Expand the Address Confidentiality Program

sb225_02_PS

As Passed by the Senate

136th
General Assembly

Regular
Session
Sub. S. B. No. 225

2025-2026

Senator Manchester

Cosponsors: Senators Cirino,
Johnson, Landis, Manning, Patton, Reynolds, Schaffer, Wilkin

To
amend sections 111.41, 111.42, 111.99
,
149.43, 3503.13, and 3503.24 and to enact section 3513.053

of the Revised Code
to
expand the Address Confidentiality Program, to exempt judges' and
prosecutors' addresses from disclosure, and to make related changes
to the Election Law.

BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

Section
1.
That
sections 111.41, 111.42, 111.99
,
149.43, 3503.13, and 3503.24 be amended and section 3513.053

of the Revised Code be
enacted

to
read as follows:

Sec.
111.41.
As
used in sections 111.41 to 111.99 of the Revised Code:

(A)
"Application assistant" means an employee or volunteer at
an agency or organization that serves victims
or
household members of victims
of
domestic violence, menacing by stalking, human trafficking,
trafficking in persons, rape,
or

sexual
battery
,
crimes that cause serious physical harm or death, or crimes in which
the victim is threatened with a deadly weapon

who has received training and certification from the secretary of
state to help individuals complete applications to be program
participants.

(B)
"Confidential address" means the address of a program
participant's residence, school, institution of higher education,
business, or place of employment, as specified on an application to
be a program participant or on a notice of change of address filed
under section 111.42 of the Revised Code. A confidential address is
not a public record under section 149.43 of the Revised Code, and
shall be kept confidential.

(C)
"Governmental entity" means the state, a political
subdivision of the state, or any department, agency, board,
commission, or other instrumentality of the state or a political
subdivision of the state.

(D)
"Guardian," "incompetent," "parent,"
and "ward" have the same meanings as in section 2111.01 of
the Revised Code.

(E)
"Human trafficking" has the same meaning as in section
2929.01 of the Revised Code.

(F)
"Process" means judicial process and all orders, demands,
notices, or other papers required or permitted by law to be served on
a program participant.

(G)
"Program participant" means a person who is certified by
the secretary of state as a program participant under section 111.42
of the Revised Code.

(H)
"Tier I sex offender/child-victim offender," "tier II
sex offender/child-victim offender," and "tier III sex
offender/child-victim offender" have the same meanings as in
section 2950.01 of the Revised Code.

Sec.
111.42.
(A)
A person to whom all of the following applies may apply to the
secretary of state with the assistance of an application assistant to
become a participant in the address confidentiality program, in which
an address designated by the secretary of state serves as the
person's address or the address of the minor, incompetent, or ward on
whose behalf the person is applying:

(1)
The applicant is an adult who is applying on behalf of the person's
self or is a parent or guardian applying on behalf of a minor,
incompetent, or ward.

(2)
The applicant or the minor, incompetent, or ward, as applicable,
resides, works, or attends a school or an institution of higher
education in this state.

(3)
The applicant fears for the safety of the applicant, a member of the
applicant's household, or the minor, incompetent, or ward on whose
behalf the application is made because the applicant, household
member, minor, incompetent, or ward is a victim of domestic violence,
menacing by stalking, human trafficking, trafficking in persons,
rape,
or

sexual
battery
,
a crime that caused serious physical harm or death to the victim, or
a crime in which the victim was threatened with a deadly weapon
.

(4)
The applicant or the minor, incompetent, or ward, as applicable, is
not a tier I sex offender/child-victim offender, a tier II sex
offender/child-victim offender, or a tier III sex
offender/child-victim offender.

(B)
An application to become a participant in the address confidentiality
program shall be made on a form prescribed by the secretary of state
and filed in the office of the secretary of state in the manner
prescribed by the secretary of state. The application shall contain
all of the following:

(1)
A notarized statement by the applicant that the applicant fears for
the safety of the applicant, a member of the applicant's household,
or the minor, incompetent, or ward on whose behalf the application is
made because the applicant, household member, minor, incompetent, or
ward is a victim of domestic violence, menacing by stalking, human
trafficking, trafficking in persons, rape,
or

sexual
battery
,
a crime that caused serious physical harm or death to the victim, or
a crime in which the victim was threatened with a deadly weapon
;

(2)
A statement that the application assistant recommends that the
applicant or the minor, incompetent, or ward, as applicable,
participate in the address confidentiality program;

(3)
A knowing and voluntary designation of the secretary of state as the
agent for the purposes of receiving service of process and the
receipt of mail;

(4)
The mailing address and telephone number or numbers at which the
secretary of state may contact the applicant;

(5)
The address or addresses of the applicant's residence, school,
institution of higher education, business, or place of employment
that the applicant requests not be disclosed for the reason that
disclosure will increase the risk that the applicant, a member of the
applicant's household, or the minor, incompetent, or ward on whose
behalf the application is made will be threatened or physically
harmed by another person;

(6)
The signature of the applicant, the name and signature of the
application assistant who assisted the applicant, and the date on
which the applicant and the application assistant signed the
application;

(7)
Except for a claim based on the performance or nonperformance of a
public duty that was manifestly outside the scope of the officer's or
employee's office or employment or in which the officer or employee
acted with malicious purpose, in bad faith, or in a wanton or
reckless manner, a voluntary release and waiver of all future claims
against the state for any claim that may arise from participation in
the address confidentiality program.

(C)
Upon receiving a properly completed application under division (B) of
this section, the secretary of state shall, within ten business days,
do all of the following:

(1)
Certify the applicant or the minor, incompetent, or ward on whose
behalf the application is filed as a program participant;

(2)
Designate each eligible address listed in the application as a
confidential address;

(3)
Issue the program participant a unique program participant
identification number;

(4)
Issue the program participant an address confidentiality program
authorization card, which shall be valid during the period that the
program participant remains certified to participate in the address
confidentiality program, and which shall include the address at which
the program participant may receive mail through the office of the
secretary of state;

(5)
Provide information to the program participant concerning all of the
following:

(a)
The manner in which the program participant may use the secretary of
state as the program participant's agent for the purposes of
receiving mail and receiving service of process and the types of mail
that the secretary of state will forward to the program participant;

(b)
The process to register to vote and to vote as a program participant,
if the program participant is eligible to vote;

(c)
The process to file a real property confidentiality notice with the
county recorder concerning any real property in which the program
participant acquires an ownership interest after being certified a
program participant and after
the
effective date of this amendment
April
29, 2022
;

(d)
The process to authorize the secretary of state to disclose
confidential information concerning the program participant under
certain circumstances, as described in division (E) of section 111.43
of the Revised Code.

(D)
A program participant shall update the person's application
information, within thirty days after any change has occurred, by
submitting a notice of change to the office of the secretary of state
on a form prescribed by the secretary of state. The secretary of
state may, with proper notice, cancel a program participant's
certification if the participant is found to be unreachable for a
period of sixty days or more.

(E)
The certification of a program participant shall be valid for four
years after the date of the filing of the application for the program
participant unless the certification is withdrawn or invalidated
before the end of that four-year period.

(F)(1)
A program participant who continues to be eligible to participate in
the address confidentiality program may renew the program
participant's certification by submitting a renewal application to
the secretary of state with the assistance of an application
assistant. The renewal application shall be on a form prescribed by
the secretary of state and shall contain all of the information
described in division (B) of this section.

(2)
The secretary of state may prescribe by rule a grace period during
which a program participant whose certification has expired may renew
the program participant's certification without being considered to
have ceased being a program participant during that period.

(3)
When a program participant renews the program participant's
certification, the program participant shall continue to use the
program participant's original program participant identification
number.

(G)
A tier I sex offender/child-victim offender, a tier II sex
offender/child-victim offender, or a tier III sex
offender/child-victim offender is not eligible to participate in the
address confidentiality program described in sections 111.41 to
111.99 of the Revised Code.

