Chapter 1 | Definitions; Rules of Construction

Section 1.01 | Revised Code - citation and designation - General Code.

• Effective: June 29, 2011
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 9 - 129th General Assembly

All statutes of a permanent and general nature of the state as revised and consolidated into general provisions, titles, chapters, and sections shall be known and designated as the "Revised Code", for which designation "R.C." may be substituted. Except as otherwise provided in section 1301.107 of the Revised Code, Title, Chapter, and section headings and marginal General Code section numbers do not constitute any part of the law as contained in the "Revised Code".

The enactment of the Revised Code shall not be construed to affect a right or liability accrued or incurred under any section of the General Code prior to the effective date of such enactment, or an action or proceeding for the enforcement of such right or liability. Such enactment shall not be construed to relieve any person from punishment for an act committed in violation of any section of the General Code, nor to affect an indictment or prosecution therefor. For such purposes, any such section of the General Code shall continue in full force notwithstanding its repeal for the purpose of revision.

Last updated March 4, 2024 at 3:08 PM

Section 1.02 | Definitions in Revised Code.

• Effective: April 6, 2023
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 281 - 134th General Assembly

As used in the Revised Code, unless the context otherwise requires:

(A) "Whoever" includes all persons, natural and artificial; partners; principals, agents, and employees; and all officials, public or private.

(B) "Another," when used to designate the owner of property which is the subject of an offense, includes not only natural persons but also every other owner of property.

(C) "Of unsound mind" means that the person lacks the relevant mental capacity.

(D) "Bond" includes an undertaking.

(E) "Undertaking" includes a bond.

(F) "And" may be read "or," and "or" may be read "and" if the sense requires it.

(G) "Registered mail" includes certified mail and "certified mail" includes registered mail.

Last updated March 10, 2023 at 10:52 AM

Section 1.03 | Anything of value defined.

• Effective: August 27, 1976
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 1040 - 111th General Assembly

As used in any section of the Revised Code for the violation of which there is provided a penalty or forfeiture, unless the context otherwise requires, "anything of value" includes:

(A) Money, bank bills or notes, United States treasury notes, and other bills, bonds, or notes issued by lawful authority and intended to pass and circulate as money;

(B) Goods and chattels;

(C) Promissory notes, bills of exchange, orders, drafts, warrants, checks, or bonds given for the payment of money;

(D) Receipts given for the payment of money or other property;

(E) Rights in action;

(F) Things which savor of the realty and are, at the time they are taken, a part of the freehold, whether they are of the substance or produce thereof or affixed thereto, although there may be no interval between the severing and taking away;

(G) Any interest in realty, including fee simple and partial interests, present and future, contingent or vested interests, beneficial interests, leasehold interests, and any other interest in realty;

(H) Any promise of future employment;

(I) Every other thing of value.

Section 1.04 | Standard time.

• Effective: October 1, 1953
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 1 - 100th General Assembly

The standard time throughout this state shall be the mean astronomical time of the seventy-fifth degree of longitude west from Greenwich. Courts, public offices, and official legal proceedings subject to the laws of this state shall be regulated thereby. Whenever the time of performance of any act, or the time of accrual or determination of any rights, is fixed or governed by the statutes of this state or by any resolutions, rules, regulations, or orders in effect under authority of such statutes, such time shall be the standard time provided in this section.

All clocks maintained in or upon public buildings, existing as such under the laws of this state, shall be set and run according to this section.

Section 1.05 | Imprisoned or imprisonment defined.

• Effective: September 29, 2015
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 64 - 131st General Assembly

(A) As used in the Revised Code, unless the context otherwise requires, "imprisoned" or "imprisonment" means being imprisoned under a sentence imposed for an offense or serving a term of imprisonment, prison term, jail term, term of local incarceration, or other term under a sentence imposed for an offense in an institution under the control of the department of rehabilitation and correction, a county, multicounty, municipal, municipal-county, or multicounty-municipal jail or workhouse, a minimum security jail, a community-based correctional facility, or another facility described or referred to in section 2929.34 of the Revised Code for the type of criminal offense and under the circumstances specified or referred to in that section.

