OHIO LEGISLATIVE SERVICE COMMISSION
Office of Research Legislative Budget
www.lsc.ohio.gov and Drafting Office
H.B. 133 Final Analysis
134th General Assembly
Click here for H.B. 133’s Fiscal Note
Version: As Passed by the General Assembly
Primary Sponsor: Rep. Hillyer
Effective date: Emergency: amendment of R.C. 2305.117 (regarding legal malpractice claims)
effective June 2, 2022; all other provisions effective September 1, 2021
Effective Date:
Yosef Schiff, Attorney
SUMMARY
Commercial credit reports
 Requires a commercial credit reporting agency to provide a credit report to a business
that is the subject of the report, when requested by a representative, at no greater cost
than what is charged to third parties.
 Establishes a procedure through which such a business may dispute a statement on the
report.
Debt collection – written notice to debtor
 Modifies an existing requirement that a person collecting on certain debts secured by
residential real property send a written notice to the debtor.
Residential Mortgage Lending Act (RMLA)
 Specifies that only a mortgage lender, broker, servicer (collectively, registrant), or
originator making more than five residential mortgage loans annually is subject to the
RMLA.
 Clarifies and revises several exemptions to the mortgage loan originator license
requirements.
 Repeals the temporary mortgage loan originator license.
 Eliminates the requirement that a mortgage lender, servicer, or broker maintain an
office location in Ohio and instead requires the office to be located in any U.S. state.
 Requires a mortgage lender, servicer, or broker application to include the names and
addresses of the owners, officers, or partners having control of the applicant.
June 16, 2021
Office of Research and Drafting LSC Legislative Budget Office
 Requires the registration applicant to provide the identity information for any individual
with control of the applicant.
 Authorizes the Superintendent of Financial Institutions to alter the requirements for any
registration and license under the RMLA.
 Permits an operations manager to be the operations manager for more than one
location.
 Permits the Superintendent to consider other experiences related to the business of
residential mortgage lending that the Superintendent determines is sufficient to qualify
as an operations manager to a registrant or entity that holds a valid letter of exemption.
 Removes the continuing education requirement for operations managers of entities
seeking to renew their certificate of registration.
 Establishes procedures a registrant must follow when the operations manager ceases to
be the operations manager.
 Requires a registrant to cease operations if it is without an operations manager
approved by the Superintendent for more than 180 days, unless authorized in writing by
the Superintendent.
 Eliminates the requirement that a mortgage loan originator maintain and display a copy
of a license at the office where the originator principally transacts business, if the
originator is employed by or associated with a person or entity holding a valid letter of
exemption.
 Clarifies the application of certain RMLA requirements to exempt entities.
 Requires, when the documents of a registrant or exempt entity are held out of state and
an in-person examination is necessary, the registrant or exempt entity must pay the
estimated costs of the examination.
 Prohibits registrants and exempt entities from receiving a premium on the fees charged
for services performed by a third party and from paying or receiving a referral fee or
kickback.
 Alters the minimum bond requirements for registrants, from $50,000 for all registrants
to $50,000 for mortgage lenders and mortgage brokers and $150,000 for registrants
engaging solely in mortgage servicing.
 Amends definitions and standardizes terms in the RMLA.
 Expands the authority of the Superintendent to amend definitions in the RMLA.
 Authorizes the Superintendent to alter the requirements for registration and licensure
under the RMLA.
P a g e |2 H.B. 133
As Passed by the General Assembly
Office of Research and Drafting LSC Legislative Budget Office
General Loan Law
 Permits the Superintendent to require applicants or registrants under the General Loan
Law to use the National Multistate Licensing System for registration and compliance of
the General Loan Law.
Consumer Installment Loan Act
 Revises the conditions by which a transaction between a Consumer Installment Loan Act
(CILA) licensee and a borrower is considered to not be a condition of the consumer
installment loan.
Personal checking account information
 Eliminates requirements that (1) a financial institution require a person opening a
personal checking account to provide the financial institution specified identifying
information and (2) a person that issues or prints a check, print on the check the date on
which the checking account was opened.
Credit services organization contracts
 Replaces the 60-day limit on the performance of certain credit service organization
contracts with a 12-month limit if certain criteria are met.
Business linked deposits
 Changes specific interest rate requirements for loans made to small businesses by credit
unions from specific percentage rates to a more general standard of being below market
rates.
Acquisition and charter of Ohio banks
 Expands the types of financial entities authorized to charter or acquire an Ohio bank,
from only banks and bank holding companies to banks, bank holding companies, federal
savings associations, and savings and loan holding companies.