Sec.
111.99.
(A)
No person who submits an application under section 111.42 of the
Revised Code shall knowingly make a false attestation in the
application that the applicant fears for the applicant's safety, the
safety of a member of the applicant's household, or the safety of the
minor, incompetent, or ward on whose behalf the application is made
because the applicant, household member, minor, incompetent, or ward
is a victim of domestic violence, menacing by stalking, human
trafficking, trafficking in persons, rape,
or

sexual
battery
,
a crime that caused serious physical harm or death to the victim, or
a crime in which the victim was threatened with a deadly weapon
.

(B)(1)
As used in division (B) of this section:

(a)
"Public official" means any officer, employee, or duly
authorized representative or agent of a public office.

(b)
"Public office" means any state agency, public institution,
political subdivision, other organized body, office, agency,
institution, or entity established by the laws of this state for the
exercise of any function of government.

(2)
No public official who has access to a confidential address or
telephone number or to information that is subject to a real property
confidentiality notice under section 111.431 of the Revised Code
because of the person's status as a public official shall knowingly
disclose that confidential information to any person, except as
required or permitted by law.

(C)
No person who obtains a confidential address or telephone number from
the Ohio law enforcement gateway shall knowingly disclose that
confidential address or telephone number to any person, except as is
necessary for a law enforcement purpose when related to the
performance of official duties, or for another legitimate
governmental purpose.

(D)
No person who obtains a confidential address or telephone number from
the secretary of state under division (E) of section 111.43 of the
Revised Code shall knowingly disclose that information to any person,
except for the purpose for which the disclosure was authorized under
that division.

(E)
No person who obtains information that is subject to a real property
confidentiality notice under section 111.431 of the Revised Code for
the purpose of conducting a title examination under division (E) of
that section shall knowingly disclose that confidential information
to any person, except for the purpose identified in the application
submitted under that division.

(F)
Whoever violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first
degree.

Sec.
149.43.
(A)
As used in this section:

(1)
"Public record" means records kept by any public office,
including, but not limited to, state, county, city, village,
township, and school district units, and records pertaining to the
delivery of educational services by an alternative school in this
state kept by the nonprofit or for-profit entity operating the
alternative school pursuant to section 3313.533 of the Revised Code.
"Public record" does not mean any of the following:

(a)
Medical records;

(b)
Records pertaining to probation and parole proceedings, to
proceedings related to the imposition of community control sanctions
and post-release control sanctions, or to proceedings related to
determinations under section 2967.271 of the Revised Code regarding
the release or maintained incarceration of an offender to whom that
section applies;

(c)
Records pertaining to actions under section 2151.85 and division (C)
of section 2919.121 of the Revised Code and to appeals of actions
arising under those sections;

(d)
Records pertaining to adoption proceedings, including the contents of
an adoption file maintained by the department of health under
sections 3705.12 to 3705.124 of the Revised Code;

(e)
Information in a record contained in the putative father registry
established by section 3107.062 of the Revised Code, regardless of
whether the information is held by the department of children and
youth or, pursuant to section 3111.69 of the Revised Code, the office
of child support in the department of job and family services or a
child support enforcement agency;

(f)
Records specified in division (A) of section 3107.52 of the Revised
Code;

(g)
Trial preparation records, prior to the conclusion of all direct
appeals or, if no appeal is filed, prior to the expiration of the
time during which an appeal may be filed, or, if no trial has
occurred, until the civil or criminal action or proceeding has ended
without the possibility of direct appeal or each agency, office, or
official responsible for the matter has made a decision not to
proceed with the matter;

(h)
Confidential law enforcement investigatory records;

(i)
Records containing information that is confidential under section
2710.03 or 4112.05 of the Revised Code;

(j)
DNA records stored in the DNA database pursuant to section 109.573 of
the Revised Code;

(k)
Inmate records under section 5120.21 of the Revised Code, except for
permitted disclosure of the information listed in division (E)(1) of
that section;

(l)
Records maintained by the department of youth services pertaining to
children in its custody released by the department of youth services
to the department of rehabilitation and correction pursuant to
section 5139.05 of the Revised Code;

(m)
Intellectual property records;

(n)
Donor profile records;

(o)
Records maintained by the department of job and family services
pursuant to section 3121.894 of the Revised Code;

(p)
Designated public service worker residential and familial
information;

(q)
In the case of a county hospital operated pursuant to Chapter 339. of
the Revised Code or a municipal hospital operated pursuant to Chapter
749. of the Revised Code, information that constitutes a trade
secret, as defined in section 1333.61 of the Revised Code;

(r)
Information pertaining to the recreational activities of a person
under the age of eighteen;

(s)
In the case of a child fatality review board acting under sections
307.621 to 307.629 of the Revised Code or a review conducted pursuant
to guidelines established by the director of health under section
3701.70 of the Revised Code, records provided to the board or
director, statements made by board members during meetings of the
board or by persons participating in the director's review, and all
work products of the board or director, and in the case of a child
fatality review board, child fatality review data submitted by the
board to the department of health or a national child death review
database, other than the report prepared pursuant to division (A) of
section 307.626 of the Revised Code;

(t)
Records provided to and statements made by the executive director of
a public children services agency or a prosecuting attorney acting
pursuant to section 5153.171 of the Revised Code other than the
information released under that section;

(u)
Test materials, examinations, or evaluation tools used in an
examination for licensure as a nursing home administrator that the
board of executives of long-term services and supports administers
under section 4751.15 of the Revised Code or contracts under that
section with a private or government entity to administer;

(v)
Records the release of which is prohibited by state or federal law;

(w)
Proprietary information of or relating to any person that is
submitted to or compiled by the Ohio venture capital authority
created under section 150.01 of the Revised Code;

(x)
Financial statements and data any person submits for any purpose to
the Ohio housing finance agency or the controlling board in
connection with applying for, receiving, or accounting for financial
assistance from the agency, and information that identifies any
individual who benefits directly or indirectly from financial
assistance from the agency;

(y)
Records listed in section 5101.29 of the Revised Code;

(z)
Discharges recorded with a county recorder under section 317.24 of
the Revised Code, as specified in division (B)(2) of that section;

(aa)
Usage information including names and addresses of specific
residential and commercial customers of a municipally owned or
operated public utility;

(bb)
Records described in division (C) of section 187.04 of the Revised
Code that are not designated to be made available to the public as
provided in that division;

(cc)
Information and records that are made confidential, privileged, and
not subject to disclosure under divisions (B) and (C) of section
2949.221 of the Revised Code;

(dd)
Personal information, as defined in section 149.45 of the Revised
Code;

(ee)
The confidential name, address, and other personally identifiable
information of a program participant in the address confidentiality
program established under sections 111.41 to 111.47 of the Revised
Code, including the contents of any application for absent voter's
ballots, absent voter's ballot identification envelope statement of
voter, or provisional ballot affirmation completed by a program
participant who has a confidential voter registration record; records
or portions of records pertaining to that program that identify the
number of program participants that reside within a precinct, ward,
township, municipal corporation, county, or any other geographic area
smaller than the state; and any real property confidentiality notice
filed under section 111.431 of the Revised Code and the information
described in division (C) of that section. As used in this division,
"confidential address" and "program participant"
have the meaning defined in section 111.41 of the Revised Code.

(ff)
Orders for active military service of an individual serving or with
previous service in the armed forces of the United States, including
a reserve component, or the Ohio organized militia, except that, such
order becomes a public record on the day that is fifteen years after
the published date or effective date of the call to order;

(gg)
The name, address, contact information, or other personal information
of an individual who is less than eighteen years of age that is
included in any record related to a traffic accident involving a
school vehicle in which the individual was an occupant at the time of
the accident;

(hh)
Protected health information, as defined in 45 C.F.R. 160.103, that
is in a claim for payment for a health care product, service, or
procedure, as well as any other health claims data in another
document that reveals the identity of an individual who is the
subject of the data or could be used to reveal that individual's
identity;

(ii)
Any depiction by photograph, film, videotape, or printed or digital
image under either of the following circumstances:

(i)
The depiction is that of a victim of an offense the release of which
would be, to a reasonable person of ordinary sensibilities, an
offensive and objectionable intrusion into the victim's expectation
of bodily privacy and integrity.

