
A steroid;
(3)
Creatine, green tea extract, raspberry ketone, garcinia cambogia, or
green coffee bean extract.
(B)
Whether the product's labeling or marketing bears statements or
images that express or imply that the product will do either of the
following:
(1)
Modify, maintain, or reduce body weight, fat, appetite, overall
metabolism, or the process by which nutrients are metabolized;
(2)
Maintain or increase muscle strength.
(C)
Whether the product or its ingredients are otherwise represented for
the purpose of achieving weight loss or building muscle;
(D)
Whether the seller has done any of the following:
(1)
Placed signs, categorized, or tagged the product with statements
described in division (B) of this section;
(2)
Grouped the product with other weight-loss or muscle-building
products in a display, advertisement, web site, or area of the store;
(3)
Otherwise represented that the product is for weight loss or muscle
building.
Sec.
3715.99.
(A)
Whoever violates section 3715.13 or 3715.38 of the Revised Code is
guilty of a minor misdemeanor.
(B)
Whoever violates section 3715.22, 3715.25, or 3715.27 of the Revised
Code is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree.
(C)
Whoever violates section 3715.23 or 3715.34 of the Revised Code is
guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree.
(D)
Whoever violates section 3715.52 or 3715.65 of the Revised Code is
guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree on a first offense; on
each subsequent offense, the person is guilty of a misdemeanor of the
second degree.
(E)
Whoever violates section 3715.521 of the Revised Code is guilty of a
minor misdemeanor. A violation of that section occurs on a daily
basis, not according to the number of times per day that an expired
drug, baby food, or infant formula is sold, offered for sale, or
delivered at retail or to the consumer. Each day of violation is a
separate offense.
(F)
Whoever violates section 3715.811 or 3715.812 of the Revised Code is
guilty of unlawful sale of an over-the-counter diet pill or dietary
supplement for weight loss or muscle building, punishable by a fine
of up to one thousand dollars.
Section
2.
That
existing section 3715.99 of the Revised Code is hereby repealed.