Five potential legal changes included in the Ohio budget passed by the House

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – The Ohio House passed an over 5,000-page biennial budget bill this month that includes not only $61 billion in state spending but also law changes on topics ranging from abortion to adult websites and driver's ed. 

On April 9, after two months of testimony and negotiations, lawmakers in the House passed a proposed state budget for the next two years by a 60-39 vote. The legislation will now be reviewed by state senators, who will have the opportunity to make changes before it heads to Gov. Mike DeWine’s desk for final approval. 

The version of the budget passed by the House included multiple controversial provisions, many of which do not make spending appropriations but rather create or update state laws. Five of those provisions can be found below.  

Age verification for adult websites

The budget bill would require pornography websites or any site that hosts content that is “obscene or harmful to juveniles” to verify visitors are over 18 years old through photo identification or other documentation. 

Specifically, users would confirm their age through a copy of a government-issued photo ID or another personal document, such as proof of a mortgage or employment. Companies would be required to “immediately” delete such documents after the age verification is complete. 

However, websites would be able to store the documents if an individual has an account. If a resident has a profile, they would have to go through age verification every two years after its creation. If a user does not renew their account within two years, all age-verifying documents would be deleted. 

Adult websites would be responsible for using a system to monitor the location of their visitors to ensure Ohioans’ ages are verified. If an adult website fails to verify a user's age and a minor gains access to its content, the Ohio attorney general may bring a civil lawsuit against the company. No other person or entity would be permitted to file a civil action, the provision says. 

Lawmakers introduced similar bills pushing for this change in both this General Assembly and the past legislative session. 

Driver’s license requirements

The House-passed version of the state budget would require all individuals under 21 years old to complete driver’s education to obtain their license, while the current law only requires the training for those under 18. 

Ohio drivers under 18 who are obtaining their license for the first time must have a minimum of 24 hours of classroom instruction, eight hours of behind-the-wheel instruction, and 50 hours of in-car supervised practice before they can take the road test. Currently, legal adults do not need to complete these requirements to get a license; they just need to pass the road test. 

LGBTQ+ issues

The budget bill would codify that the state recognizes only two sexes, male and female, and that these sexes are “not changeable and are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality.”  

The bill defines gender identity as an individual’s “internal and subjective” sense of self that is “disconnected from biological reality” and cannot be recognized as a replacement for sex. It further specifies that the state recognizes women as individuals who belong, at conception, to the sex that produces egg cells, while men belong to the sex that produces sperm cells.

The bill would also require public libraries to place material “related to sexual orientation or gender identity or expression” in a portion of the public library that is not primarily open to the view of minors. 

Furthermore, it would prohibit state agencies from displaying any flag, like a pride flag or other political symbols. Only the United States, Ohio and POW/MIA (Prisoners of War/Missing in Action) flags would be permitted at government buildings. 

Eliminating elections for county coroners

If the budget bill were to pass as is, Ohioans would no longer see county coroners on the ballot, as boards of commissioners would begin appointing the position instead.

Coroners investigate and certify the causes of death for people who die within their jurisdiction, primarily under unnatural or suspicious circumstances. The job is elected in almost all of the state’s counties. Summit and Cuyahoga counties alternatively have appointed medical examiners, who typically have more extensive forensic pathology training.

Numerous coroners have come out against the provision, expressing concern that appointments could invite political influence into death investigations.

“We feel the best system for the state of Ohio and for all Ohioans is to elect the coroner to preserve the impartiality, the integrity and the independence of death investigation in the state,” David Corey, executive director of the Ohio State Coroners Association, recently told NBC4. “By being appointed corner, you’re beholden to the people or the person that appoints you, versus trying to just find out the truth and serving the county electorate.”

The County Commissioners Association of Ohio has long lobbied for the change, claiming many counties have problems recruiting candidates for the role. The group also believes the change would allow for commissioners to “share, combine or reorganize” the duties of the coroner across a larger geographic area for a more efficient system. 

Changes to abortion reporting 

Ohio law requires certain information about abortions performed in the state to be reported to the Department of Health through a confidential form given to patients. The document includes medical history and demographic information. The data from the forms is summarized into annual reports that are publicly released, detailing abortion statistics in the state. Patients' names are not included. 

The budget bill would require the department to develop a public electronic dashboard and publish abortion data from these forms every month. The continuously updating dashboard would include similar data as the annual reports, including the total number of abortions, patients’ ages, if they are Ohio or out-of-state residents, and marital status. The monthly dashboard would also add a new statistic, listing the number of abortions performed on minors by each facility. This would not replace the annual report but supplement it.

The Senate will send a completed version of the bill to DeWine’s desk by June 30. As with all spending bills, DeWine can reject certain provisions within the legislation.