(B) As used in division (A) of this section, "community-based correctional facility" has the same meaning as in section 2929.01 of the Revised Code.

Section 1.07 | Value of evidence of debt or written instrument.

• Effective: January 1, 1974
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 511 - 109th General Assembly

Except as provided in sections 2909.11 and 2913.61 of the Revised Code, when an evidence of debt or a written instrument is the subject of a criminal act, the amount of money due on the evidence of debt or the written instrument or secured thereby, or the amount of money or the value of property affected thereby, shall be deemed the value of the evidence of debt or the written instrument.

Section 1.08 | Blighted area defined - excluded considerations.

• Effective: October 10, 2007
• Latest Legislation: Senate Bill 7 - 127th General Assembly

As used in the Revised Code:

(A) "Blighted area" and "slum" mean an area in which at least seventy per cent of the parcels are blighted parcels and those blighted parcels substantially impair or arrest the sound growth of the state or a political subdivision of the state, retard the provision of housing accommodations, constitute an economic or social liability, or are a menace to the public health, safety, morals, or welfare in their present condition and use.

(B) "Blighted parcel" means either of the following:

(1) A parcel that has one or more of the following conditions:

(a) A structure that is dilapidated, unsanitary, unsafe, or vermin infested and that because of its condition has been designated by an agency that is responsible for the enforcement of housing, building, or fire codes as unfit for human habitation or use;

(b) The property poses a direct threat to public health or safety in its present condition by reason of environmentally hazardous conditions, solid waste pollution, or contamination;

(c) Tax or special assessment delinquencies exceeding the fair value of the land that remain unpaid thirty-five days after notice to pay has been mailed.

(2) A parcel that has two or more of the following conditions that, collectively considered, adversely affect surrounding or community property values or entail land use relationships that cannot reasonably be corrected through existing zoning codes or other land use regulations:

(a) Dilapidation and deterioration;

(b) Age and obsolescence;

(c) Inadequate provision for ventilation, light, air, sanitation, or open spaces;

(d) Unsafe and unsanitary conditions;

(e) Hazards that endanger lives or properties by fire or other causes;

(f) Noncompliance with building, housing, or other codes;

(g) Nonworking or disconnected utilities;

(h) Is vacant or contains an abandoned structure;

(i) Excessive dwelling unit density;

(j) Is located in an area of defective or inadequate street layout;

(k) Overcrowding of buildings on the land;

(l) Faulty lot layout in relation to size, adequacy, accessibility, or usefulness;

(m) Vermin infestation;

(n) Extensive damage or destruction caused by a major disaster when the damage has not been remediated within a reasonable time;

(o) Identified hazards to health and safety that are conducive to ill health, transmission of disease, juvenile delinquency, or crime;

(p) Ownership or multiple ownership of a single parcel when the owner, or a majority of the owners of a parcel in the case of multiple ownership, cannot be located.

(C) When determining whether a property is a blighted parcel or whether an area is a blighted area or slum for the purposes of this section, no person shall consider whether there is a comparatively better use for any premises, property, structure, area, or portion of an area, or whether the property could generate more tax revenues if put to another use.

(D)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, absent any environmental or public health hazard that cannot be corrected under its current use or ownership, a property is not a blighted parcel because of any condition listed in division (B) of this section if the condition is consistent with conditions that are normally incident to generally accepted agricultural practices and the land is used for agricultural purposes as defined in section 303.01 or 519.01 of the Revised Code, or the county auditor of the county in which the land is located has determined under section 5713.31 of the Revised Code that the land is "land devoted exclusively to agricultural use" as defined in section 5713.30 of the Revised Code.

