Enact the Ohio Fairness Act

As Introduced

136th
General Assembly

Regular
Session
S. B. No. 70

2025-2026

Senator Antonio

Cosponsors: Senators Blackshear,
Craig, DeMora, Hicks-Hudson, Liston, Smith, Weinstein, Ingram

A
BILL

To
amend sections 4112.01 and 4112.05 of the Revised Code
to
enact the Ohio Fairness Act to prohibit discrimination on the basis
of sexual orientation or gender identity or expression, to add
mediation as an informal method that the Ohio Civil Rights Commission
may use, and to uphold existing religious exemptions under Ohio's
Civil Rights Law.

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

Section
1.
That
sections 4112.01 and 4112.05 of the Revised Code be amended to read
as follows:

Sec.
4112.01.
(A)
As used in this chapter:

(1)
"Person" includes one or more individuals, partnerships,
associations, organizations, corporations, legal representatives,
trustees, trustees in bankruptcy, receivers, and other organized
groups of persons. "Person" also includes, but is not
limited to, any owner, lessor, assignor, builder, manager, broker,
salesperson, appraiser, agent, employee, lending institution, and the
state and all political subdivisions, authorities, agencies, boards,
and commissions of the state.

(2)
"Employer" means the state, any political subdivision of
the state, or a person employing four or more persons within the
state, and any agent of the state, political subdivision, or person.

(3)
"Employee" means an individual employed by any employer but
does not include any individual employed in the domestic service of
any person.

(4)
"Labor organization" includes any organization that exists,
in whole or in part, for the purpose of collective bargaining or of
dealing with employers concerning grievances, terms or conditions of
employment, or other mutual aid or protection in relation to
employment.

(5)
"Employment agency" includes any person regularly
undertaking, with or without compensation, to procure opportunities
to work or to procure, recruit, refer, or place employees.

(6)
"Commission" means the Ohio civil rights commission created
by section 4112.03 of the Revised Code.

(7)
"Discriminate" includes segregate or separate.

(8)
"Unlawful discriminatory practice" means any act prohibited
by section 4112.02, 4112.021, or 4112.022 of the Revised Code.

(9)
"Place of public accommodation" means any inn, restaurant,
eating house, barbershop, public conveyance by air, land, or water,
theater, store, other place for the sale of merchandise, or any other
place of public accommodation or amusement of which the
accommodations, advantages, facilities, or privileges are available
to the public.

(10)
"Housing accommodations" includes any building or
structure, or portion of a building or structure, that is used or
occupied or is intended, arranged, or designed to be used or occupied
as the home residence, dwelling, dwelling unit, or sleeping place of
one or more individuals, groups, or families whether or not living
independently of each other; and any vacant land offered for sale or
lease. "Housing accommodations" also includes any housing
accommodations held or offered for sale or rent by a real estate
broker, salesperson, or agent, by any other person pursuant to
authorization of the owner, by the owner, or by the owner's legal
representative.

(11)
"Restrictive covenant" means any specification limiting the
transfer, rental, lease, or other use of any housing accommodations
because of race, color, religion, sex, military status, familial
status, national origin, disability, or ancestry, or any limitation
based upon affiliation with or approval by any person, directly or
indirectly, employing race, color, religion, sex, military status,
familial status, national origin, disability, or ancestry as a
condition of affiliation or approval.

(12)
"Burial lot" means any lot for the burial of deceased
persons within any public burial ground or cemetery, including, but
not limited to, cemeteries owned and operated by municipal
corporations, townships, or companies or associations incorporated
for cemetery purposes.

(13)
"Disability" means a physical or mental impairment that
substantially limits one or more major life activities, including the
functions of caring for one's self, performing manual tasks, walking,
seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, and working; a record
of a physical or mental impairment; or being regarded as having a
physical or mental impairment.

(14)
Except as otherwise provided in section 4112.021 of the Revised Code,
"age" means an individual aged forty years or older.

(15)
"Familial status" means either of the following:

(a)
One or more individuals who are under eighteen years of age and who
are domiciled with a parent or guardian having legal custody of the
individual or domiciled, with the written permission of the parent or
guardian having legal custody, with a designee of the parent or
guardian;

(b)
Any person who is pregnant or in the process of securing legal
custody of any individual who is under eighteen years of age.

