OHIO LEGISLATIVE SERVICE COMMISSION
Office of Research Legislative Budget
www.lsc.ohio.gov and Drafting Office
H.B. 50 Bill Analysis
135th General Assembly
Click here for H.B. 50’s Fiscal Note
Version: As Reported by Senate Community Revitalization
Primary Sponsors: Reps. Humphrey and Seitz
Effective date:
Shalanda Plowden, Research Analyst
SUMMARY
Certificate of qualification for housing (CQH)
Obtaining a CQH
Petition
 Allows an individual who is subject to collateral sanctions for housing as a result of being
convicted of or pleading guilty to an offense and who is not in a category described in
the preceding dot point to file a petition for a CQH.
Timing
 For a felony, allows an individual to file a petition for a CQH at any time after the
expiration of one year from the individual’s release from incarceration or, if the
individual was not incarcerated, at any time after the expiration of one year from the
individual’s final release and all other sanctions imposed.
 For a misdemeanor, allows an individual to file a petition for a CQH at any time after the
expiration of six months from the individual’s release from incarceration and all periods
of supervision, or if the individual was not incarcerated, at any time after the expiration
of six months from the individual’s final release and all other sanctions imposed.
Application fee
 Requires that a petition for a CQH be accompanied by a $50 filing fee, unless it is waived
or partially waived by the court of common pleas.
 This analysis was prepared before the report of the Senate Community Revitalization Committee
appeared in the Senate Journal. Note that the legislative history may be incomplete.
May 8, 2024
Office of Research and Drafting LSC Legislative Budget Office
Notices
 Requires that a court that receives a petition for a CQH provide notice to other courts in
which the individual was convicted or pleaded guilty to an offense and to the county’s
prosecuting attorney.
Review of evidence
 Requires the court to review the petition for CQH and all other evidence.
Issuance of CQH
 Allows the court to issue a CQH if the court finds all of the following by a preponderance
of the evidence:
 Granting the petition will materially assist the individual in obtaining housing;
 The individual has a substantial need for the requested relief in order to live a law
abiding life;
 Granting the petition would not pose an unreasonable risk to the safety of the public
or any individual.
Rebuttable presumption
 The bill provides that an individual is rebuttably presumed to be eligible for a CQH if
certain requirements are met.
Denial of petition
 Requires that a petition that meets the requirements for the rebuttable presumption
only be denied if the court rebuts the presumption and finds that the applicant has not
been rehabilitated.
 Requires that if the court denies a petition for a CQH, the court must provide written
notice to the individual of the court’s denial.
Appeal of CQH
 Specifies that if the court denies a petition for a CQH, the individual may appeal the
decision to the court of appeals only if the individual alleges that the denial was an
abuse of discretion.
Revocation of CQH
 Requires that a CQH be revoked if the individual to whom the CQH was issued is
convicted of or pleads guilty to a felony or a misdemeanor offense of violence
committed subsequent to the issuance of the CQH.
Automatic bar to collateral sanctions
 Provides that the issuance of a CQH lifts the automatic bar of a collateral sanction and
the decision-maker must consider on a case-by-case basis whether to provide or deny
housing.
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As Reported by Senate Community Revitalization
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Sex Offender Registration and Notification Law
 Specifies that a CQH does not create relief from requirements imposed by and rules
adopted under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Law.
Tort action
 Provides that in a tort action, a CQH issued to an individual may be introduced as
evidence of a decision-maker’s due care in leasing to the individual to whom the CQH
was issued if the decision-maker knew of the certificate at the time of the alleged
negligence.
 Specifies that in a tort action against a decision-maker for negligent leasing, a CQH
issued to an individual provides immunity to the decision-maker as to the claim if the
decision-maker knew of the certificate at the time of the alleged negligence.
 Provides that if a lessee subsequently demonstrates dangerousness or is convicted of a
felony or a misdemeanor offense of violence, and the decision-maker retains the
individual as a lessee, the decision-maker may be held liable in a tort action based on
the retention of the individual.
Liability for DRC or court
 Provides that a court’s issuance, or failure to issue, or the Department of Rehabilitation
and Correction’s (DRC) or the Adult Parole Authority’s (APA) issuance, or failure to issue
a CQH, to an individual does not give rise to claim of damages against DRC or the court.
PCS Division rules
 Requires the PCS Division to adopt rules for the implementation and administration of
the bill.
Private right of action
 Specifies that its provisions do not create or provide a private right of action.
Legal aid society funds
 Prohibits financial assistance received by legal aid societies from being used for the
provision of legal services in any criminal case or proceeding or in the provision of legal
assistance in any fee generating case.
Tenant education, training, and readiness program
 Provides that if DRC or the adult parole authority issues a certificate of achievement and
employability to a prisoner under the application for certificate of achievement and
employability statute, the department or authority is required to also issue a CQH to the
prisoner if the prisoner satisfactorily completes a tenant education, training, and
readiness program approved by rule by DRC.
 Provides that a CQH issued under the tenant education, training, and readiness program
statute has the same effect as a CQH issued under the CQH statute.
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As Reported by Senate Community Revitalization
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Home Construction Service Suppliers Act
 Makes contracts that are over $25,000 for repairs, improvements, remodels, or
renovations of existing structures subject to the Home Construction Service Suppliers
Act.
