As Introduced
136th General Assembly
Regular Session S. B. No. 420
2025-2026
Senator O'Brien
To amend sections 117.46, 121.01, 121.22, 149.011, 149.43, 187.01, 187.03, and 187.04 of the Revised Code to establish that records created by JobsOhio are public records under Ohio Public Records Law, to require JobsOhio to comply with the Open Meetings Law, and to require the Auditor of State to conduct a performance audit of JobsOhio.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 117.46, 121.01, 121.22, 149.011, 149.43, 187.01, 187.03, and 187.04 of the Revised Code be amended to read as follows:
Sec. 117.46. (A) Each biennium the auditor of state shall conduct a minimum of four performance audits under this section. Except as otherwise provided in this section, at least two of the audits shall be of state agencies selected from a list comprised of the administrative departments listed in section 121.02 of the Revised Code and the department of education and workforce and at least two of the audits shall be of other state agencies. At the auditor of state's discretion, the auditor of state may also conduct performance audits of state institutions of higher education. The offices of the attorney general, auditor of state, governor, secretary of state, and treasurer of state and agencies of the legislative and judicial branches are not subject to an audit under this section.
The auditor shall select each agency or institution to be audited and shall determine whether to audit the entire agency or institution or a portion of the agency or institution by auditing one or more programs, offices, boards, councils, or other entities within that agency or institution. The auditor shall make the selection and determination in consultation with the governor and the speaker and minority leader of the house of representatives and president and minority leader of the senate.
An audit of a portion of an agency or institution shall be considered an audit of one agency or institution. The authority to audit a portion of an agency or institution in no way limits the auditor's ability to audit an entire agency or institution if it is in the best interest of the state.
(B) The auditor of state annually shall conduct a performance audit of the nonprofit corporation formed under section 187.01 of the Revised Code as if it was a state agency under sections 117.01 and 117.13 of the Revised Code.
(C) The performance audits under this section shall be conducted pursuant to sections 117.01 and 117.13 of the Revised Code. In conducting a performance audit, the auditor of state shall determine the scope of the audit, but shall consider, if appropriate, supervisory and subordinate level operations in the agency or institution. A performance audit under this section shall not include review or evaluation of an institution's academic performance.
As used in this section and in sections 117.461, 117.462, 117.463, and 117.47 of the Revised Code, "state institution of higher education" has the meaning defined in section 3345.011 of the Revised Code.
Sec. 121.01. As used in sections 121.01 to 121.20 of the Revised Code:
(A) "Department" means the several departments of state administration enumerated in section 121.02 of the Revised Code.
(B) "Division" means a part of a department established as provided in section 121.07 of the Revised Code for the convenient performance of one or more of the functions committed to a department.
(C)
"Departments, offices, and institutions" include every
organized body, office, and agency established by the constitution
and laws of the state for the exercise of any function of the state
government, and every institution or organization which receives any
support from the state. "Departments,
offices, and institutions" does not include the nonprofit
corporation formed under section 187.01 of the Revised Code.
Sec. 121.22. (A) This section shall be liberally construed to require public officials to take official action and to conduct all deliberations upon official business only in open meetings unless the subject matter is specifically excepted by law.
(B) As used in this section:
(1) "Public body" means any of the following:
(a) Any board, commission, committee, council, or similar decision-making body of a state agency, institution, or authority, and any legislative authority or board, commission, committee, council, agency, authority, or similar decision-making body of any county, township, municipal corporation, school district, or other political subdivision or local public institution;
(b) Any committee or subcommittee of a body described in division (B)(1)(a) of this section;
(c) A court of jurisdiction of a sanitary district organized wholly for the purpose of providing a water supply for domestic, municipal, and public use when meeting for the purpose of the appointment, removal, or reappointment of a member of the board of directors of such a district pursuant to section 6115.10 of the Revised Code, if applicable, or for any other matter related to such a district other than litigation involving the district. As used in division (B)(1)(c) of this section, "court of jurisdiction" has the same meaning as "court" in section 6115.01 of the Revised Code.
(2) "Meeting" means any prearranged discussion of the public business of the public body by a majority of its members.
(3) "Regulated individual" means either of the following:
(a) A student in a state or local public educational institution;
(b) A person who is, voluntarily or involuntarily, an inmate, patient, or resident of a state or local institution because of criminal behavior, mental illness, an intellectual disability, disease, disability, age, or other condition requiring custodial care.
(4) "Public office" has the same meaning as in section 149.011 of the Revised Code.