(ii)
The depiction captures or depicts the victim of a sexually oriented
offense, as defined in section 2950.01 of the Revised Code, at the
actual occurrence of that offense.

(jj)
Restricted portions of a body-worn camera or dashboard camera
recording;

(kk)
In the case of a fetal-infant mortality review board acting under
sections 3707.70 to 3707.77 of the Revised Code, records, documents,
reports, or other information presented to the board or a person
abstracting such materials on the board's behalf, statements made by
review board members during board meetings, all work products of the
board, and data submitted by the board to the department of health or
a national infant death review database, other than the report
prepared pursuant to section 3707.77 of the Revised Code.

(ll)
Records, documents, reports, or other information presented to the
pregnancy-associated mortality review board established under section
5180.27 of the Revised Code, statements made by board members during
board meetings, all work products of the board, and data submitted by
the board to the department of health, other than the biennial
reports prepared under section 5180.277 of the Revised Code;

(mm)
Except as otherwise provided in division (A)(1)(oo) of this section,
telephone numbers for a victim, as defined in section 2930.01 of the
Revised Code or a witness to a crime that are listed on any law
enforcement record or report.

(nn)
A preneed funeral contract, as defined in section 4717.01 of the
Revised Code, and contract terms and personally identifying
information of a preneed funeral contract, that is contained in a
report submitted by or for a funeral home to the board of embalmers
and funeral directors under division (C) of section 4717.13, division
(J) of section 4717.31, or section 4717.41 of the Revised Code.

(oo)
Telephone numbers for a party to a motor vehicle accident subject to
the requirements of section 5502.11 of the Revised Code that are
listed on any law enforcement record or report, except that the
telephone numbers described in this division are not excluded from
the definition of "public record" under this division on
and after the thirtieth day after the occurrence of the motor vehicle
accident.

(pp)
Records pertaining to individuals who complete training under section
5502.703 of the Revised Code to be permitted by a school district
board of education or governing body of a community school
established under Chapter 3314. of the Revised Code, a STEM school
established under Chapter 3326. of the Revised Code, or a chartered
nonpublic school to convey deadly weapons or dangerous ordnance into
a school safety zone;

(qq)
Records, documents, reports, or other information presented to a
domestic violence fatality review board established under section
307.651 of the Revised Code, statements made by board members during
board meetings, all work products of the board, and data submitted by
the board to the department of health, other than a report prepared
pursuant to section 307.656 of the Revised Code;

(rr)
Records, documents, and information the release of which is
prohibited under sections 2930.04 and 2930.07 of the Revised Code;

(ss)
Records of an existing qualified nonprofit corporation that creates a
special improvement district under Chapter 1710. of the Revised Code
that do not pertain to a purpose for which the district is created;

(tt)
Educational support services data, as defined in section 3319.325 of
the Revised Code;

(uu)
Records of the past, current, and future work schedule of a
designated public service worker. As used in division (A)(1)(uu) of
this section, "work schedule" does not include the docket
of cases of a court, judge, or magistrate;

(vv)
A request form or confirmation letter submitted to a public office
under section 149.45 of the Revised Code;

(ww)
An affidavit or confirmation letter submitted under section 319.28 of
the Revised Code;

(xx)
License or certificate application or renewal responses and
supporting documentation submitted to the state medical board
regarding an applicant's, or a license or certificate holder's,
inability to practice according to acceptable and prevailing
standards of care by reason of a medical condition;

(yy)
Images and data captured by an automated license plate recognition
system that are maintained in a law enforcement database;

(zz)
Attorney work product record;

(aaa)
Any entry on the public calendar of an elected official that is for
any date that is after the date the record is requested;

(bbb)
Records pertaining to burial sites under section 149.3010 of the
Revised Code.

A
record that is not a public record under division (A)(1) of this
section and that, under law, is permanently retained becomes a public
record on the day that is seventy-five years after the day on which
the record was created, or in the case of a record that is not a
public record under division (A)(1)(uu) of this section that is
retained, three years after the day on which the record was created,
except for any record protected by the attorney-client privilege, a
trial preparation record as defined in this section, a statement
prohibiting the release of identifying information signed under
section 3107.083 of the Revised Code, a denial of release form filed
pursuant to section 3107.46 of the Revised Code, records pertaining
to burial sites under section 149.3010 of the Revised Code, or any
record that is exempt from release or disclosure under section
149.433 of the Revised Code. If the record is a birth certificate and
a biological parent's name redaction request form has been accepted
under section 3107.391 of the Revised Code, the name of that parent
shall be redacted from the birth certificate before it is released
under this paragraph. If any other section of the Revised Code
establishes a time period for disclosure of a record that conflicts
with the time period specified in this section, the time period in
the other section prevails.

(2)(a)
"Confidential law enforcement investigatory record" means
any record that pertains to a law enforcement matter of a criminal,
quasi-criminal, civil, or administrative nature, but only to the
extent that the release of the record would create a high probability
of disclosure of any of the following:

(i)
The identity of a suspect who has not been charged with the offense
to which the record pertains, or of an information source or witness
to whom confidentiality has been reasonably promised;

(ii)
Information provided by an information source or witness to whom
confidentiality has been reasonably promised, which information would
reasonably tend to disclose the source's or witness's identity;

(iii)
Specific confidential investigatory techniques or procedures or
specific investigatory work product;

(iv)
Information that would endanger the life or physical safety of law
enforcement personnel, a crime victim, a witness, or a confidential
information source.

(b)
As used in divisions (A)(2) and (18) of this section, "specific
investigatory work product" means information assembled by law
enforcement officials in connection with a probable or pending
criminal or civil proceeding, with the exception of routine incident
reports. "Specific investigatory work product" is not a
public record prior to the conclusion of all direct appeals, or, if
no appeal is filed, prior to the expiration of the time during which
an appeal may be filed, or, if no trial has occurred, until the
criminal or civil proceeding has ended without possibility of direct
appeal or each agency, office, or official responsible for the matter
has made a decision not to proceed with the matter.

(3)
"Medical record" means any document or combination of
documents, except births, deaths, and the fact of admission to or
discharge from a hospital, that pertains to the medical history,
diagnosis, prognosis, or medical condition of a patient and that is
generated and maintained in the process of medical treatment.

(4)
"Trial preparation record" means any record created by or
for another party or by or for that party's representative, in
reasonable anticipation of, or in defense of, a civil or criminal
action or proceeding, that is not a confidential law enforcement
investigatory record or attorney work product record and that
contains factual information that is specifically compiled for that
civil or criminal action or proceeding.

(5)
"Intellectual property record" means a record, other than a
financial or administrative record, that is produced or collected by
or for faculty or staff of a state institution of higher learning in
the conduct of or as a result of study or research on an educational,
commercial, scientific, artistic, technical, or scholarly issue,
regardless of whether the study or research was sponsored by the
institution alone or in conjunction with a governmental body or
private concern, and that has not been publicly released, published,
or patented.

(6)
"Donor profile record" means all records about donors or
potential donors to a public institution of higher education except
the names and reported addresses of the actual donors and the date,
amount, and conditions of the actual donation.

(7)
"Designated public service worker" means a peace officer,
parole officer, probation officer, bailiff, prosecuting attorney,
assistant prosecuting attorney, correctional employee, county or
multicounty corrections officer, community-based correctional
facility employee, designated Ohio national guard member, protective
services worker, youth services employee, firefighter, EMT, medical
director or member of a cooperating physician advisory board of an
emergency medical service organization, state board of pharmacy
employee, investigator of the bureau of criminal identification and
investigation, emergency service telecommunicator, forensic mental
health provider, mental health evaluation provider, regional
psychiatric hospital employee, judge, magistrate, or federal law
enforcement officer.

(8)
"Designated public service worker residential and familial
information" means any information that discloses any of the
following about a designated public service worker:

(a)
The address of the actual personal residence of a designated public
service worker, except for the
following
information:

(i)
The address of the actual personal residence of a prosecuting
attorney or judge; and

(ii)
The
state
or political subdivision in which a designated public service worker
resides
.

