As Introduced
135th General Assembly
Regular Session H. B. No. 524
2023-2024
Representative Skindell
Cosponsors: Representatives Russo, Grim, Somani, Brent, Jarrells, Weinstein,
Upchurch, Brennan, Brewer, Isaacsohn, Brown, Miller, A., Liston, McNally,
Sweeney, Forhan, Thomas, C., Troy, Baker, Miller, J., Robinson, Dell'Aquila,
Rogers, Humphrey, Denson, Blackshear, Mohamed, Sims, Piccolantonio, Whitted
A BILL
To amend sections 4112.01 and 4112.05 of the 1
Revised Code to enact the Ohio Fairness Act to 2
prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual 3
orientation or gender identity or expression, to 4
add mediation as an informal method that the 5
Ohio Civil Rights Commission may use, and to 6
uphold existing religious exemptions under 7
Ohio's Civil Rights Law. 8
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 4112.01 and 4112.05 of the 9
Revised Code be amended to read as follows: 10
Sec. 4112.01. (A) As used in this chapter: 11
(1) "Person" includes one or more individuals, 12
partnerships, associations, organizations, corporations, legal 13
representatives, trustees, trustees in bankruptcy, receivers, 14
and other organized groups of persons. "Person" also includes, 15
but is not limited to, any owner, lessor, assignor, builder, 16
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manager, broker, salesperson, appraiser, agent, employee, 17
lending institution, and the state and all political 18
subdivisions, authorities, agencies, boards, and commissions of 19
the state. 20
(2) "Employer" means the state, any political subdivision 21
of the state, or a person employing four or more persons within 22
the state, and any agent of the state, political subdivision, or 23
person. 24
(3) "Employee" means an individual employed by any 25
employer but does not include any individual employed in the 26
domestic service of any person. 27
(4) "Labor organization" includes any organization that 28
exists, in whole or in part, for the purpose of collective 29
bargaining or of dealing with employers concerning grievances, 30
terms or conditions of employment, or other mutual aid or 31
protection in relation to employment. 32
(5) "Employment agency" includes any person regularly 33
undertaking, with or without compensation, to procure 34
opportunities to work or to procure, recruit, refer, or place 35
employees. 36
(6) "Commission" means the Ohio civil rights commission 37
created by section 4112.03 of the Revised Code. 38
(7) "Discriminate" includes segregate or separate. 39
(8) "Unlawful discriminatory practice" means any act 40
prohibited by section 4112.02, 4112.021, or 4112.022 of the 41
Revised Code. 42
(9) "Place of public accommodation" means any inn, 43
restaurant, eating house, barbershop, public conveyance by air, 44
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land, or water, theater, store, other place for the sale of 45
merchandise, or any other place of public accommodation or 46
amusement of which the accommodations, advantages, facilities, 47
or privileges are available to the public. 48
(10) "Housing accommodations" includes any building or 49
structure, or portion of a building or structure, that is used 50
or occupied or is intended, arranged, or designed to be used or 51
occupied as the home residence, dwelling, dwelling unit, or 52
sleeping place of one or more individuals, groups, or families 53
whether or not living independently of each other; and any 54
vacant land offered for sale or lease. "Housing accommodations" 55
also includes any housing accommodations held or offered for 56
sale or rent by a real estate broker, salesperson, or agent, by 57
any other person pursuant to authorization of the owner, by the 58
owner, or by the owner's legal representative. 59
(11) "Restrictive covenant" means any specification 60
limiting the transfer, rental, lease, or other use of any 61
housing accommodations because of race, color, religion, sex, 62
military status, familial status, national origin, disability, 63
or ancestry, or any limitation based upon affiliation with or 64
approval by any person, directly or indirectly, employing race, 65
color, religion, sex, military status, familial status, national 66
origin, disability, or ancestry as a condition of affiliation or 67
approval. 68
(12) "Burial lot" means any lot for the burial of deceased 69
persons within any public burial ground or cemetery, including, 70
but not limited to, cemeteries owned and operated by municipal 71
corporations, townships, or companies or associations 72
incorporated for cemetery purposes. 73
(13) "Disability" means a physical or mental impairment 74
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that substantially limits one or more major life activities, 75
including the functions of caring for one's self, performing 76
manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, 77
learning, and working; a record of a physical or mental 78
impairment; or being regarded as having a physical or mental 79
impairment. 80
(14) Except as otherwise provided in section 4112.021 of 81
the Revised Code, "age" means an individual aged forty years or 82
older. 83
(15) "Familial status" means either of the following: 84
(a) One or more individuals who are under eighteen years 85
of age and who are domiciled with a parent or guardian having 86
legal custody of the individual or domiciled, with the written 87
permission of the parent or guardian having legal custody, with 88
a designee of the parent or guardian; 89
(b) Any person who is pregnant or in the process of 90
securing legal custody of any individual who is under eighteen 91
years of age. 92
(16)(a) Except as provided in division (A)(16)(b) of this 93
section, "physical or mental impairment" includes any of the 94
following: 95
(i) Any physiological disorder or condition, cosmetic 96
disfigurement, or anatomical loss affecting one or more of the 97
following body systems: neurological; musculoskeletal; special 98
sense organs; respiratory, including speech organs; 99
cardiovascular; reproductive; digestive; genito-urinary; hemic 100
and lymphatic; skin; and endocrine; 101
(ii) Any mental or psychological disorder, including, but 102
not limited to, intellectual disability, organic brain syndrome, 103
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emotional or mental illness, and specific learning disabilities; 104
(iii) Diseases and conditions, including, but not limited 105
to, orthopedic, visual, speech, and hearing impairments, 106
cerebral palsy, autism, epilepsy, muscular dystrophy, multiple 107