(2) A property that under division (D)(1) of this section is not a blighted parcel shall not be included in a blighted area or slum.

Section 1.11 | Remedial laws liberally construed.

• Effective: October 1, 1953
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 1 - 100th General Assembly

Remedial laws and all proceedings under them shall be liberally construed in order to promote their object and assist the parties in obtaining justice. The rule of the common law that statutes in derogation of the common law must be strictly construed has no application to remedial laws; but this section does not require a liberal construction of laws affecting personal liberty, relating to amercement, or of a penal nature.

Section 1.12 | Special provision shall govern unless it appears that provisions are cumulative.

• Effective: October 1, 1953
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 1 - 100th General Assembly

When a special provision is made in a remedial law as to service, pleadings, competency of witnesses, or in any other respect inconsistent with the general provisions of sections of the Revised Code relating to procedure in the court of common pleas and procedure on appeal, the special provision shall govern, unless it appears that the provisions are cumulative.

Section 1.14 | Excluding first and including last day - legal holidays.

• Effective: September 30, 2021
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 110 - 134th General Assembly

The time within which an act is required by law to be done shall be computed by excluding the first and including the last day; except that, when the last day falls on Sunday or a legal holiday, the act may be done on the next succeeding day that is not Sunday or a legal holiday.

When a public office in which an act, required by law, is to be performed is closed to the public for the entire day that constitutes the last day for doing the act or before its usual closing time on that day, the act may be performed on the next succeeding day that is not a Sunday or a legal holiday as defined in this section.

"Legal holiday" as used in this section means the following days:

(A) The first day of January, known as New Year's day;

(B) The third Monday in January, known as Martin Luther King day;

(C) The third Monday in February, known as Washington-Lincoln day;

(D) The day designated in the "Act of June 28, 1968," 82 Stat. 250, 5 U.S.C. 6103, as amended, for the commemoration of Memorial day;

(E) The nineteenth day of June, known as Juneteenth day;

(F) The fourth day of July, known as Independence day;

(G) The first Monday in September, known as Labor day;

(H) The second Monday in October, known as Columbus day;

(I) The eleventh day of November, known as Veterans' day;

(J) The fourth Thursday in November, known as Thanksgiving day;

(K) The twenty-fifth day of December, known as Christmas day;

(L) Any day appointed and recommended by the governor of this state or the president of the United States as a holiday.

If any day designated in this section as a legal holiday falls on Sunday, the next succeeding day is a legal holiday.

Last updated July 23, 2021 at 8:11 AM

Section 1.15 | Effective date of acts - priority of legal rights.

• Effective: October 1, 1953
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 1 - 100th General Assembly

When an act is to take effect or become operative from and after a day named, no part of that day shall be included. If priority of legal rights depends upon the order of events of the same day, such priority shall be determined by the times in the day at which they respectively occurred.

Section 1.22 | Judicial construction and adjudication subsequent change not to affect prior valid obligations.

• Effective: October 1, 1953
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 1 - 100th General Assembly

When an officer or board of a county, township, or municipal corporation by ordinance, resolution, order, or other proceeding, in pursuance of a statute of the state, has authorized or caused the issue and delivery of any bonds, obligations, or instruments of such county, township, or municipal corporation, or has caused any county, township, or municipal contracts, grants, franchises, rights, or privileges to be made or given, which were valid according to judicial construction and adjudication at the date of such action or proceeding, and loans or other things of value have been effected or acquired or expenditures have been made by other persons in reliance upon such construction or adjudication, such bonds, obligations, contracts, grants, franchises, rights, and privileges shall be valid and binding, notwithstanding subsequent change of such rule of judicial construction and adjudication with respect to other similar legislation.

Section 1.23 | Construction of cross-references.

• Effective: August 26, 1977
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 1 - 112th General Assembly

(A) Wherever in a penalty section reference is made to a violation of a series of sections, or of divisions or subdivisions of a section, such reference shall be construed to mean a violation of any section, division, or subdivision included in such reference.