;

(b)
Information compiled from referral to or participation in an employee
assistance program;

(c)
The social security number, the residential telephone number, any
bank account, debit card, charge card, or credit card number, or the
emergency telephone number of, or any medical information pertaining
to, a designated public service worker;

(d)
The name of any beneficiary of employment benefits, including, but
not limited to, life insurance benefits, provided to a designated
public service worker by the designated public service worker's
employer;

(e)
The identity and amount of any charitable or employment benefit
deduction made by the designated public service worker's employer
from the designated public service worker's compensation, unless the
amount of the deduction is required by state or federal law;

(f)
The name, the residential address, the name of the employer, the
address of the employer, the social security number, the residential
telephone number, any bank account, debit card, charge card, or
credit card number, or the emergency telephone number of the spouse,
a former spouse, or any child of a designated public service worker;

(g)
A photograph of a peace officer who holds a position or has an
assignment that may include undercover or plain clothes positions or
assignments as determined by the peace officer's appointing
authority.

(9)
As used in divisions (A)(7) and (15) to (17) of this section:

"Peace
officer" has the meaning defined in section 109.71 of the
Revised Code and also includes the superintendent and troopers of the
state highway patrol; it does not include the sheriff of a county or
a supervisory employee who, in the absence of the sheriff, is
authorized to stand in for, exercise the authority of, and perform
the duties of the sheriff.

"Correctional
employee" means any employee of the department of rehabilitation
and correction who in the course of performing the employee's job
duties has or has had contact with inmates and persons under
supervision.

"County
or multicounty corrections officer" means any corrections
officer employed by any county or multicounty correctional facility.

"Designated
Ohio national guard member" means a member of the Ohio national
guard who is participating in duties related to remotely piloted
aircraft, including, but not limited to, pilots, sensor operators,
and mission intelligence personnel, duties related to special forces
operations, or duties related to cybersecurity, and is designated by
the adjutant general as a designated public service worker for those
purposes.

"Protective
services worker" means any employee of a county agency who is
responsible for child protective services, child support services, or
adult protective services.

"Youth
services employee" means any employee of the department of youth
services who in the course of performing the employee's job duties
has or has had contact with children committed to the custody of the
department of youth services.

"Firefighter"
means any regular, paid or volunteer, member of a lawfully
constituted fire department of a municipal corporation, township,
fire district, or village.

"EMT"
means EMTs-basic, EMTs-I, and paramedics that provide emergency
medical services for a public emergency medical service organization.
"Emergency medical service organization," "EMT-basic,"
"EMT-I," and "paramedic" have the meanings
defined in section 4765.01 of the Revised Code.

"Investigator
of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation" has
the meaning defined in section 2903.11 of the Revised Code.

"Emergency
service telecommunicator" means an individual employed by an
emergency service provider as defined under section 128.01 of the
Revised Code, whose primary responsibility is to be an operator for
the receipt or processing of calls for emergency services made by
telephone, radio, or other electronic means.

"Forensic
mental health provider" means any employee of a community mental
health service provider or local alcohol, drug addiction, and mental
health services board who, in the course of the employee's duties,
has contact with persons committed to a local alcohol, drug
addiction, and mental health services board by a court order pursuant
to section 2945.38, 2945.39, 2945.40, or 2945.402 of the Revised
Code.

"Mental
health evaluation provider" means an individual who, under
Chapter 5122. of the Revised Code, examines a respondent who is
alleged to be a mentally ill person subject to court order, as
defined in section 5122.01 of the Revised Code, and reports to the
probate court the respondent's mental condition.

"Regional
psychiatric hospital employee" means any employee of the
department of
mental
health and addiction services
behavioral
health
who,
in the course of performing the employee's duties, has contact with
patients committed to the department of
mental
health and addiction services
behavioral
health
by
a court order pursuant to section 2945.38, 2945.39, 2945.40, or
2945.402 of the Revised Code.

"Federal
law enforcement officer" has the meaning defined in section 9.88
of the Revised Code.

(10)
"Information pertaining to the recreational activities of a
person under the age of eighteen" means information that is kept
in the ordinary course of business by a public office, that pertains
to the recreational activities of a person under the age of eighteen
years, and that discloses any of the following:

(a)
The address or telephone number of a person under the age of eighteen
or the address or telephone number of that person's parent, guardian,
custodian, or emergency contact person;

(b)
The social security number, birth date, or photographic image of a
person under the age of eighteen;

(c)
Any medical record, history, or information pertaining to a person
under the age of eighteen;

(d)
Any additional information sought or required about a person under
the age of eighteen for the purpose of allowing that person to
participate in any recreational activity conducted or sponsored by a
public office or to use or obtain admission privileges to any
recreational facility owned or operated by a public office.

(11)
"Community control sanction" has the meaning defined in
section 2929.01 of the Revised Code.

(12)
"Post-release control sanction" has the meaning defined in
section 2967.01 of the Revised Code.

(13)
"Redaction" means obscuring or deleting any information
that is exempt from the duty to permit public inspection or copying
from an item that otherwise meets the definition of a "record"
in section 149.011 of the Revised Code.

(14)
"Designee," "elected official," and "future
official" have the meanings defined in section 109.43 of the
Revised Code.

(15)
"Body-worn camera" means a visual and audio recording
device worn on the person of a correctional employee, youth services
employee, or peace officer while the correctional employee, youth
services employee, or peace officer is engaged in the performance of
official duties.

(16)
"Dashboard camera" means a visual and audio recording
device mounted on a peace officer's vehicle or vessel that is used
while the peace officer is engaged in the performance of the peace
officer's duties.

(17)
"Restricted portions of a body-worn camera or dashboard camera
recording" means any visual or audio portion of a body-worn
camera or dashboard camera recording that shows, communicates, or
discloses any of the following:

(a)
The image or identity of a child or information that could lead to
the identification of a child who is a primary subject of the
recording when the department of rehabilitation and correction,
department of youth services, or the law enforcement agency knows or
has reason to know the person is a child based on the department's or
law enforcement agency's records or the content of the recording;

(b)
The death of a person or a deceased person's body, unless the death
was caused by a correctional employee, youth services employee, or
peace officer or, subject to division (H)(1) of this section, the
consent of the decedent's executor or administrator has been
obtained;

(c)
The death of a correctional employee, youth services employee, peace
officer, firefighter, paramedic, or other first responder, occurring
while the decedent was engaged in the performance of official duties,
unless, subject to division (H)(1) of this section, the consent of
the decedent's executor or administrator has been obtained;

(d)
Grievous bodily harm, unless the injury was effected by a
correctional employee, youth services employee, or peace officer or,
subject to division (H)(1) of this section, the consent of the
injured person or the injured person's guardian has been obtained;

(e)
An act of severe violence against a person that results in serious
physical harm to the person, unless the act and injury was effected
by a correctional employee, youth services employee, or peace officer
or, subject to division (H)(1) of this section, the consent of the
injured person or the injured person's guardian has been obtained;

(f)
Grievous bodily harm to a correctional employee, youth services
employee, peace officer, firefighter, paramedic, or other first
responder, occurring while the injured person was engaged in the
performance of official duties, unless, subject to division (H)(1) of
this section, the consent of the injured person or the injured
person's guardian has been obtained;

(g)
An act of severe violence resulting in serious physical harm against
a correctional employee, youth services employee, peace officer,
firefighter, paramedic, or other first responder, occurring while the
injured person was engaged in the performance of official duties,
unless, subject to division (H)(1) of this section, the consent of
the injured person or the injured person's guardian has been
obtained;

(h)
A person's nude body, unless, subject to division (H)(1) of this
section, the person's consent has been obtained;

(i)
Protected health information, the identity of a person in a health
care facility who is not the subject of a correctional, youth
services, or law enforcement encounter, or any other information in a
health care facility that could identify a person who is not the
subject of a correctional, youth services, or law enforcement
encounter;

(j)
Information that could identify the alleged victim of a sex offense,
menacing by stalking, or domestic violence;

(k)
Information, that does not constitute a confidential law enforcement
investigatory record, that could identify a person who provides
sensitive or confidential information to the department of
rehabilitation and correction, the department of youth services, or a
law enforcement agency when the disclosure of the person's identity
or the information provided could reasonably be expected to threaten
or endanger the safety or property of the person or another person;

(l)
Personal information of a person who is not arrested, cited, charged,
or issued a written warning by a peace officer;

(m)
Proprietary correctional, youth services, or police contingency plans
or tactics that are intended to prevent crime and maintain public
order and safety;

(n)
A personal conversation unrelated to work between correctional
employees, youth services employees, or peace officers or between a
correctional employee, youth services employee, or peace officer and
an employee of a law enforcement agency;

(o)
A conversation between a correctional employee, youth services
employee, or peace officer and a member of the public that does not
concern correctional, youth services, or law enforcement activities;

(p)
The interior of a residence, unless the interior of a residence is
the location of an adversarial encounter with, or a use of force by,
a correctional employee, youth services employee, or peace officer;

(q)
Any portion of the interior of a private business that is not open to
the public, unless an adversarial encounter with, or a use of force
by, a correctional employee, youth services employee, or peace
officer occurs in that location.