(C) All meetings of any public body are declared to be public meetings open to the public at all times. A member of a public body shall be present in person at a meeting open to the public to be considered present or to vote at the meeting and for purposes of determining whether a quorum is present at the meeting.
The minutes of a regular or special meeting of any public body shall be promptly prepared, filed, and maintained and shall be open to public inspection. The minutes need only reflect the general subject matter of discussions in executive sessions authorized under division (G) or (J) of this section.
(D) This section does not apply to any of the following:
(1) A grand jury;
(2) An audit conference conducted by the auditor of state or independent certified public accountants with officials of the public office that is the subject of the audit;
(3) The adult parole authority when its hearings are conducted at a correctional institution for the sole purpose of interviewing inmates to determine parole or pardon and the department of rehabilitation and correction when its hearings are conducted at a correctional institution for the sole purpose of making determinations under section 2967.271 of the Revised Code regarding the release or maintained incarceration of an offender to whom that section applies;
(4) The organized crime investigations commission established under section 177.01 of the Revised Code;
(5) Meetings of a child fatality review board established under section 307.621 of the Revised Code, meetings related to a review conducted pursuant to guidelines established by the director of health under section 3701.70 of the Revised Code, and meetings conducted pursuant to sections 5153.171 to 5153.173 of the Revised Code;
(6) The state medical board when determining whether to suspend a license or certificate without a prior hearing pursuant to division (G) of either section 4730.25 or 4731.22 of the Revised Code;
(7) The board of nursing when determining whether to suspend a license or certificate without a prior hearing pursuant to division (B) of section 4723.281 of the Revised Code;
(8) The state board of pharmacy when determining whether to do either of the following:
(a) Suspend a license, certification, or registration without a prior hearing, including during meetings conducted by telephone conference, pursuant to Chapters 3719., 3796., 4729., and 4752. of the Revised Code and rules adopted thereunder; or
(b) Restrict a person from obtaining further information from the drug database established in section 4729.75 of the Revised Code without a prior hearing pursuant to division (C) of section 4729.86 of the Revised Code.
(9) The state chiropractic board when determining whether to suspend a license without a hearing pursuant to section 4734.37 of the Revised Code;
(10) The executive committee of the emergency response commission when determining whether to issue an enforcement order or request that a civil action, civil penalty action, or criminal action be brought to enforce Chapter 3750. of the Revised Code;
(11)
The
board of directors of the nonprofit corporation formed under section
187.01 of the Revised Code or any committee thereof, and the board of
directors of any subsidiary of that corporation or a committee
thereof;
(12)
An
audit conference conducted by the audit staff of the department of
job and family services with officials of the public office that is
the subject of that audit under section 5101.37 of the Revised Code;
(13)(12)
The occupational therapy section of the occupational therapy,
physical therapy, and athletic trainers board when determining
whether to suspend a license without a hearing pursuant to division
(E) of section 4755.11 of the Revised Code;
(14)(13)
The physical therapy section of the occupational therapy, physical
therapy, and athletic trainers board when determining whether to
suspend a license without a hearing pursuant to division (F) of
section 4755.47 of the Revised Code;
(15)(14)
The athletic trainers section of the occupational therapy, physical
therapy, and athletic trainers board when determining whether to
suspend a license without a hearing pursuant to division (E) of
section 4755.64 of the Revised Code;
(16)(15)
Meetings of the pregnancy-associated mortality review board
established under section 5180.27 of the Revised Code;
(17)(16)
Meetings of a fetal-infant mortality review board established under
section 3707.71 of the Revised Code;
(18)(17)
Meetings of a drug overdose fatality review committee described in
section 307.631 of the Revised Code;
(19)(18)
Meetings of a suicide fatality review committee described in section
307.641 of the Revised Code;
(20)(19)
Meetings of the officers, members, or directors of an existing
qualified nonprofit corporation that creates a special improvement
district under Chapter 1710. of the Revised Code, at which the public
business of the corporation pertaining to a purpose for which the
district is created is not discussed;
(21)(20)
Meetings of a domestic violence fatality review board established
under section 307.651 of the Revised Code;
(22)(21)
Any nonprofit agency that has received an endorsement under section
5101.315 of the Revised Code.