(B) References in the Revised Code to action taken or authorized under designated sections of the Revised Code include, in every case, action taken or authorized under the applicable section of the General Code which is superseded by the Revised Code.

Section 1.30 | Legislation correcting nonsubstantive errors in the Revised Code.

• Effective: April 19, 1988
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 708 - 117th General Assembly

(A) In enacting any legislation with the stated purpose of correcting nonsubstantive errors in the Revised Code, it is the intent of the general assembly not to make substantive changes in the law in effect on the date of such enactment. A section of the Revised Code affected by any such act shall be construed as a restatement and correction of, and substituted in a continuing way for, the corresponding statutory provision existing on its date of enactment.

(B) Acts of the general assembly with the purpose described in division (A) of this section include:

(1) House Bill No. 1 of the 100th general assembly;

(2) House Bill No. 1 of the 104th general assembly;

(3) House Bill No. 1 of the 105th general assembly;

(4) House Bill No. 5 of the 105th general assembly special session;

(5) House Bill No. 1 of the 107th general assembly;

(6) House Bill No. 1 of the 108th general assembly;

(7) House Bill No. 1 of the 109th general assembly;

(8) House Bill No. 1 of the 110th general assembly;

(9) House Bill No. 1 of the 111th general assembly;

(10) House Bill No. 1 of the 112th general assembly;

(11) House Bill No. 1 of the 113th general assembly;

(12) House Bill No. 1 of the 114th general assembly;

(13) House Bill No. 37 of the 115th general assembly;

(14) House Bill No. 428 of the 116th general assembly;

(15) House Bill No. 708 of the 117th general assembly.

Section 1.301 | Intent of H.B. 339 of the 133rd General Assembly.

• Effective: January 1, 2021
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 339 - 133rd General Assembly

In enacting H.B. 339 of the 133rd general assembly with the stated purpose of correcting nonsubstantive errors in the Revised Code, it is the intent of the general assembly not to make substantive changes in the law in effect on the date of such enactment, except for the changes to sections 167.03, 1317.04, 1317.05, 3905.85, 3905.87, 3907.15, 3915.13, 3951.06, 4505.11, and 4509.70 of the Revised Code. Other than sections 167.03, 1317.04, 1317.05, 3905.85, 3905.87, 3907.15, 3915.13, 3951.06, 4505.11, and 4509.70 of the Revised Code, a section of the Revised Code affected by H.B. 339 of the 133rd general assembly shall be construed as a restatement and correction of, and substituted in a continuing way for, the corresponding statutory provision existing on its date of enactment.

Section 1.31 | Gender specific and gender neutral language.

• Effective: September 14, 1995
• Latest Legislation: Senate Bill 98 - 121st General Assembly

(A) As used in this section:

(1) Language is "gender neutral" if it does not expressly or implicitly refer to one sex to the real or apparent exclusion of the other and expressly or implicitly refers to both sexes without distinguishing between them.

(2) Language is "gender specific" if it expressly or implicitly refers to one sex to the real or apparent exclusion of the other or expressly or implicitly refers to both sexes and distinguishes between them.

(B)(1) Except as otherwise provided in division (B)(2) of this section, in enacting an act that replaces gender specific language with gender neutral language, it is the intent of the general assembly not to make substantive changes in the statutory law in effect on the date of that enactment by the replacement of the gender specific language with the gender neutral language. The gender neutral language shall be construed as a restatement of, and substituted in a continuing way for, the corresponding statutory gender specific language existing on the date of enactment.

(2) In enacting an act with the stated purpose of making a substantive change in a statute by replacing gender specific language with gender neutral language, the rule of construction in division (B)(1) of this section does not apply.

(C) The rule of construction in division (B) of section 1.43 of the Revised Code declares that words of one gender include the other genders. The rules of construction contained in divisions (B)(1) and (2) of this section do not affect this rule of construction with respect to statutes that contain gender specific language.