As
used in division (A)(17) of this section:

"Grievous
bodily harm" has the same meaning as in section 5924.120 of the
Revised Code.

"Health
care facility" has the same meaning as in section 1337.11 of the
Revised Code.

"Protected
health information" has the same meaning as in 45 C.F.R.
160.103.

"Law
enforcement agency" means a government entity that employs peace
officers to perform law enforcement duties.

"Personal
information" means any government-issued identification number,
date of birth, address, financial information, or criminal justice
information from the law enforcement automated data system or similar
databases.

"Sex
offense" has the same meaning as in section 2907.10 of the
Revised Code.

"Firefighter,"
"paramedic," and "first responder" have the same
meanings as in section 4765.01 of the Revised Code.

(18)
"Attorney work product record" means a record that is not
specific investigatory work product or a trial preparation record and
that is created by an attorney, or by the agent of an attorney, in
reasonable anticipation of or for litigation, trial, or
administrative proceedings, when acting in an official capacity on
behalf of the state, a political subdivision of the state, a state
agency, a public official, or a public employee, that documents the
independent thought processes, mental impressions, legal theories,
strategies, analysis, or reasoning of an attorney or the agent of an
attorney.

(19)
"Elected official" means a person who is elected or
appointed to an elective office of the state or a political
subdivision.

(20)
"Public calendar" means a calendar or appointment book
maintained by an elected official to schedule the elected official's
activities in relation to the elected official's position as an
elected official. "Public calendar" does not include a
personal calendar or appointment book maintained solely for an
elected official's personal convenience that does not serve to
document the elected official's official activities or functions or
the official activities or functions of the elected official's public
office.

(B)(1)
Upon request by any person and subject to division (B)(8) of this
section, all public records responsive to the request shall be
promptly prepared and made available for inspection to the requester
at all reasonable times during regular business hours. Subject to
division (B)(8) of this section, upon request by any person, a public
office or person responsible for public records shall make copies of
the requested public record available to the requester at cost and
within a reasonable period of time.

When
considering whether a state or local law enforcement agency or a
prosecuting attorney's office promptly prepared a video record for
inspection or produced a copy of a video record within a reasonable
period of time, in addition to any other factors, a court shall
consider the time required for a state or local law enforcement
agency or a prosecuting attorney's office to retrieve, download,
review, redact, seek legal advice regarding, and produce the video
record. Except as specified in division (B)(11) of this section,
notwithstanding any other requirement set forth in Chapter 149. of
the Revised Code, a state or local law enforcement agency or a
prosecuting attorney's office may charge a requester the actual cost
associated with preparing a video record for inspection or
production, not to exceed seventy-five dollars per hour of video
produced, nor seven hundred fifty dollars total. As used in this
division, "actual cost," with respect to video records
only, means all costs incurred by the state or local law enforcement
agency or a prosecuting attorney's office in reviewing, blurring or
otherwise obscuring, redacting, uploading, or producing the video
records, including but not limited to the storage medium on which the
record is produced, staff time, and any other relevant overhead
necessary to comply with the request. A state or local law
enforcement agency or a prosecuting attorney's office may include in
its public records policy the requirement that a requester pay the
estimated actual cost before beginning the process of preparing a
video record for inspection or production. Where a state or local law
enforcement agency or a prosecuting attorney's office imposes such a
requirement, its obligation to produce a video or make it available
for inspection begins once the estimated actual cost is paid in full
by the requester. A state or local law enforcement agency or a
prosecuting attorney's office shall provide the requester with the
estimated actual cost within five business days of receipt of the
public records request. If the actual cost exceeds the estimated
actual cost, a state or local law enforcement agency or a prosecuting
attorney's office may charge a requester for the difference upon
fulfilling a request for video records if the requester is notified
in advance that the actual cost may be up to twenty per cent higher
than the estimated actual cost. A state or local law enforcement
agency or a prosecuting attorney's office shall not charge a
requester a difference that exceeds twenty per cent of the estimated
actual cost.

If
a public record contains information that is exempt from the duty to
permit public inspection or to copy the public record, the public
office or the person responsible for the public record shall make
available all of the information within the public record that is not
exempt. When making that public record available for public
inspection or copying that public record, the public office or the
person responsible for the public record shall notify the requester
of any redaction or make the redaction plainly visible. A redaction
shall be deemed a denial of a request to inspect or copy the redacted
information, except if federal or state law authorizes or requires a
public office to make the redaction. When the auditor of state
receives a request to inspect or to make a copy of a record that was
provided to the auditor of state for purposes of an audit, but the
original public office has asserted to the auditor of state that the
record is not a public record, the auditor of state may handle the
requests by directing the requestor to the original public office
that provided the record to the auditor of state.

(2)
To facilitate broader access to public records, a public office or
the person responsible for public records shall organize and maintain
public records in a manner that they can be made available for
inspection or copying in accordance with division (B) of this
section. A public office also shall have available a copy of its
current records retention schedule at a location readily available to
the public. If a requester makes an ambiguous or overly broad request
or has difficulty in making a request for copies or inspection of
public records under this section such that the public office or the
person responsible for the requested public record cannot reasonably
identify what public records are being requested, the public office
or the person responsible for the requested public record may deny
the request but shall provide the requester with an opportunity to
revise the request by informing the requester of the manner in which
records are maintained by the public office and accessed in the
ordinary course of the public office's or person's duties.

(3)
If a request is ultimately denied, in part or in whole, the public
office or the person responsible for the requested public record
shall provide the requester with an explanation, including legal
authority, setting forth why the request was denied. If the initial
request was provided in writing, the explanation also shall be
provided to the requester in writing. The explanation shall not
preclude the public office or the person responsible for the
requested public record from relying upon additional reasons or legal
authority in defending an action commenced under division (C) of this
section.

(4)
Unless specifically required or authorized by state or federal law or
in accordance with division (B) of this section, no public office or
person responsible for public records may limit or condition the
availability of public records by requiring disclosure of the
requester's identity or the intended use of the requested public
record. Any requirement that the requester disclose the requester's
identity or the intended use of the requested public record
constitutes a denial of the request.

(5)
A public office or person responsible for public records may ask a
requester to make the request in writing, may ask for the requester's
identity, and may inquire about the intended use of the information
requested, but may do so only after disclosing to the requester that
a written request is not mandatory, that the requester may decline to
reveal the requester's identity or the intended use, and when a
written request or disclosure of the identity or intended use would
benefit the requester by enhancing the ability of the public office
or person responsible for public records to identify, locate, or
deliver the public records sought by the requester.

(6)
If any person requests a copy of a public record in accordance with
division (B) of this section, the public office or person responsible
for the public record may require the requester to pay in advance the
cost involved in providing the copy of the public record in
accordance with the choice made by the requester under this division.
The public office or the person responsible for the public record
shall permit the requester to choose to have the public record
duplicated upon paper, upon the same medium upon which the public
office or person responsible for the public record keeps it, or upon
any other medium upon which the public office or person responsible
for the public record determines that it reasonably can be duplicated
as an integral part of the normal operations of the public office or
person responsible for the public record. When the requester makes a
choice under this division, the public office or person responsible
for the public record shall provide a copy of it in accordance with
the choice made by the requester. Nothing in this section requires a
public office or person responsible for the public record to allow
the requester of a copy of the public record to make the copies of
the public record.

