OHIO LEGISLATIVE SERVICE COMMISSION
Office of Research Legislative Budget
www.lsc.ohio.gov and Drafting Office
H.B. 184* Bill Analysis
135th General Assembly
Click here for H.B. 184’s Fiscal Note
Version: As Reported by Senate Government Oversight
Primary Sponsors: Reps. Brennan and Bird
Effective date:
Joe McDaniels, Division Chief
SUMMARY
▪ Applies the Ohio Charitable Solicitation Law to collection receptacles used for the
collection of donations of clothing, books, and certain personal items, household items,
or other goods, and those who operate them for compensation.
▪ Specifies that the Charitable Solicitation Law does not apply to containers used to collect
monetary donations or donations of food, consumable household supplies, or personal
health products, or persons who operate them.
▪ Requires the operator of a collection receptacle to display a conspicuous and permanent
sign or label on every side of the collection receptacle providing identifying and contact
information for the charitable organization and professional solicitor.
▪ Limits all charitable solicitations that are subject to the Ohio Charitable Solicitation Law
to four years.
▪ Permits the contract between a professional solicitor and a charitable organization to
express the benefit the charitable organization will receive based on an amount of dollars
per pound of goods collected rather than as a percentage of gross revenue.
▪ Requires a professional solicitor to maintain audio recordings of each phone solicitation
the solicitor makes for up to three years after the completion of the solicitation campaign.
▪ Expressly prohibits a charitable solicitation or charitable sales promotion from violating
the federal Telemarketing Sales Rule which, among other things, prohibits initiating an
outbound telephone call that delivers a prerecorded message.
* This analysis was prepared before the report of the Senate Government Oversight Committee appeared
in the Senate Journal. Note that the legislative history may be incomplete.
December 4, 2024
Office of Research and Drafting LSC Legislative Budget Office
▪ Permits the Attorney General to examine a professional solicitor’s pitch sheets,
solicitation scripts, and recordings when investigating any alleged violation of the law.
DETAILED ANALYSIS
General overview
The Ohio Charitable Solicitation Law (R.C. Chapter 1716) provides regulation of charitable
organizations and professional solicitors. The law requires any charitable organization that
intends to solicit contributions or have contributions solicited on its behalf to file a registration
statement with the Attorney General. The law also requires each professional solicitor to register
with the Attorney General.1 The bill extends the same requirements to collection receptacles and
those who operate them for compensation, and makes other changes to the Ohio Charitable
Solicitation Law related to filing requirements with the Attorney General, limitations on the
duration of solicitations, and recordkeeping requirements.
Collection receptacles
The bill extends the Ohio Charitable Solicitation Law to collection receptacles and persons
who operate collection receptacles. “Collection receptacles” are attended or unattended
containers used to collect donations of clothing, books, or certain personal items, household
items, or other goods. They are not used to collect monetary donations or donations of food,
consumable household supplies, or personal health products to be distributed for a charitable
purpose. As defined in existing law, unchanged by the bill, “professional solicitor” means any
person who, for compensation, performs on behalf, or for the benefit of a charitable organization
any service in connection with which contributions are or will be solicited in Ohio.
Under the bill, a person operating a collection receptacle for compensation that purports,
either through language appearing on the collection receptacle itself or otherwise, to be
collecting items for the purpose of benefiting a charitable purpose or charitable organization is
considered a professional solicitor and is required to register with the Attorney General.
However, a person removing or delivering donations placed in a collection receptacle for a fixed
fee is not subject to the law if the person does not otherwise receive proceeds of, or derive any
other benefit from the sale of donations. Under existing law, unchanged by the bill, a professional
solicitor must register with the Attorney General before engaging in any solicitation. The
registration process includes filing an application and posting a bond of $25,000.2
Required sign or label on collection receptacle
The bill requires the operator of a collection receptacle to display a conspicuous and
permanent sign or label on every side of the collection receptacle with the following information:
1 R.C. 1716.02, not in the bill, and 1716.07.
2 R.C. 1716.01(D), (K), and (L) and 1716.07(A), (B), and (C).
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▪ The name, address, and telephone number of the charitable organization that will receive
the goods collected;
▪ If the collection receptacle is operated by a professional solicitor, the name, address, and
telephone number of the professional solicitor;
▪ If the collection receptacle is operated by a professional solicitor, a statement that the
contract disclosing the financial arrangement between the professional solicitor and the
charitable organization is on file with and available from the Attorney General.3
Filings with the Attorney General
Existing law requires a professional solicitor to file with the Attorney General a solicitation
notice, a copy of the contract between the solicitor and any charitable organization contracting
with the solicitor, and a sworn statement by the charitable organization on whose behalf the
professional solicitor is acting certifying the materials filed are true and correct. The bill permits
the Attorney General to publish all of that information, and requires the professional solicitor to
pay a $200 fee to the Attorney General at the time of filing.