(E) The controlling board, the tax credit authority, or the minority development financing advisory board, when meeting to consider granting assistance pursuant to Chapter 122. or 166. of the Revised Code, in order to protect the interest of the applicant or the possible investment of public funds, by unanimous vote of all board or authority members present, may close the meeting during consideration of the following information confidentially received by the authority or board from the applicant:
(1) Marketing plans;
(2) Specific business strategy;
(3) Production techniques and trade secrets;
(4) Financial projections;
(5) Personal financial statements of the applicant or members of the applicant's immediate family, including, but not limited to, tax records or other similar information not open to public inspection.
The vote by the authority or board to accept or reject the application, as well as all proceedings of the authority or board not subject to this division, shall be open to the public and governed by this section.
(F) Every public body, by rule, shall establish a reasonable method whereby any person may determine the time and place of all regularly scheduled meetings and the time, place, and purpose of all special meetings. A public body shall not hold a special meeting unless it gives at least twenty-four hours' advance notice to the news media that have requested notification, except in the event of an emergency requiring immediate official action. In the event of an emergency, the member or members calling the meeting shall notify the news media that have requested notification immediately of the time, place, and purpose of the meeting.
The rule shall provide that any person, upon request and payment of a reasonable fee, may obtain reasonable advance notification of all meetings at which any specific type of public business is to be discussed. Provisions for advance notification may include, but are not limited to, mailing the agenda of meetings to all subscribers on a mailing list or mailing notices in self-addressed, stamped envelopes provided by the person.
(G) Except as provided in divisions (G)(8) and (J) of this section, the members of a public body may hold an executive session only after a majority of a quorum of the public body determines, by a roll call vote, to hold an executive session and only at a regular or special meeting for the sole purpose of the consideration of any of the following matters:
(1) To consider the appointment, employment, dismissal, discipline, promotion, demotion, or compensation of a public employee or official, or the investigation of charges or complaints against a public employee, official, licensee, or regulated individual, unless the public employee, official, licensee, or regulated individual requests a public hearing. Except as otherwise provided by law, no public body shall hold an executive session for the discipline of an elected official for conduct related to the performance of the elected official's official duties or for the elected official's removal from office. If a public body holds an executive session pursuant to division (G)(1) of this section, the motion and vote to hold that executive session shall state which one or more of the approved purposes listed in division (G)(1) of this section are the purposes for which the executive session is to be held, but need not include the name of any person to be considered at the meeting.
(2) To consider the purchase of property for public purposes, the sale of property at competitive bidding, or the sale or other disposition of unneeded, obsolete, or unfit-for-use property in accordance with section 505.10 of the Revised Code, if premature disclosure of information would give an unfair competitive or bargaining advantage to a person whose personal, private interest is adverse to the general public interest. No member of a public body shall use division (G)(2) of this section as a subterfuge for providing covert information to prospective buyers or sellers. A purchase or sale of public property is void if the seller or buyer of the public property has received covert information from a member of a public body that has not been disclosed to the general public in sufficient time for other prospective buyers and sellers to prepare and submit offers.
If the minutes of the public body show that all meetings and deliberations of the public body have been conducted in compliance with this section, any instrument executed by the public body purporting to convey, lease, or otherwise dispose of any right, title, or interest in any public property shall be conclusively presumed to have been executed in compliance with this section insofar as title or other interest of any bona fide purchasers, lessees, or transferees of the property is concerned.
(3) Conferences with an attorney for the public body concerning disputes involving the public body that are the subject of pending or imminent court action;
(4) Preparing for, conducting, or reviewing negotiations or bargaining sessions with public employees concerning their compensation or other terms and conditions of their employment;
(5) Matters required to be kept confidential by federal law or regulations or state statutes;
(6) Details relative to the security arrangements and emergency response protocols for a public body or a public office, if disclosure of the matters discussed could reasonably be expected to jeopardize the security of the public body or public office;
(7) In the case of a county hospital operated pursuant to Chapter 339. of the Revised Code, a joint township hospital operated pursuant to Chapter 513. of the Revised Code, or a municipal hospital operated pursuant to Chapter 749. of the Revised Code, to consider trade secrets, as defined in section 1333.61 of the Revised Code;
(8) To consider confidential information related to the marketing plans, specific business strategy, production techniques, trade secrets, or personal financial statements of an applicant for economic development assistance, or to negotiations with other political subdivisions respecting requests for economic development assistance, provided that both of the following conditions apply:
(a) The information is directly related to a request for economic development assistance that is to be provided or administered under any provision of Chapter 715., 725., 1724., or 1728. or sections 701.07, 3735.67 to 3735.70, 5709.40 to 5709.43, 5709.61 to 5709.69, 5709.73 to 5709.75, or 5709.77 to 5709.81 of the Revised Code, or that involves public infrastructure improvements or the extension of utility services that are directly related to an economic development project.