(7)(a)
Upon a request made in accordance with division (B) of this section
and subject to division (B)(6) of this section, a public office or
person responsible for public records shall transmit a copy of a
public record to any person by United States mail or by any other
means of delivery or transmission within a reasonable period of time
after receiving the request for the copy. The public office or person
responsible for the public record may require the person making the
request to pay in advance the cost of postage if the copy is
transmitted by United States mail or the cost of delivery if the copy
is transmitted other than by United States mail, and to pay in
advance the costs incurred for other supplies used in the mailing,
delivery, or transmission.

(b)
Any public office may adopt a policy and procedures that it will
follow in transmitting, within a reasonable period of time after
receiving a request, copies of public records by United States mail
or by any other means of delivery or transmission pursuant to
division (B)(7) of this section. A public office that adopts a policy
and procedures under division (B)(7) of this section shall comply
with them in performing its duties under that division.

(c)
In any policy and procedures adopted under division (B)(7) of this
section:

(i)
A public office may limit the number of records requested by a person
that the office will physically deliver by United States mail or by
another delivery service to ten per month, unless the person
certifies to the office in writing that the person does not intend to
use or forward the requested records, or the information contained in
them, for commercial purposes;

(ii)
A public office that chooses to provide some or all of its public
records on a web site that is fully accessible to and searchable by
members of the public at all times, other than during acts of God
outside the public office's control or maintenance, and that charges
no fee to search, access, download, or otherwise receive records
provided on the web site, may limit to ten per month the number of
records requested by a person that the office will deliver in a
digital format, unless the requested records are not provided on the
web site and unless the person certifies to the office in writing
that the person does not intend to use or forward the requested
records, or the information contained in them, for commercial
purposes.

(iii)
For purposes of division (B)(7) of this section, "commercial"
shall be narrowly construed and does not include reporting or
gathering news, reporting or gathering information to assist citizen
oversight or understanding of the operation or activities of
government, or nonprofit educational research.

(8)
A public office or person responsible for public records is not
required to permit a person who is incarcerated pursuant to a
criminal conviction or a juvenile adjudication to inspect or to
obtain a copy of any public record concerning a criminal
investigation or prosecution or concerning what would be a criminal
investigation or prosecution if the subject of the investigation or
prosecution were an adult, unless the request to inspect or to obtain
a copy of the record is for the purpose of acquiring information that
is subject to release as a public record under this section and the
judge who imposed the sentence or made the adjudication with respect
to the person, or the judge's successor in office, finds that the
information sought in the public record is necessary to support what
appears to be a justiciable claim of the person. As used in this
division, "public record concerning a criminal investigation or
prosecution or concerning what would be a criminal investigation or
prosecution if the subject of the investigation were an adult"
includes, but is not limited to, personnel files and payroll and
attendance records of designated public service workers.

(9)(a)
Upon written request made and signed by a journalist, a public
office, or person responsible for public records, having custody of
the records of the agency employing a specified designated public
service worker shall disclose to the journalist the address of the
actual personal residence of the designated public service worker
and, if the designated public service worker's spouse, former spouse,
or child is employed by a public office, the name and address of the
employer of the designated public service worker's spouse, former
spouse, or child, and any past, current, and future work schedules of
the designated public service worker. The request shall include the
journalist's name and title and the name and address of the
journalist's employer and shall state that disclosure of the
information sought would be in the public interest.

(b)
Division (B)(9)(a) of this section also applies to journalist
requests for:

(i)
Customer information maintained by a municipally owned or operated
public utility, other than social security numbers and any private
financial information such as credit reports, payment methods, credit
card numbers, and bank account information;

(ii)
Information about minors involved in a school vehicle accident as
provided in division (A)(1)(gg) of this section, other than personal
information as defined in section 149.45 of the Revised Code;

(iii)
A request form submitted to a public office under section 149.45 of
the Revised Code;

(iv)
An affidavit submitted under section 319.28 of the Revised Code.

(c)
As used in division (B)(9) of this section, "journalist"
means a person engaged in, connected with, or employed by any news
medium, including a newspaper, magazine, press association, news
agency, or wire service, a radio or television station, or a similar
medium, for the purpose of gathering, processing, transmitting,
compiling, editing, or disseminating information for the general
public.

(10)
Upon a request made by a victim, victim's attorney, or victim's
representative, as that term is used in section 2930.02 of the
Revised Code, a public office or person responsible for public
records shall transmit a copy of a depiction of the victim as
described in division (A)(1)(ii) of this section to the victim,
victim's attorney, or victim's representative.

(11)
A state or local law enforcement agency or a prosecuting attorney's
office shall not charge a fee for preparing a video record for
inspection, or producing a copy of a video record, when the requester
of the video record is a victim, as defined in Ohio Constitution,
Article I, Section 10a, or who is a victim who suffered loss and
could seek remedy through a tort action as defined by section
2307.011 of the Revised Code, who reasonably asserts that the video
recording relates to the act or omission that caused the victim's
harm or loss, or who is the legal counsel or insurer of the victim. A
fee under this section may only be waived upon the receipt of an
affidavit by the victim or the victim's legal counsel identifying
that the use of the video is to investigate harm or damages that may
have been captured on the video.

As
used in this division, "legal counsel of the victim" means
an attorney who, at the time of making the request, produces to the
state or local law enforcement agency or a prosecuting attorney's
office a signed retention agreement or letter of representation that
establishes that the attorney is representing the victim.

(C)(1)
If a person allegedly is aggrieved by the failure of a public office
or the person responsible for public records to promptly prepare a
public record and to make it available to the person for inspection
in accordance with division (B) of this section or by any other
failure of a public office or the person responsible for public
records to comply with an obligation in accordance with division (B)
of this section, the person allegedly aggrieved may serve pursuant to
Rule 4 of the Ohio Rules of Civil Procedure a complaint, on a form
prescribed by the clerk of the court of claims, to the public office
or person responsible for public records allegedly responsible for
the alleged failure. Upon receipt of the complaint of the person
allegedly aggrieved, the public office or person responsible for
public records has three business days to cure or otherwise address
the failure alleged in the complaint. The person allegedly aggrieved
shall not file a complaint with a court or commence a mandamus action
under this section within the three-day period. Upon the expiration
of the three-day period, the person allegedly aggrieved may, subject
to the requirements of division (C)(2) of this section, do only one
of the following, and not both:

(a)
File a complaint with the clerk of the court of claims or the clerk
of the court of common pleas under section 2743.75 of the Revised
Code;

(b)
Commence a mandamus action to obtain a judgment that orders the
public office or the person responsible for the public record to
comply with division (B) of this section, that awards court costs and
reasonable attorney's fees to the person that instituted the mandamus
action, and, if applicable, that includes an order fixing statutory
damages under division (C)(3) of this section. The mandamus action
may be commenced in the court of common pleas of the county in which
division (B) of this section allegedly was not complied with, in the
supreme court pursuant to its original jurisdiction under Section 2
of Article IV, Ohio Constitution, or in the court of appeals for the
appellate district in which division (B) of this section allegedly
was not complied with pursuant to its original jurisdiction under
Section 3 of Article IV, Ohio Constitution.

(2)
Upon filing a complaint or mandamus action with a court under
divisions (C)(1)(a) or (b) of this section, a person allegedly
aggrieved shall file with the court, in conjunction with the person's
complaint or petition, a written affirmation stating that the person
properly transmitted a complaint to the public office or person
responsible for public records, the failure alleged in the complaint
has not been cured or otherwise resolved to the person's
satisfaction, and that the complaint was transmitted to the public
office or person responsible for public records at least three
business days before the filing of the suit. If the person fails to
file an affirmation pursuant to this division, the suit shall be
dismissed.

