OHIO LEGISLATIVE SERVICE COMMISSION
Office of Research Legislative Budget
www.lsc.ohio.gov and Drafting Office
H.B. 497 Bill Analysis
135th General Assembly
Click here for H.B. 497’s Fiscal Note
Version: As Passed by the House
Primary Sponsors: Reps. Stewart and Klopfenstein
Effective date:
Daniel DeSantis, Research Analyst, and other LSC staff
SUMMARY
Allows counties to designate additional public depositories of active moneys during the
four-year designation period.
Exempts county improvement projects for minor repairs from the requirement to obtain
detailed plans, bills, specifications, and cost estimates from an architect or engineer.
Modifies the approval process for county courthouse and jail projects with an estimated
cost of $25,000 or less.
Increases, from $1,000 to $20,000, the threshold at which a county prosecutor is
required to approve contracts related to county improvements.
Requires plans and specifications related to county improvements, county homes, and
county children’s homes to be kept on file with the county commissioners instead of the
county auditor.
Requires plans and specifications related to county bridges to be kept by the county
engineer instead of the county auditor.
Simplifies the process a county must follow to donate unneeded property.
Increases threshold amounts, from $50,000 to $75,000, related to the county notice
requirement for purchases, leases, and construction contracts, and related to guaranty
and bonding requirements for county contracts.
Prohibits a contract entered into by a county for the procurement of goods or services
from including certain terms and conditions.
Allows a county prosecutor to provide legal services to a transportation improvement
district.
Specifies that a county coroner performing an autopsy at the request of another
coroner does not constitute the private practice of medicine for purposes of
determining the coroner’s compensation.
July 3, 2024
Office of Research and Drafting LSC Legislative Budget Office
Sets the county coroner’s deposition fee and testimonial fee at $350 per hour.
Specifies that any court cost, fine, restitution, or other monetary penalty imposed at the
time of a transfer to the juvenile court of the child’s residence is not a final, appealable
order.
DETAILED ANALYSIS
County depository designation
Under continuing law, each board of county commissioners must meet every four years
to designate its public depositories of active moneys, with the designation lasting four years.
The bill allows the county, during that time, to designate additional public depositories for the
remainder of that four-year period. The board may do this only once during the four-year
period, and the additional designation must take effect at least 180 days before the current
four-year period expires.1
County improvements
Current law requires a county to obtain detailed plans, bills, specifications, and cost
estimates from an architect or engineer before constructing, adding to, or altering a public
building or the substructure for a bridge. The bill creates an exception − under which the
requirement will not apply for “minor repairs,” which the bill defines as “the reconstruction or
renewal of any part of an existing building for the purpose of its maintenance when the work
has limited impact on access, safety, or health.” The bill specifically excludes the following from
the definition of “minor repair:”
The cutting away of any wall, partition, or portions of walls;
The removal or cutting of any structural beam or load bearing support;
The removal or change of any required element of accessibility, means of egress, or
rearrangement of parts of a structure affecting the egress requirements;
The addition to, alteration of, replacement of, or relocation of any standpipe, water
supply, sewer, drainage, drain leader, gas, soil, waste, vent or similar piping, electric
wiring, mechanical work, or other work affecting public health or general safety.2
When a project involves a county courthouse or jail, current law requires the plans, bills,
specifications, and cost estimates to be approved by a majority of the following: the board of
county commissioners (each has one vote3), the sheriff, the probate judge, the clerk of the
court of common pleas, and an individual appointed by the judge of the court of common pleas.
Under the bill, the board of county commissioners can approve a project that has a total
1 R.C. 135.33.
2 R.C. 153.31. See also R.C. 153.68 and 153.69, not in the bill.
3 1973 Ohio Op.Att’y.Gen. No. 059 (1973).
P a g e |2 H.B. 497
As Passed by the House
Office of Research and Drafting LSC Legislative Budget Office
estimated cost of $25,000 or less, while projects exceeding $25,000 must be approved by a
majority of the others listed above − the sheriff, the probate judge, the clerk of the court of
common pleas, and an individual appointed by the judge of the court of common pleas.4
The bill increases, from $1,000 to $20,000, the threshold related to the requirement
that the county prosecutor approve contracts for county improvements.5
Finally, the bill requires plans and specifications related to county improvements, county
homes, county children’s homes, and county courthouses and jails to be kept on file with the
county commissioners, instead of the county auditor as under current law.6 And, plans and
specifications related to county bridges must be kept by the county engineer instead of the
county auditor.7
County donations
The bill modifies the method a county follows to donate unneeded property, including
vehicles, road machinery, equipment, tools, and supplies. Continuing law provides that any
property exceeding $2,500 in value must be sold by public auction or sealed bid to the highest
bidder. Property valued at or below $2,500 may either be sold directly (without a public
process) or donated to an eligible nonprofit. First, the bill increases the threshold to $5,000.