(b) A unanimous quorum of the public body determines, by a roll call vote, that the executive session is necessary to protect the interests of the applicant or the possible investment or expenditure of public funds to be made in connection with the economic development project.
If a public body holds an executive session to consider any of the matters listed in divisions (G)(2) to (8) of this section, the motion and vote to hold that executive session shall state which one or more of the approved matters listed in those divisions are to be considered at the executive session.
A public body specified in division (B)(1)(c) of this section shall not hold an executive session when meeting for the purposes specified in that division.
(H) A resolution, rule, or formal action of any kind is invalid unless adopted in an open meeting of the public body. A resolution, rule, or formal action adopted in an open meeting that results from deliberations in a meeting not open to the public is invalid unless the deliberations were for a purpose specifically authorized in division (G) or (J) of this section and conducted at an executive session held in compliance with this section. A resolution, rule, or formal action adopted in an open meeting is invalid if the public body that adopted the resolution, rule, or formal action violated division (F) of this section.
(I)(1) Any person may bring an action to enforce this section. An action under division (I)(1) of this section shall be brought within two years after the date of the alleged violation or threatened violation. Upon proof of a violation or threatened violation of this section in an action brought by any person, the court of common pleas shall issue an injunction to compel the members of the public body to comply with its provisions.
(2)(a) If the court of common pleas issues an injunction pursuant to division (I)(1) of this section, the court shall order the public body that it enjoins to pay a civil forfeiture of five hundred dollars to the party that sought the injunction and shall award to that party all court costs and, subject to reduction as described in division (I)(2) of this section, reasonable attorney's fees. The court, in its discretion, may reduce an award of attorney's fees to the party that sought the injunction or not award attorney's fees to that party 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 violation or threatened violation that was the basis of the injunction, a well-informed public body reasonably would believe that the public body was not violating or threatening to violate this section;
(ii) That a well-informed public body reasonably would believe that the conduct or threatened conduct that was the basis of the injunction would serve the public policy that underlies the authority that is asserted as permitting that conduct or threatened conduct.
(b) If the court of common pleas does not issue an injunction pursuant to division (I)(1) of this section and the court determines at that time that the bringing of the action was frivolous conduct, as defined in division (A) of section 2323.51 of the Revised Code, the court shall award to the public body all court costs and reasonable attorney's fees, as determined by the court.
(3) Irreparable harm and prejudice to the party that sought the injunction shall be conclusively and irrebuttably presumed upon proof of a violation or threatened violation of this section.
(4) A member of a public body who knowingly violates an injunction issued pursuant to division (I)(1) of this section may be removed from office by an action brought in the court of common pleas for that purpose by the prosecuting attorney or the attorney general.
(J)(1) Pursuant to division (C) of section 5901.09 of the Revised Code, a veterans service commission shall hold an executive session for one or more of the following purposes unless an applicant requests a public hearing:
(a) Interviewing an applicant for financial assistance under sections 5901.01 to 5901.15 of the Revised Code;
(b) Discussing applications, statements, and other documents described in division (B) of section 5901.09 of the Revised Code;
(c) Reviewing matters relating to an applicant's request for financial assistance under sections 5901.01 to 5901.15 of the Revised Code.
(2) A veterans service commission shall not exclude an applicant for, recipient of, or former recipient of financial assistance under sections 5901.01 to 5901.15 of the Revised Code, and shall not exclude representatives selected by the applicant, recipient, or former recipient, from a meeting that the commission conducts as an executive session that pertains to the applicant's, recipient's, or former recipient's application for financial assistance.
(3) A veterans service commission shall vote on the grant or denial of financial assistance under sections 5901.01 to 5901.15 of the Revised Code only in an open meeting of the commission. The minutes of the meeting shall indicate the name, address, and occupation of the applicant, whether the assistance was granted or denied, the amount of the assistance if assistance is granted, and the votes for and against the granting of assistance.
Sec. 149.011. As used in this chapter, except as otherwise provided:
(A)
"Public office" includes any state agency, public
institution, political subdivision, or other organized body, office,
agency, institution, or entity established by the laws of this state
for the exercise of any function of government. "Public office"
does
not include includes
the
nonprofit corporation formed under section 187.01 of the Revised
Code.