(16)(a)
Except as provided in division (A)(16)(b) of this section, "physical
or mental impairment" includes any of the following:

(i)
Any physiological disorder or condition, cosmetic disfigurement, or
anatomical loss affecting one or more of the following body systems:
neurological; musculoskeletal; special sense organs; respiratory,
including speech organs; cardiovascular; reproductive; digestive;
genito-urinary; hemic and lymphatic; skin; and endocrine;

(ii)
Any mental or psychological disorder, including, but not limited to,
intellectual disability, organic brain syndrome, emotional or mental
illness, and specific learning disabilities;

(iii)
Diseases and conditions, including, but not limited to, orthopedic,
visual, speech, and hearing impairments, cerebral palsy, autism,
epilepsy, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, cancer, heart
disease, diabetes, human immunodeficiency virus infection,
intellectual disability, emotional illness, drug addiction, and
alcoholism.

(b)
"Physical or mental impairment" does not include any of the
following:

(i)
Homosexuality and bisexuality;

(ii)
Transvestism, transsexualism, pedophilia, exhibitionism, voyeurism,
gender identity disorders not resulting from physical impairments, or
other sexual behavior disorders;

(iii)
Compulsive gambling, kleptomania, or pyromania;

(iv)
Psychoactive substance use disorders resulting from the current
illegal use of a controlled substance or the current use of alcoholic
beverages.

(17)
"Dwelling unit" means a single unit of residence for a
family of one or more persons.

(18)
"Common use areas" means rooms, spaces, or elements inside
or outside a building that are made available for the use of
residents of the building or their guests, and includes, but is not
limited to, hallways, lounges, lobbies, laundry rooms, refuse rooms,
mail rooms, recreational areas, and passageways among and between
buildings.

(19)
"Public use areas" means interior or exterior rooms or
spaces of a privately or publicly owned building that are made
available to the general public.

(20)
"Controlled substance" has the same meaning as in section
3719.01 of the Revised Code.

(21)
"Disabled tenant" means a tenant or prospective tenant who
is a person with a disability.

(22)
"Military status" means a person's status in "service
in the uniformed services" as defined in section 5923.05 of the
Revised Code.

(23)
"Aggrieved person" includes both of the following:

(a)
Any person who claims to have been injured by any unlawful
discriminatory practice described in division (H) of section 4112.02
of the Revised Code;

(b)
Any person who believes that the person will be injured by any
unlawful discriminatory practice described in division (H) of section
4112.02 of the Revised Code that is about to occur.

(24)
"Unlawful discriminatory practice relating to employment"
means both of the following:

(a)
An unlawful discriminatory practice that is prohibited by division
(A), (B), (C), (D), (E), or (F) of section 4112.02 of the Revised
Code;

(b)
An unlawful discriminatory practice that is prohibited by division
(I) or (J) of section 4112.02 of the Revised Code that is related to
employment.

(25)
"Notice of right to sue" means a notice sent by the
commission to a person who files a charge under section 4112.051 of
the Revised Code that states that the person who filed the charge may
bring a civil action related to the charge pursuant to section
4112.052 or 4112.14 of the Revised Code, in accordance with section
4112.052 of the Revised Code.

(B)
For the purposes of divisions (A) to (F) of section 4112.02 of the
Revised Code, the terms "because of sex" and "on the
basis of sex" include, but are not limited to, because of or on
the basis of pregnancy, any illness arising out of and occurring
during the course of a pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical
conditions. Women affected by pregnancy, childbirth, or related
medical conditions shall be treated the same for all
employment-related purposes, including receipt of benefits under
fringe benefit programs, as other persons not so affected but similar
in their ability or inability to work, and nothing in division (B) of
section 4111.17 of the Revised Code shall be interpreted to permit
otherwise. This division shall not be construed to require an
employer to pay for health insurance benefits for abortion, except
where the life of the mother would be endangered if the fetus were
carried to term or except where medical complications have arisen
from the abortion, provided that nothing in this division precludes
an employer from providing abortion benefits or otherwise affects
bargaining agreements in regard to abortion.

(C)
For purposes of the Revised Code, any provision respecting sex
discrimination includes discrimination because of a person's sexual
orientation or gender identity or expression.

Sec.
4112.05.
(A)(1)
With the exception of unlawful discriminatory practices relating to
employment, the commission, as provided in this section, shall
prevent any person from engaging in unlawful discriminatory
practices.