(3)
If a requester transmits a written request by hand delivery,
electronic submission, or certified mail to inspect or receive copies
of any public record in a manner that fairly describes the public
record or class of public records to the public office or person
responsible for the requested public records, except as otherwise
provided in this section, the requester shall be entitled to recover
the amount of statutory damages set forth in this division if a court
determines that the public office or the person responsible for
public records failed to comply with an obligation in accordance with
division (B) of this section. Statutory damages are not available
pursuant to this section to a person committed to the custody of the
department of rehabilitation and correction or the United States
bureau of prisons, or a child committed to the department of youth
services as permitted in Chapter 2152. of the Revised Code.

The
amount of statutory damages shall be fixed at one hundred dollars for
each business day during which the public office or person
responsible for the requested public records failed to comply with an
obligation in accordance with division (B) of this section, beginning
with the day on which the requester files a mandamus action to
recover statutory damages, up to a maximum of one thousand dollars.
The award of statutory damages shall not be construed as a penalty,
but as compensation for injury arising from lost use of the requested
information. The existence of this injury shall be conclusively
presumed. The award of statutory damages shall be in addition to all
other remedies authorized by this section.

The
court may reduce an award of statutory damages or not award statutory
damages if the court determines both of the following:

(a)
That, based on the ordinary application of statutory law and case law
as it existed at the time of the conduct or threatened conduct of the
public office or person responsible for the requested public records
that allegedly constitutes a failure to comply with an obligation in
accordance with division (B) of this section and that was the basis
of the mandamus action, a well-informed public office or person
responsible for the requested public records reasonably would believe
that the conduct or threatened conduct of the public office or person
responsible for the requested public records did not constitute a
failure to comply with an obligation in accordance with division (B)
of this section;

(b)
That a well-informed public office or person responsible for the
requested public records reasonably would believe that the conduct or
threatened conduct of the public office or person responsible for the
requested public records would serve the public policy that underlies
the authority that is asserted as permitting that conduct or
threatened conduct.

(4)
In a mandamus action filed under division (C)(1) of this section, the
following apply:

(a)(i)
If the court orders the public office or the person responsible for
the public record to comply with division (B) of this section, the
court shall determine and award to the relator all court costs, which
shall be construed as remedial and not punitive.

(ii)
If the court makes a determination described in division
(C)(4)(b)(iii) of this section, the court shall determine and award
to the relator all court costs, which shall be construed as remedial
and not punitive.

(b)
If the court renders a judgment that orders the public office or the
person responsible for the public record to comply with division (B)
of this section or if the court determines any of the following, the
court may award reasonable attorney's fees to the relator, subject to
division (C)(5) of this section:

(i)
The public office or the person responsible for the public records
failed to respond affirmatively or negatively to the public records
request in accordance with the time allowed under division (B) of
this section.

(ii)
The public office or the person responsible for the public records
promised to permit the relator to inspect or receive copies of the
public records requested within a specified period of time but failed
to fulfill that promise within that specified period of time.

(iii)
The public office or the person responsible for the public records
acted in bad faith when the office or person voluntarily made the
public records available to the relator for the first time after the
relator commenced the mandamus action, but before the court issued
any order concluding whether or not the public office or person was
required to comply with division (B) of this section. No discovery
may be conducted on the issue of the alleged bad faith of the public
office or person responsible for the public records. This division
shall not be construed as creating a presumption that the public
office or the person responsible for the public records acted in bad
faith when the office or person voluntarily made the public records
available to the relator for the first time after the relator
commenced the mandamus action, but before the court issued any order
described in this division.

(c)
The court shall not award attorney's fees to the relator if the court
determines both of the following:

(i)
That, based on the ordinary application of statutory law and case law
as it existed at the time of the conduct or threatened conduct of the
public office or person responsible for the requested public records
that allegedly constitutes a failure to comply with an obligation in
accordance with division (B) of this section and that was the basis
of the mandamus action, a well-informed public office or person
responsible for the requested public records reasonably would believe
that the conduct or threatened conduct of the public office or person
responsible for the requested public records did not constitute a
failure to comply with an obligation in accordance with division (B)
of this section;

(ii)
That a well-informed public office or person responsible for the
requested public records reasonably would believe that the conduct or
threatened conduct of the public office or person responsible for the
requested public records would serve the public policy that underlies
the authority that is asserted as permitting that conduct or
threatened conduct.

(5)
All of the following apply to any award of reasonable attorney's fees
awarded under division (C)(4)(b) of this section:

(a)
The fees shall be construed as remedial and not punitive.

(b)
The fees awarded shall not exceed the total of the reasonable
attorney's fees incurred before the public record was made available
to the relator and the fees described in division (C)(5)(c) of this
section.

(c)
Reasonable attorney's fees shall include reasonable fees incurred to
produce proof of the reasonableness and amount of the fees and to
otherwise litigate entitlement to the fees.

(d)
The court may reduce the amount of fees awarded if the court
determines that, given the factual circumstances involved with the
specific public records request, an alternative means should have
been pursued to more effectively and efficiently resolve the dispute
that was subject to the mandamus action filed under division (C)(1)
of this section.

(6)
If the court does not issue a writ of mandamus under division (C) of
this section and the court determines at that time that the bringing
of the mandamus action was frivolous conduct as defined in division
(A) of section 2323.51 of the Revised Code, the court may award to
the public office all court costs, expenses, and reasonable
attorney's fees, as determined by the court.

(D)
Chapter 1347. of the Revised Code does not limit the provisions of
this section.

(E)(1)
To ensure that all employees of public offices are appropriately
educated about a public office's obligations under division (B) of
this section, all elected officials or their appropriate designees
shall attend training approved by the attorney general as provided in
section 109.43 of the Revised Code. A future official may satisfy the
requirements of this division by attending the training before taking
office, provided that the future official may not send a designee in
the future official's place.

(2)
All public offices shall adopt a public records policy in compliance
with this section for responding to public records requests. In
adopting a public records policy under this division, a public office
may obtain guidance from the model public records policy developed
and provided to the public office by the attorney general under
section 109.43 of the Revised Code. Except as otherwise provided in
this section, the policy may not limit the number of public records
that the public office will make available to a single person, may
not limit the number of public records that it will make available
during a fixed period of time, and may not establish a fixed period
of time before it will respond to a request for inspection or copying
of public records, unless that period is less than eight hours.

The
public office shall distribute the public records policy adopted by
the public office under this division to the employee of the public
office who is the records custodian or records manager or otherwise
has custody of the records of that office. The public office shall
require that employee to acknowledge receipt of the copy of the
public records policy. The public office shall create a poster that
describes its public records policy and shall post the poster in a
conspicuous place in the public office and in all locations where the
public office has branch offices. The public office may post its
public records policy on the internet web site of the public office
if the public office maintains an internet web site. A public office
that has established a manual or handbook of its general policies and
procedures for all employees of the public office shall include the
public records policy of the public office in the manual or handbook.

(F)(1)
The bureau of motor vehicles may adopt rules pursuant to Chapter 119.
of the Revised Code to reasonably limit the number of bulk commercial
special extraction requests made by a person for the same records or
for updated records during a calendar year. The rules may include
provisions for charges to be made for bulk commercial special
extraction requests for the actual cost of the bureau, plus special
extraction costs, plus ten per cent. The bureau may charge for
expenses for redacting information, the release of which is
prohibited by law.

(2)
As used in division (F)(1) of this section:

(a)
"Actual cost" means the cost of depleted supplies, records
storage media costs, actual mailing and alternative delivery costs,
or other transmitting costs, and any direct equipment operating and
maintenance costs, including actual costs paid to private contractors
for copying services.

(b)
"Bulk commercial special extraction request" means a
request for copies of a record for information in a format other than
the format already available, or information that cannot be extracted
without examination of all items in a records series, class of
records, or database by a person who intends to use or forward the
copies for surveys, marketing, solicitation, or resale for commercial
purposes. "Bulk commercial special extraction request" does
not include a request by a person who gives assurance to the bureau
that the person making the request does not intend to use or forward
the requested copies for surveys, marketing, solicitation, or resale
for commercial purposes.