Section 1.41 | Applicability of rules of construction.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

Sections 1.41 to 1.59, inclusive, of the Revised Code apply to all statutes, subject to the conditions stated in section 1.51 of the Revised Code, and to rules adopted under them.

Section 1.42 | Common, technical or particular terms.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

Words and phrases shall be read in context and construed according to the rules of grammar and common usage. Words and phrases that have acquired a technical or particular meaning, whether by legislative definition or otherwise, shall be construed accordingly.

Section 1.43 | Singular - plural - gender - tense.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

(A) The singular includes the plural, and the plural includes the singular.

(B) Words of one gender include the other genders.

(C) Words in the present tense include the future.

Section 1.44 | Week - year.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

(A) "Week" means seven consecutive days.

(B) "Year" means twelve consecutive months.

Section 1.45 | Time computation.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

If a number of months is to be computed by counting the months from a particular day, the period ends on the same numerical day in the concluding month as the day of the month from which the computation is begun, unless there are not that many days in the concluding month, in which case the period ends on the last day of that month.

Section 1.46 | Conflict between figures and words in expressing number.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

If there is a conflict between figures and words in expressing a number, the words govern.

Section 1.47 | Presumptions in enactment of statutes.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

In enacting a statute, it is presumed that:

(A) Compliance with the constitutions of the state and of the United States is intended;

(B) The entire statute is intended to be effective;

(C) A just and reasonable result is intended;

(D) A result feasible of execution is intended.

Section 1.471 | Effective date of act containing appropriation for current expenses.

• Effective: September 12, 1994
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 790 - 120th General Assembly

As used in this section, "appropriation for current expenses" means an appropriation of money for the current expenses of the state government and state institutions as contemplated by Ohio Constitution, Article II, Section 1d.

This section expresses the general assembly's interpretation of State, ex rel. Ohio AFL-CIO, v. Voinovich (1994), 69 Ohio St. 3d 225, 234 to 237, insofar as the case holds with respect to the effective date of sections of law contained in acts that contain an appropriation for current expenses.

A codified or uncodified section of law contained in an act that contains an appropriation for current expenses is not subject to the referendum and goes into immediate effect if any of the following apply:

(A) The section is an appropriation for current expenses;

(B) The section is an earmarking of the whole or part of an appropriation for current expenses; or

(C) Implementation of the section depends upon an appropriation for current expenses that is contained in the act.

The general assembly shall determine which sections go into immediate effect.

A codified or uncodified section of law contained in an act that contains an appropriation for current expenses that does not go into immediate effect as contemplated by this section is subject to the referendum and goes into effect as provided in Ohio Constitution, Article II, Section 1c.

Section 1.48 | Presumption that statute is prospective.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

A statute is presumed to be prospective in its operation unless expressly made retrospective.

Section 1.49 | Determining legislative intent.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

If a statute is ambiguous, the court, in determining the intention of the legislature, may consider among other matters:

(A) The object sought to be attained;

(B) The circumstances under which the statute was enacted;

(C) The legislative history;

(D) The common law or former statutory provisions, including laws upon the same or similar subjects;

(E) The consequences of a particular construction;

(F) The administrative construction of the statute.

Section 1.50 | Severability.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

If any provision of a section of the Revised Code or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of the section or related sections which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions are severable.

Section 1.51 | Special or local provision prevails as exception to general provision.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

If a general provision conflicts with a special or local provision, they shall be construed, if possible, so that effect is given to both. If the conflict between the provisions is irreconcilable, the special or local provision prevails as an exception to the general provision, unless the general provision is the later adoption and the manifest intent is that the general provision prevail.

Section 1.52 | Irreconcilable statutes or amendments - harmonization.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

(A) If statutes enacted at the same or different sessions of the legislature are irreconcilable, the statute latest in date of enactment prevails.