(2)
The commission may at any time attempt to resolve allegations of
unlawful discriminatory practices other than allegations concerning
unlawful discriminatory practices relating to employment by the use
of alternative dispute resolution, provided that, before instituting
the formal hearing authorized by division (B) of this section, it
shall attempt, by informal methods of conference, conciliation,

mediation,

and persuasion, to induce compliance with this chapter.

(B)(1)
Any person may file a charge with the commission alleging that
another person has engaged or is engaging in an unlawful
discriminatory practice. In the case of a charge alleging an unlawful
discriminatory practice that is not an unlawful discriminatory
practice relating to employment and that is described in division
(G), (I), or (J) of section 4112.02 or in section 4112.021 or
4112.022 of the Revised Code, the charge shall be in writing and
under oath and shall be filed with the commission within six months
after the alleged unlawful discriminatory practice was committed. In
the case of a charge alleging an unlawful discriminatory practice
described in division (H) of section 4112.02 of the Revised Code, the
charge shall be in writing and under oath and shall be filed with the
commission within one year after the alleged unlawful discriminatory
practice was committed.

(a)
An oath under this section may be made in any form of affirmation the
person deems binding on the person's conscience. Acceptable forms
include, but are not limited to, declarations made under penalty of
perjury.

(b)
Any charge timely received, via facsimile, postal mail, electronic
mail, or otherwise, may be signed under oath after the limitations
period for filing set forth under division (B)(1) of this section and
will relate back to the original filing date.

(2)
Upon receiving a charge other than a charge concerning unlawful
discriminatory practices relating to employment, the commission may
initiate a preliminary investigation to determine whether it is
probable that an unlawful discriminatory practice has been or is
being engaged in. The commission also may conduct, upon its own
initiative and independent of the filing of any charges, a
preliminary investigation relating to any of the unlawful
discriminatory practices that are not unlawful discriminatory
practices relating to employment and that are described in division
(I) or (J) of section 4112.02 or in section 4112.021 or 4112.022 of
the Revised Code. Prior to a notification of a complainant under
division (B)(4) of this section or prior to the commencement of
informal methods of conference, conciliation,
mediation,

and
persuasion, or alternative dispute resolution, under that division,
the members of the commission and the officers and employees of the
commission shall not make public in any manner and shall retain as
confidential all information that was obtained as a result of or that
otherwise pertains to a preliminary investigation other than one
described in division (B)(3) of this section.

(3)(a)
Unless it is impracticable to do so and subject to its authority
under division (B)(3)(d) of this section, the commission shall
complete a preliminary investigation of a charge filed pursuant to
division (B)(1) of this section that alleges an unlawful
discriminatory practice described in division (H) of section 4112.02
of the Revised Code, and shall take one of the following actions,
within one hundred days after the filing of the charge:

(i)
Notify the complainant and the respondent that it is not probable
that an unlawful discriminatory practice described in division (H) of
section 4112.02 of the Revised Code has been or is being engaged in
and that the commission will not issue a complaint in the matter;

(ii)
Initiate a complaint and schedule it for informal methods of
conference, conciliation,
mediation,

and
persuasion, or alternative dispute resolution;

(iii)
Initiate a complaint and refer it to the attorney general with a
recommendation to seek a temporary or permanent injunction or a
temporary restraining order. If this action is taken, the attorney
general shall apply, as expeditiously as possible after receipt of
the complaint, to the court of common pleas of the county in which
the unlawful discriminatory practice allegedly occurred for the
appropriate injunction or order, and the court shall hear and
determine the application as expeditiously as possible.

(b)
If it is not practicable to comply with the requirements of division
(B)(3)(a) of this section within the one-hundred-day period described
in that division, the commission shall notify the complainant and the
respondent in writing of the reasons for the noncompliance.

(c)
Prior to the issuance of a complaint under division (B)(3)(a)(ii) or
(iii) of this section or prior to a notification of the complainant
and the respondent under division (B)(3)(a)(i) of this section, the
members of the commission and the officers and employees of the
commission shall not make public in any manner and shall retain as
confidential all information that was obtained as a result of or that
otherwise pertains to a preliminary investigation of a charge filed
pursuant to division (B)(1) of this section that alleges an unlawful
discriminatory practice described in division (H) of section 4112.02
of the Revised Code.

(d)
Notwithstanding the types of action described in divisions
(B)(3)(a)(ii) and (iii) of this section, prior to the issuance of a
complaint or the referral of a complaint to the attorney general and
prior to endeavoring to eliminate an unlawful discriminatory practice
described in division (H) of section 4112.02 of the Revised Code by
informal methods of conference, conciliation,

mediation,

and persuasion, or by alternative dispute resolution, the commission
may seek a temporary or permanent injunction or a temporary
restraining order in the court of common pleas of the county in which
the unlawful discriminatory practice allegedly occurred.