The solicitation notice must include details about the manner in which the solicitor
intends to fundraise, the projected dates of the solicitation campaign, the location and telephone
number of the place where the campaign will be conducted, contact information for each person
responsible for directing and supervising the campaign, and other information about the
campaign. The bill requires the solicitation notice to also include the location of each collection
receptacle used in connection with the solicitation. In addition, while existing law requires the
solicitation notice to include the projected dates when the solicitation will commence and
terminate, the bill limits the duration of the solicitation to four years.
Existing law also requires that no later than 90 days after a solicitation campaign has been
completed, and on each anniversary of the commencement of a solicitation campaign lasting
more than one year, the professional solicitor must provide to the charitable organization and
file with the Attorney General a financial report of the campaign, including the gross revenue
received and an itemization of all expenses incurred. The bill adds that the report must also
include the total weight of items collected in each collection receptacle, if applicable, and the
value received for the sale of such items.4
The bill defines “solicitation campaign” for the purposes of the Ohio Charitable
Solicitation Law as a series of solicitations that are made by the same person for the same
charitable organization and that are similar in content or are based on a similar pitch or sales
approach, which series leads up to or is represented to lead up to an event or lasts or is intended
to last for a definite period of time.5
3 R.C. 1716.06.
4 R.C. 1716.07(D) and (E).
5 R.C. 1716.01(M).
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Contract between professional solicitor and charitable
organization
Existing law lays out specific requirements for the contracts between a charitable
organization and a professional solicitor. For example, the contract between the parties must be
in writing, state the obligations of both parties, and contain the percentage of gross revenue from
the solicitation campaign that the charitable organization is to receive. The percentage can be
either a fixed percentage of the gross revenue or a reasonable estimate.
The bill provides another option. Instead of requiring a percentage of gross revenue, the
bill requires the contract to contain a clear statement of the benefit the charitable organization
will receive, which may be stated as a fixed percentage of the gross revenue, a reasonable
estimate of the percentage of the gross revenue, or as any other amount such as dollars per
pound of goods collected. The bill also permits the number and value of goods collected to be
used for determining compensation of the professional solicitor or for calculating the percentage
of gross revenue the charitable organization will receive.6
Audio records
The bill adds a requirement that, during each solicitation campaign, and for not less than
three years after its completion, the professional solicitor maintain an audio record of each
telephone solicitation the professional solicitor makes.7
Telemarketing Sales Rule
The bill explicitly prohibits a charitable solicitation or charitable sales promotion to violate
the federal Telemarketing Sales Rule that prohibits initiating an outbound telephone call that
delivers a prerecorded message.8
Investigation by the Attorney General
Under existing law, the Attorney General may investigate any alleged violation of the Ohio
Charitable Solicitation Law. For this purpose, the Attorney General may examine any person or
any documentary material that is relevant to the alleged violation or false or misleading
information. The bill adds that such documentary material includes a professional solicitor’s pitch
sheets, solicitation scripts, and recordings.9
6 R.C. 1716.07(D) and 1716.08(A).
7 R.C. 1716.07(G)(1)(i).
8 R.C. 1716.14(A)(12) and 16 Code of Federal Regulations 310.4(b)(1)(v).
9 R.C. 1716.15(A)(1).
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As Reported by Senate Government Oversight
Office of Research and Drafting LSC Legislative Budget Office
HISTORY
Action Date
Introduced 05-23-23
Reported, H. State & Local Gov’t 11-15-23
Passed House (85-5) 1-10-24
Reported, S. Government Oversight --
ANHB0184RS-135/sb
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Statutes affected:
As Introduced: 1716.01, 1716.07, 1716.08, 1716.14, 1716.15
As Reported By House Committee: 1716.01, 1716.07, 1716.08, 1716.14, 1716.15
As Passed By House: 1716.01, 1716.07, 1716.08, 1716.14, 1716.15