(B)
"State agency" includes every department, bureau, board,
commission, office, or other organized body established by the
constitution and laws of this state for the exercise of any function
of state government, including any state-supported institution of
higher education, the general assembly, any legislative agency, any
court or judicial agency, or any political subdivision or agency of a
political subdivision. "State agency" does
not include includes
the
nonprofit corporation formed under section 187.01 of the Revised
Code.
(C) "Public money" includes all money received or collected by or due a public official, whether in accordance with or under authority of any law, ordinance, resolution, or order, under color of office, or otherwise. It also includes any money collected by any individual on behalf of a public office or as a purported representative or agent of the public office.
(D) "Public official" includes all officers, employees, or duly authorized representatives or agents of a public office.
(E) "Color of office" includes any act purported or alleged to be done under any law, ordinance, resolution, order, or other pretension to official right, power, or authority.
(F) "Archive" includes any public record that is transferred to the state archives or other designated archival institutions because of the historical information contained on it.
(G) "Records" includes any document, device, or item, regardless of physical form or characteristic, including an electronic record as defined in section 1306.01 of the Revised Code, created or received by or coming under the jurisdiction of any public office of the state or its political subdivisions, which serves to document the organization, functions, policies, decisions, procedures, operations, or other activities of the office. "Records" does not include personal notes or any document, device, or item, regardless of physical form or whether an assistive device or application was used, of a public official, or of the official's attorney, employee, or agent, that is used, maintained, and accessed solely by the individual who creates it or causes its creation.
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)(C)(3)
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. 187.01. As used in this chapter, "JobsOhio" means the nonprofit corporation formed under this section, and includes any subsidiary of that corporation. In any section of law that refers to the nonprofit corporation formed under this section, reference to the corporation includes reference to any such subsidiary unless otherwise specified or clearly appearing from the context.
The governor is hereby authorized to form a nonprofit corporation, to be named "JobsOhio," with the purposes of promoting economic development, job creation, job retention, job training, and the recruitment of business to this state. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, the corporation shall be organized and operated in accordance with Chapter 1702. of the Revised Code. The governor shall sign and file articles of incorporation for the corporation with the secretary of state. The legal existence of the corporation shall begin upon the filing of the articles.
In addition to meeting the requirements for articles of incorporation in Chapter 1702. of the Revised Code, the articles of incorporation for the nonprofit corporation shall set forth the following:
(A) The designation of the name of the corporation as JobsOhio;
(B) The creation of a board of directors consisting of nine directors, to be appointed by the governor, who satisfy the qualifications prescribed by section 187.02 of the Revised Code;
(C) A requirement that the governor make initial appointments to the board within sixty days after the filing of the articles of incorporation. Of the initial appointments made to the board, two shall be for a term ending one year after the date the articles were filed, two shall be for a term ending two years after the date the articles were filed, and five shall be for a term ending four years after the date the articles were filed. The articles shall state that, following the initial appointments, the governor shall appoint directors to terms of office of four years, with each term of office ending on the same day of the same month as did the term that it succeeds. If any director dies, resigns, or the director's status changes such that any of the requirements of division (C) of section 187.02 of the Revised Code are no longer met, that director's seat on the board shall become immediately vacant. The governor shall forthwith fill the vacancy by appointment for the remainder of the term of office of the vacated seat.
(D) A requirement that the governor appoint one director to be chairperson of the board and procedures for electing directors to serve as officers of the corporation and members of an executive committee;
(E) A provision for the appointment of a chief investment officer of the corporation by the recommendation of the board and approval of the governor. The chief investment officer shall serve at the pleasure of the board and shall have the power to execute contracts, spend corporation funds, and hire employees on behalf of the corporation. If the position of chief investment officer becomes vacant for any reason, the vacancy shall be filled in the same manner as provided in this division.
(F) Provisions requiring the board to do all of the following:
(1) Adopt one or more resolutions providing for compensation of the chief investment officer;
(2) Approve an employee compensation plan recommended by the chief investment officer;
(3)
Approve a contract with the director of development services
for
the corporation to assist the director and the
department of
development services
agency with
providing services or otherwise carrying out the functions or duties
of the agencydepartment,
including the operation and management of programs, offices,
divisions, or boards, as may be determined by the director of
development services
in
consultation with the governor;
(4) Approve all major contracts for services recommended by the chief investment officer;
(5) Establish an annual strategic plan and standards of measure to be used in evaluating the corporation's success in executing the plan;
(6) Establish a conflicts of interest policy that, at a minimum, complies with section 187.06 of the Revised Code;
(7)
Hold a minimum of four board of directors meetings per year at which
a quorum of the board is physically present, and such other meetings,
at which directors' physical presence is not required, as may be
necessary.