(4)
If the commission determines after a preliminary investigation other
than one concerning an alleged unlawful discriminatory practice
relating to employment or one described in division (B)(3) of this
section that it is not probable that an unlawful discriminatory
practice has been or is being engaged in, it shall notify any
complainant under division (B)(1) of this section that it has so
determined and that it will not issue a complaint in the matter. If
the commission determines after a preliminary investigation other
than one concerning an alleged unlawful discriminatory practice
relating to employment or one described in division (B)(3) of this
section that it is probable that an unlawful discriminatory practice
has been or is being engaged in, it shall endeavor to eliminate the
practice by informal methods of conference, conciliation,
mediation,

and
persuasion, or by alternative dispute resolution.

(5)
Nothing said or done during informal methods of conference,
conciliation,
mediation,

and
persuasion, or during alternative dispute resolution, under this
section shall be disclosed by any member of the commission or its
staff or be used as evidence in any subsequent hearing or other
proceeding. If, after a preliminary investigation and the use of
informal methods of conference, conciliation,
mediation,

and
persuasion, or alternative dispute resolution, under this section,
the commission is satisfied that any unlawful discriminatory practice
will be eliminated, it may treat the charge involved as being
conciliated and enter that disposition on the records of the
commission. If the commission fails to effect the elimination of an
unlawful discriminatory practice by informal methods of conference,
conciliation,
mediation,

and
persuasion, or by alternative dispute resolution under this section
and to obtain voluntary compliance with this chapter, the commission
shall issue and cause to be served upon any person, including the
respondent against whom a complainant has filed a charge pursuant to
division (B)(1) of this section, a complaint stating the charges
involved and containing a notice of an opportunity for a hearing
before the commission, a member of the commission, or a hearing
examiner at a place that is stated in the notice and that is located
within the county in which the alleged unlawful discriminatory
practice has occurred or is occurring or in which the respondent
resides or transacts business. The hearing shall be held not less
than thirty days after the service of the complaint upon the
complainant, the aggrieved persons other than the complainant on
whose behalf the complaint is issued, and the respondent, unless the
complainant, an aggrieved person, or the respondent elects to proceed
under division (A)(2) of section 4112.055 of the Revised Code when
that division is applicable. If a complaint pertains to an alleged
unlawful discriminatory practice described in division (H) of section
4112.02 of the Revised Code, the complaint shall notify the
complainant, an aggrieved person, and the respondent of the right of
the complainant, an aggrieved person, or the respondent to elect to
proceed with the administrative hearing process under this section or
to proceed under division (A)(2) of section 4112.055 of the Revised
Code.

(6)
The attorney general shall represent the commission at any hearing
held pursuant to division (B)(5) of this section and shall present
the evidence in support of the complaint.

(7)
Any complaint issued pursuant to division (B)(5) of this section
after the filing of a charge under division (B)(1) of this section
shall be so issued within one year after the complainant filed the
charge with respect to an alleged unlawful discriminatory practice.

(C)(1)
Any complaint issued pursuant to division (B) of this section may be
amended by the commission, a member of the commission, or the hearing
examiner conducting a hearing under division (B) of this section.

(a)
Except as provided in division (C)(1)(b) of this section, a complaint
issued pursuant to division (B) of this section may be amended at any
time prior to or during the hearing.

(b)
If a complaint issued pursuant to division (B) of this section
alleges an unlawful discriminatory practice described in division (H)
of section 4112.02 of the Revised Code, the complaint may be amended
at any time up to seven days prior to the hearing and not thereafter.

(2)
The respondent has the right to file an answer or an amended answer
to the original and amended complaints and to appear at the hearing
in person, by attorney, or otherwise to examine and cross-examine
witnesses.

(D)
The complainant shall be a party to a hearing under division (B) of
this section, and any person who is an indispensable party to a
complete determination or settlement of a question involved in the
hearing shall be joined. Any aggrieved person who has or claims an
interest in the subject of the hearing and in obtaining or preventing
relief against the unlawful discriminatory practices complained of
shall be permitted to appear only for the presentation of oral or
written arguments, to present evidence, perform direct and
cross-examination, and be represented by counsel. The commission
shall adopt rules, in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised
Code governing the authority granted under this division.