Second, the bill modifies the process for donating property valued at or below that threshold to
a nonprofit organization by eliminating all previous requirements, except two: (1) the nonprofit
organization still must be a 501(a) or 501(c)(3) organization located in Ohio, and (2) the
nonprofit must submit evidence of its eligibility. The bill retains the option to directly sell the
property.8
County purchases
In light of a recent change to the competitive bidding threshold applicable to county
purchases,9 the bill likewise increases threshold amounts, from $50,000 to $75,000, related to
the county notice requirement for purchases, leases, and construction contracts, and related to
guaranty and bonding requirements for county contracts.10
County contract terms and conditions
The bill prohibits a contract entered into by the county for the procurement of goods or
services from including any of the following, unless otherwise required or permitted by state or
federal law:
4 R.C. 153.36.
5 R.C. 153.44.
6 R.C. 153.35, 153.36, 153.37, and 153.39.
7 R.C. 153.38.
8 R.C. 307.12.
9 R.C. 307.86, not in the bill.
10 R.C. 307.87 and 307.88.
P a g e |3 H.B. 497
As Passed by the House
Office of Research and Drafting LSC Legislative Budget Office
A provision that requires the county to indemnify or hold harmless another person;
A provision by which the county agrees to binding arbitration or any other binding extra-
judicial dispute resolution process;
A provision that names a venue for any action or dispute against the county other than a
court of proper jurisdiction in the county;
A provision that requires the county to agree to limit the liability for any direct loss to
the county for bodily injury, death, or damage to property of the county caused by the
negligence, intentional or willful misconduct, fraudulent act, recklessness, or other
tortious conduct of a person or a person’s employees or agents, or a provision that
otherwise imposes an indemnification obligation on the county;
A provision that requires the county to be bound by a term or condition that is unknown
to the county at the time of signing a contract, that is not specifically negotiated with
the county, that may be unilaterally changed by the other party, or that is electronically
accepted by a county employee;
A provision that provides for a person other than the prosecuting attorney, or an
attorney otherwise employed by the county, to serve as legal counsel for the county;
A provision that is inconsistent with the county’s obligations under Ohio’s Public
Records Act;11
A provision that limits the county’s ability to recover the cost for a replacement
contractor.
If a contract contains one of these terms or conditions, the term or condition is void ab
initio (invalid from the outset), and the contract otherwise is enforceable as if it did not contain
the invalid term or condition. The bill specifies that a contract containing an invalid term or
condition is governed by and must be construed in accordance with Ohio law notwithstanding
any term or condition to the contrary in the contract. Finally, this provision of the bill does not
apply to a contract in effect before the provision’s effective date, or to the renewal or extension
of a contract in effect before that date.12
County prosecuting attorney
The bill allows a county prosecutor, in the prosecutor’s discretion and with the approval
of the board of county commissioners, to provide legal services to a transportation
improvement district via a contract that may provide for the payment of a fee to the prosecutor
for legal services agreed to under the contract. All money received under the contract must be
11 R.C. 149.43, not in the bill.
12 R.C. 307.901.
P a g e |4 H.B. 497
As Passed by the House
Office of Research and Drafting LSC Legislative Budget Office
deposited into the prosecutor’s legal services fund. Moneys in that fund may be appropriated
only to the county prosecutor for providing legal services under the contract with the district.13
County coroner
Continuing law sets forth the annual compensation of county coroners based on two
factors: the county’s population and whether a coroner engages in the private practice of
medicine in addition to serving as coroner. The bill specifies that a coroner performing an
autopsy at the request of another coroner does not constitute the private practice of medicine
for purposes of determining the coroner’s compensation.14
Finally, coroners and deputy coroners currently receive a fee for giving testimony at a
deposition (“deposition fee”) or a trial or hearing (“testimonial fee”), based on an hourly rate.
The bill instead sets both fees at a blanket rate of $350 per hour.15
Juvenile court transfer
The bill specifies that any court cost, fine, restitution, or other monetary penalty imposed at
the time of a transfer to the juvenile court of the child’s residence is not a final, appealable order.16
HISTORY
Action Date
Introduced 04-22-24
Reported, H. State & Local Gov’t 06-25-24
Passed House (96-0) 06-26-24
ANHB0497PH-135/sb
13 R.C. 309.09 and 5540.03.
14 R.C. 325.15.
15 R.C. 2335.061.
16 R.C. 2151.271.
P a g e |5 H.B. 497
As Passed by the House
Statutes affected: As Introduced: 135.33, 153.31, 153.35, 153.36, 153.37, 153.38, 153.39, 153.44, 307.12, 309.09, 325.15, 2335.061, 5540.03
As Reported By House Committee: 135.33, 153.31, 153.35, 153.36, 153.37, 153.38, 153.39, 153.44, 307.12, 307.87, 307.88, 309.09, 325.15, 2151.271, 2335.061, 5540.03
As Passed By House: 135.33, 153.31, 153.35, 153.36, 153.37, 153.38, 153.39, 153.44, 307.12, 307.87, 307.88, 309.09, 325.15, 2151.271, 2335.061, 5540.03