Meetings at which a quorum of the board is required to be physically
present are subject to divisions (C), (D), and (E) of section 187.03
of the Revised Code.
(8) Establish a records retention policy and present the policy, and any subsequent changes to the policy, at a meeting of the board of directors at which a quorum of the board is required to be physically present pursuant to division (F)(7) of this section;
(9) Adopt standards of conduct for the directors.
(G) A statement that directors shall not receive any compensation from the corporation, except that directors may be reimbursed for actual and necessary expenses incurred in connection with services performed for the corporation;
(H) A provision authorizing the board to amend provisions of the corporation's articles of incorporation or regulations, except provisions required by this chapter;
(I) Procedures by which the corporation would be dissolved and by which all corporation rights and assets would be distributed to the state or to another corporation organized under this chapter. These procedures shall incorporate any separate procedures subsequently set forth in this chapter for the dissolution of the corporation. The articles shall state that no dissolution shall take effect until the corporation has made adequate provision for the payment of any outstanding bonds, notes, or other obligations.
(J) A provision establishing an audit committee to be comprised of directors. The articles shall require that the audit committee hire a firm of independent certified public accountants, selected in consultation with the auditor of state, to perform, once each year, a financial audit of the corporation and of any nonprofit entity the sole member of which is JobsOhio. The articles also shall require all of the following:
(1) Commencing with JobsOhio's fiscal year beginning July 1, 2012, the financial statements to be audited are to be prepared in accordance with accounting principles and standards set forth in all applicable pronouncements of the governmental accounting standards board;
(2) The firm of independent certified public accountants hired is to conduct a supplemental compliance and control review pursuant to a written agreement by and among the firm, the auditor of state, JobsOhio, and any nonprofit entity the sole member of which is JobsOhio; and
(3) A copy of each financial audit report and each report of the results of the compliance and control review are to be provided to the governor, the auditor of state, the speaker of the house of representatives, and the president of the senate.
(K) A provision authorizing a majority of the disinterested directors to remove a director for misconduct, as that term may be defined in the articles or regulations of the corporation. The removal of a director under this division creates a vacancy on the board that the governor shall fill by appointment for the remainder of the term of office of the vacated seat.
Sec. 187.03. (A) JobsOhio may perform such functions as permitted and shall perform such duties as prescribed by law and as set forth in any contract entered into under section 187.04 of the Revised Code, but shall not be considered a state or public department, agency, office, body, institution, or instrumentality for purposes of section 1.60 or Chapter 102., 121., 125., or 149. of the Revised Code. JobsOhio and its board of directors are not subject to the following sections of Chapter 1702. of the Revised Code: sections 1702.03, 1702.08, 1702.09, 1702.21, 1702.24, 1702.26, 1702.27, 1702.28, 1702.29, 1702.301, 1702.33, 1702.34, 1702.37, 1702.38, 1702.40 to 1702.52, 1702.521, 1702.54, 1702.57, 1702.58, 1702.59, 1702.60, 1702.80, and 1702.99. Nothing in this division shall be construed to impair the powers and duties of the Ohio ethics commission described in section 102.06 of the Revised Code to investigate and enforce section 102.02 of the Revised Code with regard to individuals required to file statements under division (B)(2) of this section.
(B)(1) Directors and employees of JobsOhio are not employees or officials of the state and, except as provided in division (B)(2) of this section, are not subject to Chapter 102., 124., 145., or 4117. of the Revised Code.
(2) The chief investment officer, any other officer or employee with significant administrative, supervisory, contracting, or investment authority, and any director of JobsOhio shall file, with the Ohio ethics commission, a financial disclosure statement pursuant to section 102.02 of the Revised Code that includes, in place of the information required by divisions (A)(2)(b), (g), (h), and (i) of that section, the information required by divisions (A) and (B) of section 102.022 of the Revised Code. The governor shall comply with all applicable requirements of section 102.02 of the Revised Code.
(3) Actual or in-kind expenditures for the travel, meals, or lodging of the governor or of any public official or employee designated by the governor for the purpose of this division shall not be considered a violation of section 102.03 of the Revised Code if the expenditures are made by the corporation, or on behalf of the corporation by any person, in connection with the governor's performance of official duties related to JobsOhio. The governor may designate any person, including a person who is a public official or employee as defined in section 102.01 of the Revised Code, for the purpose of this division if such expenditures are made on behalf of the person in connection with the governor's performance of official duties related to JobsOhio. A public official or employee so designated by the governor shall comply with all applicable requirements of section 102.02 of the Revised Code.