sclerosis, cancer, heart disease, diabetes, human 108
immunodeficiency virus infection, intellectual disability, 109
emotional illness, drug addiction, and alcoholism. 110
(b) "Physical or mental impairment" does not include any 111
of the following: 112
(i) Homosexuality and bisexuality; 113
(ii) Transvestism, transsexualism, pedophilia, 114
exhibitionism, voyeurism, gender identity disorders not 115
resulting from physical impairments, or other sexual behavior 116
disorders; 117
(iii) Compulsive gambling, kleptomania, or pyromania; 118
(iv) Psychoactive substance use disorders resulting from 119
the current illegal use of a controlled substance or the current 120
use of alcoholic beverages. 121
(17) "Dwelling unit" means a single unit of residence for 122
a family of one or more persons. 123
(18) "Common use areas" means rooms, spaces, or elements 124
inside or outside a building that are made available for the use 125
of residents of the building or their guests, and includes, but 126
is not limited to, hallways, lounges, lobbies, laundry rooms, 127
refuse rooms, mail rooms, recreational areas, and passageways 128
among and between buildings. 129
(19) "Public use areas" means interior or exterior rooms 130
or spaces of a privately or publicly owned building that are 131
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made available to the general public. 132
(20) "Controlled substance" has the same meaning as in 133
section 3719.01 of the Revised Code. 134
(21) "Disabled tenant" means a tenant or prospective 135
tenant who is a person with a disability. 136
(22) "Military status" means a person's status in "service 137
in the uniformed services" as defined in section 5923.05 of the 138
Revised Code. 139
(23) "Aggrieved person" includes both of the following: 140
(a) Any person who claims to have been injured by any 141
unlawful discriminatory practice described in division (H) of 142
section 4112.02 of the Revised Code; 143
(b) Any person who believes that the person will be 144
injured by any unlawful discriminatory practice described in 145
division (H) of section 4112.02 of the Revised Code that is 146
about to occur. 147
(24) "Unlawful discriminatory practice relating to 148
employment" means both of the following: 149
(a) An unlawful discriminatory practice that is prohibited 150
by division (A), (B), (C), (D), (E), or (F) of section 4112.02 151
of the Revised Code; 152
(b) An unlawful discriminatory practice that is prohibited 153
by division (I) or (J) of section 4112.02 of the Revised Code 154
that is related to employment. 155
(25) "Notice of right to sue" means a notice sent by the 156
commission to a person who files a charge under section 4112.051 157
of the Revised Code that states that the person who filed the 158
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charge may bring a civil action related to the charge pursuant 159
to section 4112.052 or 4112.14 of the Revised Code, in 160
accordance with section 4112.052 of the Revised Code. 161
(B) For the purposes of divisions (A) to (F) of section 162
4112.02 of the Revised Code, the terms "because of sex" and "on 163
the basis of sex" include, but are not limited to, because of or 164
on the basis of pregnancy, any illness arising out of and 165
occurring during the course of a pregnancy, childbirth, or 166
related medical conditions. Women affected by pregnancy, 167
childbirth, or related medical conditions shall be treated the 168
same for all employment-related purposes, including receipt of 169
benefits under fringe benefit programs, as other persons not so 170
affected but similar in their ability or inability to work, and 171
nothing in division (B) of section 4111.17 of the Revised Code 172
shall be interpreted to permit otherwise. This division shall 173
not be construed to require an employer to pay for health 174
insurance benefits for abortion, except where the life of the 175
mother would be endangered if the fetus were carried to term or 176
except where medical complications have arisen from the 177
abortion, provided that nothing in this division precludes an 178
employer from providing abortion benefits or otherwise affects 179
bargaining agreements in regard to abortion. 180
(C) For purposes of the Revised Code, any provision 181
respecting sex discrimination includes discrimination because of 182
a person's sexual orientation or gender identity or expression. 183
Sec. 4112.05. (A)(1) With the exception of unlawful 184
discriminatory practices relating to employment, the commission, 185
as provided in this section, shall prevent any person from 186
engaging in unlawful discriminatory practices. 187
(2) The commission may at any time attempt to resolve 188
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allegations of unlawful discriminatory practices other than 189
allegations concerning unlawful discriminatory practices 190
relating to employment by the use of alternative dispute 191
resolution, provided that, before instituting the formal hearing 192
authorized by division (B) of this section, it shall attempt, by 193
informal methods of conference, conciliation, mediation, and 194
persuasion, to induce compliance with this chapter. 195
(B)(1) Any person may file a charge with the commission 196
alleging that another person has engaged or is engaging in an 197
unlawful discriminatory practice. In the case of a charge 198
alleging an unlawful discriminatory practice that is not an 199
unlawful discriminatory practice relating to employment and that 200
is described in division (G), (I), or (J) of section 4112.02 or 201
in section 4112.021 or 4112.022 of the Revised Code, the charge 202
shall be in writing and under oath and shall be filed with the 203
commission within six months after the alleged unlawful 204
discriminatory practice was committed. In the case of a charge 205
alleging an unlawful discriminatory practice described in 206
division (H) of section 4112.02 of the Revised Code, the charge 207
shall be in writing and under oath and shall be filed with the 208
commission within one year after the alleged unlawful 209
discriminatory practice was committed. 210
(a) An oath under this section may be made in any form of 211
affirmation the person deems binding on the person's conscience. 212
Acceptable forms include, but are not limited to, declarations 213
made under penalty of perjury. 214
(b) Any charge timely received, via facsimile, postal 215
mail, electronic mail, or otherwise, may be signed under oath 216