(E)
In any hearing under division (B) of this section, the commission, a
member of the commission, or the hearing examiner shall not be bound
by the Rules of Evidence but, in ascertaining the practices followed
by the respondent, shall take into account all reliable, probative,
and substantial statistical or other evidence produced at the hearing
that may tend to prove the existence of a predetermined pattern of
employment or membership, provided that nothing contained in this
section shall be construed to authorize or require any person to
observe the proportion that persons of any race, color, religion,
sex, military status, familial status, national origin, disability,
age, or ancestry bear to the total population or in accordance with
any criterion other than the individual qualifications of the
applicant.

(F)
The testimony taken at a hearing under division (B) of this section
shall be under oath and shall be reduced to writing and filed with
the commission. Thereafter, in its discretion, the commission, upon
the service of a notice upon the complainant and the respondent that
indicates an opportunity to be present, may take further testimony or
hear argument.

(G)(1)(a)
If, upon all reliable, probative, and substantial evidence presented
at a hearing under division (B) of this section, the commission
determines that the respondent has engaged in, or is engaging in, any
unlawful discriminatory practice, whether against the complainant or
others, the commission shall state its findings of fact and
conclusions of law and shall issue and, subject to the provisions of
Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, cause to be served on the
respondent an order requiring the respondent to do all of the
following:

(i)
Cease and desist from the unlawful discriminatory practice;

(ii)
Take any further affirmative or other action that will effectuate the
purposes of this chapter, including, but not limited to, hiring,
reinstatement, or upgrading of employees with or without back pay, or
admission or restoration to union membership;

(iii)
Report to the commission the manner of compliance.

If
the commission directs payment of back pay, it shall make allowance
for interim earnings.

(b)
If the commission finds a violation of division (H) of section
4112.02 of the Revised Code, in addition to the action described in
division (G)(1)(a) of this section, the commission additionally may
require the respondent to undergo remediation in the form of a class,
seminar, or any other type of remediation approved by the commission,
may require the respondent to pay actual damages and reasonable
attorney's fees, and may, to vindicate the public interest, assess a
civil penalty against the respondent as follows:

(i)
If division (G)(1)(b)(ii) or (iii) of this section does not apply, a
civil penalty in an amount not to exceed ten thousand dollars;

(ii)
If division (G)(1)(b)(iii) of this section does not apply and if the
respondent has been determined by a final order of the commission or
by a final judgment of a court to have committed one violation of
division (H) of section 4112.02 of the Revised Code during the
five-year period immediately preceding the date on which a complaint
was issued pursuant to division (B) of this section, a civil penalty
in an amount not to exceed twenty-five thousand dollars;

(iii)
If the respondent has been determined by a final order of the
commission or by a final judgment of a court to have committed two or
more violations of division (H) of section 4112.02 of the Revised
Code during the seven-year period immediately preceding the date on
which a complaint was issued pursuant to division (B) of this
section, a civil penalty damages in an amount not to exceed fifty
thousand dollars.

(2)
Upon the submission of reports of compliance, the commission may
issue a declaratory order stating that the respondent has ceased to
engage in particular unlawful discriminatory practices.

(H)
If the commission finds that no probable cause exists for crediting
charges of unlawful discriminatory practices or if, upon all the
evidence presented at a hearing under division (B) of this section on
a charge, the commission finds that a respondent has not engaged in
any unlawful discriminatory practice against the complainant or
others, it shall state its findings of fact and shall issue and cause
to be served on the complainant an order dismissing the complaint as
to the respondent. A copy of the order shall be delivered in all
cases to the attorney general and any other public officers whom the
commission considers proper.

If,
upon all the evidence presented at a hearing under division (B) of
this section on a charge, the commission finds that a respondent has
not engaged in any unlawful discriminatory practice against the
complainant or others, it may award to the respondent reasonable
attorney's fees to the extent provided in 5 U.S.C. 504 and
accompanying regulations.

(I)
Until the time period for appeal set forth in division (H) of section
4112.06 of the Revised Code expires, the commission, subject to the
provisions of Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, at any time, upon
reasonable notice, and in the manner it considers proper, may modify
or set aside, in whole or in part, any finding or order made by it
under this section.

Section
2.
That
existing sections 4112.01 and 4112.05 of the Revised Code are hereby
repealed.

Section
3.
This
act upholds existing religious exemptions currently in Ohio law.