(B) If amendments to the same statute are enacted at the same or different sessions of the legislature, one amendment without reference to another, the amendments are to be harmonized, if possible, so that effect may be given to each. If the amendments are substantively irreconcilable, the latest in date of enactment prevails. The fact that a later amendment restates language deleted by an earlier amendment, or fails to include language inserted by an earlier amendment, does not of itself make the amendments irreconcilable. Amendments are irreconcilable only when changes made by each cannot reasonably be put into simultaneous operation.

Section 1.53 | Language and any designated section number of enrolled act prevails.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

If the language of the enrolled act deposited with the secretary of state, including any code section number designated pursuant to section 103.131 of the Revised Code, conflicts with the language of any subsequent printing or reprinting of the statute, the language and any such designated section number of the enrolled act prevails.

Section 1.54 | Reenactment or amendment is continuation of prior statute.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

A statute which is reenacted or amended is intended to be a continuation of the prior statute and not a new enactment, so far as it is the same as the prior statute.

Section 1.55 | Reference to any portion applies to all reenactments or amendments.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

A reference to any portion of a statute of this state applies to all reenactments or amendments thereof.

Section 1.56 | Reference to series of numbers or letters.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

If a statute refers to a series of numbers or letters, the first and the last numbers or letters are included.

Section 1.57 | Repeal of repealing statute.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

The repeal of a repealing statute does not revive the statute originally repealed nor impair the effect of any saving clause therein.

Section 1.58 | Reenactment, amendment, or repeal of statute.

• Effective: January 3, 1972
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 607 - 109th General Assembly

(A) The reenactment, amendment, or repeal of a statute does not, except as provided in division (B) of this section:

(1) Affect the prior operation of the statute or any prior action taken thereunder;

(2) Affect any validation, cure, right, privilege, obligation, or liability previously acquired, accrued, accorded, or incurred thereunder;

(3) Affect any violation thereof or penalty, forfeiture, or punishment incurred in respect thereto, prior to the amendment or repeal;

(4) Affect any investigation, proceeding, or remedy in respect of any such privilege, obligation, liability, penalty, forfeiture, or punishment; and the investigation, proceeding, or remedy may be instituted, continued, or enforced, and the penalty, forfeiture, or punishment imposed, as if the statute had not been repealed or amended.

(B) If the penalty, forfeiture, or punishment for any offense is reduced by a reenactment or amendment of a statute, the penalty, forfeiture, or punishment, if not already imposed, shall be imposed according to the statute as amended.

Section 1.59 | Statutory definitions.

• Effective: November 5, 2004
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 204 - 125th General Assembly

As used in any statute, unless another definition is provided in that statute or a related statute:

(A) "Child" includes child by adoption.

(B) "Oath" includes affirmation, and "swear" includes affirm.

(C) "Person" includes an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, and association.

(D) "Population" means that shown by the most recent regular federal census.

(E) "Property" means real and personal property.

(F) "Rule" includes regulation.

(G) "State," when applied to a part of the United States, includes any state, district, commonwealth, territory, insular possession thereof, and any area subject to the legislative authority of the United States of America. "This state" or "the state" means the state of Ohio.

(H) "United States" includes all the states.

(I) "Will" includes codicil.

(J) "Written" or "in writing" includes any representation of words, letters, symbols, or figures; this provision does not affect any law relating to signatures.

(K) "Internet" means the international computer network of both federal and nonfederal interoperable packet switched data networks, including the graphical subnetwork known as the world wide web.

Section 1.60 | State agency defined.

• Effective: February 18, 2011
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 1 - 129th General Assembly

As used in Title I of the Revised Code, "state agency," except as otherwise provided in the title, means every organized body, office, or agency established by the laws of the state for the exercise of any function of state government. "State agency" does not include the nonprofit corporation formed under section 187.01 of the Revised Code.