Residential development land exemption procedure
 Modifies the application procedure for the residential development property tax
exemption by requiring property owners to apply for the exemption with the county
auditor, rather than the Tax Commissioner.
 Prohibits a school district from receiving notice of an application for such an exemption
and prohibits a school district or other third party from challenging such an exemption.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Certificate of qualification for housing (CQH) ................................................................................ 5
Obtaining a CQH .......................................................................................................................... 5
Petition ................................................................................................................................... 5
Timing for filing ....................................................................................................................... 6
Application fee........................................................................................................................ 6
Notices .................................................................................................................................... 7
Review of evidence................................................................................................................. 7
Issuance of CQH ...................................................................................................................... 7
Rebuttable presumption ........................................................................................................ 8
Denial of petition .................................................................................................................... 8
Appeal of CQH ............................................................................................................................. 9
Revocation of CQH ...................................................................................................................... 9
Automatic bar to collateral sanctions ......................................................................................... 9
Sex Offender Registration and Notification Law ......................................................................... 9
Tort action ................................................................................................................................... 9
Liability for DRC ......................................................................................................................... 10
PCS Division rules ...................................................................................................................... 10
Private right of action ................................................................................................................ 10
Definitions ................................................................................................................................. 11
Legal aid society funds .................................................................................................................. 11
Home Construction Service Suppliers Act .................................................................................... 11
Residential development land exemption procedure .................................................................. 12
Property tax exemption procedure ........................................................................................... 12
Application ................................................................................................................................ 13
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As Reported by Senate Community Revitalization
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DETAILED ANALYSIS
Certificate of qualification for housing (CQH)
Obtaining a CQH
Petition
The bill provides a mechanism by which an individual may file a petition for a CQH.
This mechanism allows an individual who is subject to one or more collateral sanctions
for housing as a result of being convicted of or pleading guilty to an offense and who has not
already received a CQH may file for a CQH by doing either of the following:1
 In the case of an individual who resides in Ohio, filing a petition with the court of
common pleas of the county in which the person resides;
 In the case of an individual who resides outside of Ohio, filing a petition with the court
of common pleas of any county in which any conviction or plea of guilty from which the
individual seeks relief was entered.
The bill requires that a petition for a CQH be made on a copy of a form prescribed by the
PCS Division and include all of the following:2
 The individual’s name, date of birth, and Social Security number;
 All aliases of the individual and all Social Security numbers associated with those aliases;
 The individual’s current residential address, including the length of the time that the
individual has resided in the current residence, expressed in years and months, and the
city, county, state, and zip code of each residence;
 A history of the individual’s residential address or addresses for the past ten years,
including the length of time that the individual has resided at the address, expressed in
years and months, and the city, county, state, and zip code of the residence;
 A general statement as to why the individual has filed the petition and how the CQH
would assist the individual;
 A summary of the individual’s criminal history, except for information contained in any
record that has been sealed, with respect to each offense that is a disqualification from
housing, including years of each conviction or plea of guilty for each of those offenses;
 A summary of the individual’s employment history, specifying the name of, and dates of
employment with, each employer;
 Verifiable references and endorsements;
1 R.C. 2953.26(B)(1).
2 R.C. 2953.26(B)(2), (E), and (I).
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 The name of one or more immediate family members of the individual, or other
person’s with whom the individual has a close relationship, who support the individual’s
reentry plan;
 A summary of the reason the individual believes the CQH should be granted;
 Any other information required by rule by the Department of Rehabilitation and
Correction (DRC).
The bill specifies that the submission of an incomplete petition by an individual must not
be grounds for the court to deny the petition.3
Timing for filing
The bill generally allows an individual to file a petition at any time after the expiration of
whichever of the following is applicable:4
 If the offense that resulted in the collateral sanction for housing from which the
individual seeks relief is a felony, at any time after the expiration of one year from the
date of release of the individual from any period of incarceration in a state or local
correctional facility that was imposed for that offense or, if the individual was not
incarcerated for the offense, at any time after the expiration of one year from the date
of the individual’s final release from all other sanctions imposed for that offense;
 If the offense resulted in the collateral sanction for housing from which the individual
seeks relief is a misdemeanor, at any time after the expiration of six months from the
date of release of the individual from any period of incarceration in a local correctional
facility that was imposed for that offense and all periods of supervision imposed after
release from the period of incarceration or, if the individual was not incarcerated for
that offense, at any time after the expiration of six months from the date of the final
release of the individual from all sanctions imposed for that offense including any period
of supervision.
Application fee
The bill generally requires that a petition for a CQH must be accompanied by an
application fee of $50. The court must pay $30 of the application fee into the state treasury and
$20 of the application fee into the county general revenue fund. However, a court of common
pleas or the designee of the Deputy Director of the PCS Division who receives the petition may
waive all or part of the $50 application fee for an applicant who is indigent. If the application
fee is partially waived, the first $20 of the fee that is collected must be paid into the county
general revenue fund. Any partial fee collected in excess of $20 must be paid into the state
treasury.5
3 R.C. 2953.26(C)(4).
4 R.C. 2953.26(B)(3).
5 R.C. 2953.26(B)(2), (4), and (5).
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As Reported by Senate Community Revitalization
Office of Research and Drafting LSC Legislative Budget Office
Notices
The bill requires a court of common pleas that receives a petition for a CQH attempt to
determine all other courts in Ohio in which the individual