At the times and frequency agreed to under division (B)(2)(b) of section 187.04 of the Revised Code, beginning in 2012, the corporation shall file with the department of development a written report of all such expenditures paid or incurred during the preceding calendar year. The report shall state the dollar value and purpose of each expenditure, the date of each expenditure, the name of the person that paid or incurred each expenditure, and the location, if any, where services or benefits of an expenditure were received, provided that any such information that may disclose proprietary information as defined in division (C) of this section shall not be included in the report.
(4) The prohibition applicable to former public officials or employees in division (A)(1) of section 102.03 of the Revised Code does not apply to any person appointed to be a director or hired as an employee of JobsOhio.
(5) Notwithstanding division (A)(2) of section 145.01 of the Revised Code, any person who is a former state employee shall no longer be considered a public employee for purposes of Chapter 145. of the Revised Code upon commencement of employment with JobsOhio.
(6) Any director, officer, or employee of JobsOhio may request an advisory opinion from the Ohio ethics commission with regard to questions concerning the provisions of sections 102.02 and 102.022 of the Revised Code to which the person is subject.
(C)
Meetings of the board of directors at
which a quorum of the board is required to be physically present
pursuant to division (F) of section 187.01 of the Revised Code shall
be open to the public except, by a majority vote of the directors
present at the meeting, such a meeting may be closed to the public
only for one or more of the following purposes:
(1)
To consider business strategy of the corporation;
(2)
To consider proprietary information belonging to potential applicants
or potential recipients of business recruitment, retention, or
creation incentives. For the purposes of this division, "proprietary
information" means marketing plans, specific business strategy,
production techniques and trade secrets, financial projections, or
personal financial statements of applicants or members of the
applicants' immediate family, including, but not limited to, tax
records or other similar information not open to the public
inspection.
(3)
To consider legal matters, including litigation, in which the
corporation is or may be involved;
(4)
To consider personnel matters related to an individual employee of
the corporation.
(D)
The board of directors shall establish a reasonable method whereby
any person may obtain the time and place of all public meetings
described in division (C) of this section. The method shall provide
that any person, upon request and payment of a reasonable fee, may
obtain reasonable advance notification of all such meetings.
(E)
The board of directors shall promptly prepare, file, and maintain
minutes of all public meetings described in division (C) of this
sectionare
subject to section 121.22 of the Revised Code.
(F)(D)
Not later than the first day of July of each year, the chief
investment officer of JobsOhio shall prepare and submit a report of
the corporation's activities for the preceding year to the governor,
the speaker and minority leader of the house of representatives, and
the president and minority leader of the senate. The annual report
shall include the following:
(1) An analysis of the state's economy;
(2) A description of the structure, operation, and financial status of the corporation;
(3) A description of the corporation's strategy to improve the state economy and the standards of measure used to evaluate its progress;
(4) An evaluation of the performance of current strategies and major initiatives;
(5) An analysis of any statutory or administrative barriers to successful economic development, business recruitment, and job growth in the state identified by JobsOhio during the preceding year.
Sec.
187.04. (A)
The director of development
services,
as soon as practical after February 18, 2011, shall execute a
contract with JobsOhio for the corporation to assist the director and
the
department of
development services
agency with
providing services or otherwise carrying out the functions or duties
of the agencydepartment,
including the operation and management of programs, offices,
divisions, or boards, as may be determined by the director in
consultation with the governor. The approval or disapproval of awards
involving public money shall remain functions of the
agencydepartment.
All contracts for grants, loans, and tax incentives involving public
money shall be between the agency
department
and
the recipient and shall be enforced by the agencydepartment.
JobsOhio may not execute contracts obligating the agency
department
for
loans, grants, tax credits, or incentive awards recommended by
JobsOhio to the agencydepartment.
Prior to execution, all contracts between the director and JobsOhio
entered into under this section that obligate the agency
department
to
pay JobsOhio for services rendered are subject to controlling board
approval.
The term of an initial contract entered into under this section shall not extend beyond June 30, 2013. Thereafter, the director and JobsOhio may renew the contract for subsequent fiscal biennia, but at no time shall a particular contract be effective for longer than a fiscal biennium of the general assembly.