Legal malpractice claims relating to opinions of title
 Establishes that the statute of limitations for legal malpractice claims relating to an
opinion of title issued prior to June 16, 2021, is one year after the cause of action
accrued without regard to when the alleged basis of the claim occurred.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Commercial credit reports .............................................................................................................. 4
Provide copy to subject of report ............................................................................................... 4
Disputed information .................................................................................................................. 5
Civil action ................................................................................................................................... 6
Debt collection – written notice to debtor ..................................................................................... 6
Ohio Residential Mortgage Lending Act ......................................................................................... 7
P a g e |3 H.B. 133
As Passed by the General Assembly
Office of Research and Drafting LSC Legislative Budget Office
Application of RMLA .................................................................................................................... 7
Minimum number of loans ..................................................................................................... 7
Bona fide nonprofit organizations and employees ................................................................ 7
Employees performing clerical tasks ...................................................................................... 8
Manufactured homes ............................................................................................................. 9
Repeal of temporary loan originator license .............................................................................. 9
Office location ........................................................................................................................... 10
Registration and licensure ......................................................................................................... 10
Operations manager.................................................................................................................. 10
Registration application ............................................................................................................ 11
License display ........................................................................................................................... 11
Exempt entities.......................................................................................................................... 11
Obfuscation of ownership .................................................................................................... 11
Interest ................................................................................................................................. 11
Superintendent’s enforcement authority ............................................................................ 12
Cost of out-of-state records examination ................................................................................. 12
Fees and kickbacks .................................................................................................................... 12
Surety bond ............................................................................................................................... 12
Definitions and terminology...................................................................................................... 12
General Loan Law.......................................................................................................................... 13
Consumer Installment Loan Act .................................................................................................... 13
Personal checking account information ....................................................................................... 14
Credit services organization contracts.......................................................................................... 14
Business linked deposits ............................................................................................................... 15
Acquisition and charter of Ohio banks ......................................................................................... 16
Legal malpractice claims relating to opinions of title ................................................................... 17
DETAILED ANALYSIS
Commercial credit reports
Provide copy to subject of report
The act addresses “commercial credit reports” by requiring a commercial credit
reporting agency to provide a credit report to a business, when requested, at a cost that is not
more than what is charged to third parties. And the act establishes procedures for a business to
dispute a statement on the report that the business believes is inaccurate. “Commercial credit
reports” are reports provided by a commercial credit reporting agency to a business for a
legitimate business purpose, relating to the financial status or payment habits of a business.
P a g e |4 H.B. 133
As Passed by the General Assembly
Office of Research and Drafting LSC Legislative Budget Office
Under federal law, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) provides a method in which consumers
can dispute errors on their consumer credit reports, however, commercial credit reports are
not covered under these provisions of the FCRA.1
A “commercial credit reporting agency” is a person or entity that regularly engages in
the practice of compiling and maintaining commercial credit reports on a business operating in
Ohio for the purpose of providing commercial credit reports and, for monetary fees, dues, or on
a cooperative nonprofit basis, provides commercial credit reports on a business operating in
Ohio to third parties. The term includes only persons and entities that maintain a database of
commercial credit reports from which new commercial credit reports are produced.2
The act excludes the following from the requirements that apply to commercial credit
reports:
1. A report prepared for commercial insurance underwriting, claims, or auditing purposes;
2. A report containing information related to transactions or experiences between the
business that is the subject of the report and the person making the report;
3. An authorization or approval of a specific extension of credit directly or indirectly by the
issuer of a credit card or similar device;
4. Any report in which a person that has been requested by a third party to make a specific
extension of credit directly or indirectly to the subject of the report conveys its decision
with respect to that request.3
Under the act, a commercial credit reporting agency – if requested by a business that is
the subject of the commercial credit report – must provide the report to the business at no
greater cost than what is charged to third parties. The report must be in the format routinely
made available to third parties, and the credit reporting agency is allowed to protect the
identity of the sources of information in the report.4
Disputed information
If the business that is the subject of the report believes the report contains an
inaccurate statement of fact, it may – within 30 days after receipt of the report – file with the
agency a written summary identifying each inaccurate statement of fact and indicating the
1R.C. 1319.17(A)(2), (B), and (C); 15 United States Code (U.S.C.) 1681 et seq.; and
“40 years of Experience with the Fair Credit Reporting Act, An FTC Report with
Summary of Interpretations,” Federal Trade Commission, July 2011,
https://www.ftc.gov/sites/default/files/documents/reports/40-years-experience-fair-credit-reporting-
act-ftc-staff-report-summary-interpretations/110720fcrareport.pdf, page 21.
2 R.C. 1319.17(A)(3).
3 R.C. 1319.17(A)(2) to (4).
4 R.C. 1319.17(B).
P a g e |5 H.B. 133
As Passed by the General Assembly
Office of Research and Drafting LSC Legislative Budget Office
nature of its disagreement with the statement. The agency has 30 days from receipt of the
summary to do either of the following at no cost to the business:
1. Delete the disputed statement of fact from the report and, thereafter, block any repeat
reporting of that disputed statement unless its accuracy has been verified;
2. Include in the report a notice of the business’s assertion that the statement of fact is
inaccurate.5
Civil action
The act explicitly states that any violation of the act’s provisions regarding commercial
credit reports does not provide a private right of action, including a class action. Therefore, it is
unclear how these provisions are to be enforced.6
Debt collection – written notice to debtor
The act makes a few changes to a law related to debt collecting. Prior law required a
person collecting a defaulted debt secured by a second mortgage or a junior lien on the
debtor’s residential real property to send a written notice to the debtor with specified
information relating to the loan and the debtor’s right to legal representation and possible
qualification for bankruptcy.
First, the act changes when the notice must be sent. Instead of requiring the notice to
be sent before a collection is attempted, the act requires the notice to be sent to the debtor
30 days prior to filing a foreclosure action.
Second, the act revises the type of debt that will trigger the notice requirement. Under
the act, the debt must be secured by a mortgage lien on the property that is not in the first
mortgage position and the debt has either been accelerated or is in default in accordance with
the terms set forth in the promissory note.
In addition, the act expressly permits the notice to be included on or accompany any
other communication with the debtor.
Lastly, the act clarifies how the owner of the debt can remedy an unintentional failure
to comply with the notice requirement. Under continuing law, unchanged by the act, if the
owner of the debt fails to comply with the notice requirement,