Require courts to supply electronic notification of hearings

As Introduced

136th
General Assembly

Regular
Session
S. B. No. 394

2025-2026

Senator Blessing

To
enact section 2709.01 of the Revised Code
to
require courts to supply electronic notification of hearings to
defendants in criminal and traffic cases and to make an
appropriation.

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

Section
1.
That
section 2709.01 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:

Sec.
2709.01.
(A)(1)
The administrative director of the supreme court shall develop, make
available, and require each clerk of courts for every municipal,
county, and common pleas court to employ a court reminder program
that allows the court to send a text or electronic mail message to
notify all criminal and traffic defendants of scheduled court
appearances. The program shall be made available to every court at no
cost to the court. The purposes of the program shall include:

(a)
Reducing costs associated with defendants who fail to appear for a
scheduled court appearance;

(b)
Improving the efficiency of courts;

(c)
Reminding criminal defendants to appear at each scheduled court
appearance;

(d)
Reducing the number of criminal defendants who are admitted to and
confined in a county jail solely due to the defendant's failure to
appear for a scheduled court appearance.

(2)
The program shall do all of the following:

(a)
Comply with applicable state and federal laws requiring the consent
of an individual before sending a reminder by text message;

(b)
Provide three text or electronic mail reminders before each court
appearance, with at least one message sent the day before the court
appearance;

(c)
Use plain language that includes, at a minimum, the date and time of
appearance, court name and address, consequences for nonappearance,
and contact information for questions relating to the appearance;

(d)
Allow for the defendant to select the language in which the reminders
will be sent;

(e)
For court appearances that can be attended virtually, provide the
link to the virtual court appearance in at least the final reminder
sent before the appearance;

(f)
Provide at least one text or electronic mail notice within one day
after any missed court appearance, to notify the defendant how to
resolve the missed appearance, including how to remove a warrant if
one has been issued.

(B)
Each court, as part of the program, shall do all of the following:

(1)
Establish procedures for court personnel to confirm or update text or
electronic mail contact information at each court appearance;

(2)
Document each occurrence of a criminal defendant receiving a text or
electronic mail message reminder;

(3)
Identify criminal defendants with scheduled court appearances who
lack access to devices with the technological capability of receiving
text or electronic mail messages;

(4)
Document the number of criminal defendants who fail to appear at
scheduled court appearances after being sent one or more text or
electronic mail message reminders;

(5)
Include the technological capability to provide additional
information to criminal defendants concerning scheduled court
appearances including, but not limited to, the location of the court
appearance, available transportation options, court closures or
changes in court dates, procedures for defendants who are unable to
attend court appearances, and instructions about how to resolve a
missed appearance and any resulting warrant;

(6)
Automatically enroll all defendants to receive text or electronic
mail message reminders for each court appearance, if the defendant
has provided information for receiving text or electronic mail
messages, and with all messages providing defendants with the option
to opt-out of receiving reminders;

(7)
Partner with local law enforcement agencies, local governments, and
local public defenders to ensure that the intake processes or forms
relating to a defendant's court appearance include fields to record
the person's telephone number and electronic mail contact
information, and that law enforcement, corrections, and court staff
are educated, trained, and required to secure and convey that
information to the court reminder program;

(8)
Provide one or more publicly available internet web sites through
which eligible criminal and traffic defendants may request text or
electronic mail reminders;

(9)
Record the average amount of days in between a warrant being issued
for a failure to appear and the warrant being removed, if applicable;

(10)
Collect data concerning the number of the following:

(a)
Defendants eligible for the court reminder program;

(b)
Defendants who provide an electronic mail or cellular telephone
number upon arrest or citation;

(c)
Defendants successfully enrolled with electronic mail or cellular
telephone contact information in the court reminder program;

(d)
Reminders sent, by electronic mail and by text message;

(e)
Messages successfully delivered, by electronic mail and by text
message;

(f)
Times a defendant did not appear at a scheduled court appearance and
whether a non-appearing defendant was sent reminders by electronic
mail and by text message, and if so, how many reminders were sent to
that defendant;

(g)
Defendants who opt out of receiving reminders;

(11)
Transmit the data collected under division (B)(10) of this section to
the administrative director of the supreme court for publication by
the supreme court.

Section
2.
All
items in this act are hereby appropriated as designated out of any
moneys in the state treasury to the credit of the designated fund.
For all operating appropriations made in this act, those in the first
column are for fiscal year 2026 and those in the second column are
for fiscal year 2027. The operating appropriations made in this act
are in addition to any other operating appropriations made for these
fiscal years.

Section
3.

1

2

3

4

5

A

JSC
JUDICIARY/SUPREME COURT

B

General
Revenue Fund

C

GRF

005506

Automated
Court Appearance Reminder Program

$6,000,000

$1,000,000

D

General
Revenue Fund Total

$6,000,000

$1,000,000

E

TOTAL
ALL BUDGET FUND GROUPS

$6,000,000

$1,000,000

AUTOMATED
COURT APPEARANCE REMINDER PROGRAM

The
foregoing appropriation item 005506, Automated Court Appearance
Reminder Program, shall be used to implement an automated court
appearance reminder program as described in section 2709.01 of the
Revised Code.

Section
4.
Within
the limits set forth in this act, the Director of Budget and
Management shall establish accounts indicating the source and amount
of funds for each appropriation made in this act, and shall determine
the manner in which appropriation accounts shall be maintained.
Expenditures from operating appropriations contained in this act
shall be accounted for as though made in, and are subject to all
applicable provisions of, H.B. 96 of the 136th General Assembly.