The Protecting Ohio Communities Act aims to strengthen cooperation between state and local authorities and federal agencies in enforcing immigration laws. The bill mandates that state and local employees comply with federal requests related to homeland security and immigration enforcement, while prohibiting municipal corporations from enacting policies that would obstruct such compliance. It introduces new sections (9.631, 9.632, and 9.633) that outline the responsibilities of law enforcement agencies in reporting and verifying the immigration status of individuals applying for public benefits, and establishes penalties for noncompliance, including ineligibility for homeland security funding and reduced local government fund distributions.

Additionally, the bill revises the distribution of local government funds to municipal corporations, implementing a formula based on population and capping total distributions at 2007 levels. It introduces a "sanctuary jurisdiction adjustment," which reduces local authorities' payments by ten percent if found non-compliant with immigration enforcement requirements. The bill also includes provisions for municipal universities to participate in the local government fund and mandates compliance reporting from local authorities. Overall, the legislation emphasizes strict adherence to federal immigration laws and imposes significant consequences for noncompliance, while also addressing the allocation of local government funds and the role of municipal universities.

Statutes affected:
As Introduced: 9.63, 4501.06, 5747.50, 5747.502, 5747.51, 5747.53