JobsOhio's
provision of services to the agency
department
as
described in this section shall be pursuant to a contract entered
into under this section. If at any time the director determines that
the contract with JobsOhio may not be renewed for the subsequent
fiscal biennium, the director shall notify JobsOhio of the director's
decision not later than one hundred twenty days prior to the end of
the current fiscal biennium. If the director does not provide such
written notice to JobsOhio prior to one hundred days before the end
of the current fiscal biennium, the contract shall be renewed upon
such terms as the parties may agree, subject to the requirements of
this section.
(B) A contract entered into under this section shall include all of the following:
(1)
Terms assigning to the corporation the duties of advising and
assisting the director in the director's evaluation of the agency
department
and
the formulation of recommendations under section 187.05 of the
Revised Code;
(2)
Terms designating records created or received by JobsOhio that shall
be made available to the public under the same conditions as are
public records under section 149.43 of the Revised Code. Documents
designated to be made available to the public pursuant to the
contract shall be kept on file with the agencydepartment.
Among records to be designated under this division shall be the following:
(a) The corporation's federal income tax returns;
(b)
The report of expenditures described in division (B)(3) of section
187.03 of the Revised Code. The records shall be filed with the
agency
department
at
such times and frequency as agreed to by the corporation and the
agencydepartment,
which shall not be less frequently than quarterly.
(c) The annual total compensation paid to each officer and employee of the corporation;
(d) A copy of the report for each financial audit of the corporation and of each supplemental compliance and control review of the corporation performed by a firm of independent certified public accountants pursuant to division (J) of section 187.01 of the Revised Code.
(e) Records of any fully executed incentive proposals, to be filed annually;
(f)
Records pertaining to the monitoring of commitments made by incentive
recipients, to be filed annually;
(g)
A copy of the minutes of all public meetings described in division
(C) of section 187.03 of the Revised Code not otherwise closed to the
public.
(3) The following statement acknowledging that JobsOhio is not acting as an agent of the state:
"JobsOhio shall have no power or authority to bind the state or to assume or create an obligation or responsibility, expressed or implied, on behalf of the state or in its name, nor shall JobsOhio represent to any person that it has any such power or authority, except as expressly provided in this contract."
(C)(1)
Records created by JobsOhio are not
public
records for the purposes of Chapter 149. of the Revised Code,
regardless of who may have custody of the records, unless the record
is designated to be available to the public by the contract under
division (B)(2) of this section.
(2)
Records
received by JobsOhio from any person or entity that is not subject to
section 149.43 of the Revised Code are not public records for
purposes of Chapter 149. of the Revised Code, regardless of who may
have custody of the records, unless the record is designated to be
available to the public by the contract under division (B)(2) of this
section.
(3)
Records
received by JobsOhio from a public office as defined in section
149.011 of the Revised Code that are not public records under section
149.43 of the Revised Code when in the custody of the public office
are not public records for the purposes of section 149.43 of the
Revised Code regardless of who has custody of the records.
(4)(3)
Division (B) of section 4701.19 of the Revised Code applies to any
work papers of the firm of independent certified public accountants
engaged to perform the annual financial audit and the supplemental
compliance and control review described in division (J) of section
187.01 of the Revised Code, and to the financial audit report and any
report of the supplemental compliance and control review, unless the
record is designated to be available to the public by the contract
under division (B)(2) of this section.
(D) Any contract executed under authority of this section shall not negate, impair, or otherwise adversely affect the obligation of this state to pay debt charges on securities executed by the director or issued by the treasurer of state, Ohio public facilities commission, or any other issuing authority under Chapter 122., 151., 165., or 166. of the Revised Code to fund economic development programs of the state, or to abide by any pledge or covenant relating to the payment of those debt charges made in any related proceedings. As used in this division, "debt charges," "proceedings," and "securities" have the same meanings as in section 133.01 of the Revised Code.
(E)
Nothing in this section, other than the requirement of controlling
board approval, shall prohibit the agency
department
from
contracting with JobsOhio to perform any of the following functions:
(1) Promoting and advocating for the state;
(2)
Making recommendations to the agencydepartment;
(3)
Performing research for the agencydepartment;
(4)
Establishing and managing programs or offices on behalf of the
agencydepartment,
by contract;
(5) Negotiating on behalf of the state.
(F)
Nothing in this section, other than the requirement of controlling
board approval, shall prohibit the agency
department
from
compensating JobsOhio from funds currently appropriated to the agency
department
to
perform the functions described in division (E) of this section.
Section 2. That existing sections 117.46, 121.01, 121.22, 149.011, 149.43, 187.01, 187.03, and 187.04 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.