(c)
"Commercial" means profit-seeking production, buying, or
selling of any good, service, or other product.

(d)
"Special extraction costs" means the cost of the time spent
by the lowest paid employee competent to perform the task, the actual
amount paid to outside private contractors employed by the bureau, or
the actual cost incurred to create computer programs to make the
special extraction. "Special extraction costs" include any
charges paid to a public agency for computer or records services.

(3)
For purposes of divisions (F)(1) and (2) of this section, "surveys,
marketing, solicitation, or resale for commercial purposes"
shall be narrowly construed and does not include reporting or
gathering news, reporting or gathering information to assist citizen
oversight or understanding of the operation or activities of
government, or nonprofit educational research.

(G)
A request by a defendant, counsel of a defendant, or any agent of a
defendant in a criminal action that public records related to that
action be made available under this section shall be considered a
demand for discovery pursuant to the Criminal Rules, except to the
extent that the Criminal Rules plainly indicate a contrary intent.
The defendant, counsel of the defendant, or agent of the defendant
making a request under this division shall serve a copy of the
request on the prosecuting attorney, director of law, or other chief
legal officer responsible for prosecuting the action.

(H)(1)
Any portion of a body-worn camera or dashboard camera recording
described in divisions (A)(17)(b) to (h) of this section may be
released by consent of the subject of the recording or a
representative of that person, as specified in those divisions, only
if either of the following applies:

(a)
The recording will not be used in connection with any probable or
pending criminal proceedings;

(b)
The recording has been used in connection with a criminal proceeding
that was dismissed or for which a judgment has been entered pursuant
to Rule 32 of the Rules of Criminal Procedure, and will not be used
again in connection with any probable or pending criminal
proceedings.

(2)
If a public office denies a request to release a restricted portion
of a body-worn camera or dashboard camera recording, as defined in
division (A)(17) of this section, any person may file a mandamus
action pursuant to this section or a complaint with the clerk of the
court of claims pursuant to section 2743.75 of the Revised Code,
requesting the court to order the release of all or portions of the
recording. If the court considering the request determines that the
filing articulates by clear and convincing evidence that the public
interest in the recording substantially outweighs privacy interests
and other interests asserted to deny release, the court shall order
the public office to release the recording.

Sec.
3503.13.
(A)(1)
Except as otherwise provided in division (A)(2) of this section,
voter registration forms submitted by applicants and the statewide
voter registration database established under section 3503.15 of the
Revised Code are public records subject to disclosure under section
149.43 of the Revised Code.

(2)
None of the following are subject to disclosure under division (A)(1)
of this section:

(a)
An elector's full or partial social security number, driver's license
or state identification card number, telephone number, or electronic
mail address;

(b)
A confidential voter registration record, as described in section
111.44 of the Revised Code;

(c)
The address of a designated public service worker

or a qualifying former designated public service worker
,
if the
designated
public service worker
person

has
submitted a redaction request to the board of elections under section
149.45 of the Revised Code
;

.
As used in this division, "designated public service worker"
and "qualifying former designated public service worker"
have the same meanings as in section 149.45 of the Revised Code.

(d)
An elector's proof of citizenship;

(e)
Any other information that is prohibited from being disclosed by
state or federal law.

(B)
A board of elections may use a legible digitized signature list of
voter signatures, copied from the signatures on the registration
forms in a form and manner prescribed by the secretary of state,
provided that the board includes the required voter registration
information in the statewide voter registration database established
under section 3503.15 of the Revised Code, and provided that the
precinct election officials have computer printouts at the polls
prepared in the manner required under section 3503.23 of the Revised
Code.

Sec.
3503.24.
(A)
Application for the correction of any precinct registration list or a
challenge of the right to vote of any registered elector may be made
by any qualified elector at the office of the board of elections not
later than the thirtieth day before the day of the election. The
applications or challenges, with the reasons for the application or
challenge, shall be filed with the board in person or by mail on a
form prescribed by the secretary of state and shall be signed under
penalty of election falsification.

(B)
On receiving an application or challenge filed under this section,
the board of elections promptly shall review the board's records. If
the board is able to determine that an application or challenge
should be granted or denied solely on the basis of the records
maintained by the board, the board immediately shall vote to grant or
deny that application or challenge.

If
the board is not able to determine whether an application or
challenge should be granted or denied solely on the basis of the
records maintained by the board, the director shall promptly set a
time and date for a hearing before the board. The hearing shall be
held, and the application or challenge shall be decided, no later
than ten days after the board receives the application or challenge.
The director shall send written notice to any elector whose right to
vote is challenged and to any person whose name is alleged to have
been omitted from a registration list. The notice shall inform the
person of the time and date of the hearing, and of the person's right
to appear and testify, call witnesses, and be represented by counsel.
The notice shall be sent by first class mail no later than three days
before the day of any scheduled hearing. Except as otherwise provided
in division (D) of this section, the director shall also provide the
person who filed the application or challenge with such written
notice of the date and time of the hearing.

At
the request of either party or any member of the board, the board
shall issue subpoenas to witnesses to appear and testify before the
board at a hearing held under this section. All witnesses shall
testify under oath. The board shall reach a decision on all
applications and challenges immediately after hearing.

(C)
If the board decides that any such person is not entitled to have the
person's name on the registration list, the person's name shall be
removed from the list and the person's registration forms canceled.
If the board decides that the name of any such person should appear
on the registration list, it shall be added to the list, and the
person's registration forms placed in the proper registration files.
All such corrections and additions shall be made on a copy of the
precinct lists, which shall constitute the poll lists, to be
furnished to the respective precincts with other election supplies on
the day preceding the election, to be used by the election officials
in receiving the signatures of voters and in checking against the
registration forms.

(D)
If an elector who is the subject of an application or challenge
hearing has a confidential voter registration record, as described in
section 111.44 of the Revised Code, all of the following apply:

(1)
If the elector's right to vote has been challenged, the person who
filed the challenge shall not receive notice of the date and time of
any hearing held concerning the challenge, shall not be permitted to
attend the hearing, and shall not receive notice of the disposition
of the challenge.

(2)
If the elector is the subject of an application for the correction of
the precinct registration list and the elector is not the person who
filed the application, the person who filed the application shall not
receive notice of the date and time of any hearing held concerning
the application, shall not be permitted to attend the hearing, and
shall not receive notice of the disposition of the application.

(3)
Notwithstanding section 121.22 of the Revised Code, any hearing held
concerning the application or challenge shall not be open to the
public.

(4)
Any records created as a result of the application or challenge that
include the elector's residence address or precinct shall not be open
to public inspection.

(E)(1)
As used in division (E) of this section, "designated public
service worker" and "qualifying former designated public
service worker" have the same meanings as in section 149.45 of
the Revised Code.

(2)
If an elector who is the subject of an application or challenge
hearing is a designated public service worker or a qualifying former
designated public service worker and the elector has submitted a
redaction request to the board of elections under section 149.45 of
the Revised Code, both of the following apply:

(a)
Notwithstanding section 121.22 of the Revised Code, any hearing held
concerning the application or challenge shall not be open to the
public.

(b)
The person's residence address shall be redacted from the publicly
available version of any records created as a result of the
application or challenge.

Sec.
3513.053.
(A)
As used in this section, "designated public service worker"
and "qualifying former designated public service worker"
have the same meanings as in section 149.45 of the Revised Code.

(B)
If a person whose candidacy is the subject of a protest under this
chapter is a designated public service worker or a qualifying former
designated public service worker who has submitted a redaction
request to the board of elections under section 149.45 of the Revised
Code, or the person has a confidential voter registration record, as
described in section 111.44 of the Revised Code, both of the
following apply:

(1)
Notwithstanding section 121.22 of the Revised Code, any hearing held
concerning the protest shall not be open to the public.

(2)
The person's residence address shall be redacted from the publicly
available version of any records created as a result of the protest.

Section
2.
That
existing sections 111.41, 111.42, 111.99
,
149.43, 3503.13, and 3503.24

of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.