Section 1.601 | Fire marshal defined.

• Effective: September 12, 2008
• Latest Legislation: Senate Bill 237 - 127th General Assembly

If a statute uses the term "fire marshal" it is referring to the state fire marshal.

Section 1.61 | Agriculture defined.

• Effective: June 4, 2012
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 276 - 129th General Assembly

As used in any statute except section 303.01 or 519.01 of the Revised Code, "agriculture" includes farming; ranching; aquaculture; algaculture meaning the farming of algae; apiculture and related apicultural activities, production of honey, beeswax, honeycomb, and other related products; horticulture; viticulture, winemaking, and related activities; animal husbandry, including, but not limited to, the care and raising of livestock, equine, and fur-bearing animals; poultry husbandry and the production of poultry and poultry products; dairy production; the production of field crops, tobacco, fruits, vegetables, nursery stock, ornamental shrubs, ornamental trees, flowers, sod, or mushrooms; timber; pasturage; any combination of the foregoing; the processing, drying, storage, and marketing of agricultural products when those activities are conducted in conjunction with, but are secondary to, such husbandry or production; and any additions or modifications to the foregoing made by the director of agriculture by rule adopted in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code.

Section 1.611 | OSU extension defined.

• Effective: September 29, 2013
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 59 - 130th General Assembly

As used in the Revised Code, "OSU extension" means the cooperative extension service that was established by the "Smith-Lever Act," 38 Stat. 372 (1914), 7 U.S.C. 341 et seq., and is administered in this state by the Ohio state university.

Section 1.62 | References to officers, authorities and resolutions in county that has adopted a charter.

• Effective: July 7, 2010
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 313 - 128th General Assembly

As used in the Revised Code, unless the context of a section does not permit the following or unless expressly provided otherwise in a section:

(A) References to particular county officers, boards, commissions, and authorities mean, in the case of a county that has adopted a charter under Article X, Ohio Constitution, the officer, board, commission, or authority of that county designated by or pursuant to the charter to exercise the same powers or perform the same acts, duties, or functions that are to be exercised or performed under the applicable section of the Revised Code by officers, boards, commissions, or authorities of counties that have not adopted a charter. If any section of the Revised Code requires county representation on a board, commission, or authority by more than one county officer, and the charter vests the powers, duties, or functions of each county officer representing the county on the board, commission, or authority in fewer officers or in only a single county officer, the county officers or officer shall succeed to the representation of only one of the county officers on the board, commission, or authority. If any vacancy in the representation of the county on the board, commission, or authority remains, the taxing authority of the county shall adopt a resolution to fill the vacancy.

(B) References to resolutions mean, in the case of a county that has adopted a charter under Article X, Ohio Constitution, the appropriate form of legislation permitted by or pursuant to the charter.

Section 1.63 | Pre-emption by state of certain business practices.

• Effective: May 24, 2002
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 386 - 124th General Assembly

(A) The state solely shall regulate the business of originating, granting, servicing, and collecting loans and other forms of credit in the state and the manner in which any such business is conducted, and this regulation shall be in lieu of all other regulation of such activities by any municipal corporation or other political subdivision.

(B) Any ordinance, resolution, regulation, or other action by a municipal corporation or other political subdivision to regulate, directly or indirectly, the origination, granting, servicing, or collection of loans or other forms of credit constitutes a conflict with the Revised Code, including, but not limited to, Titles XI, XIII, XVII, and XLVII, and with the uniform operation throughout the state of lending and other credit provisions, and is preempted.

(C) Any ordinance, resolution, regulation, or other action by a municipal corporation or other political subdivision constitutes a conflict with the Revised Code, including, but not limited to, Titles XI, XIII, XVII, and XLVII, and is pre-empted, if the ordinance, resolution, regulation, or other action does either of the following:

(1) Disqualifies a person, or its subsidiaries or affiliates, from doing business with such municipal corporation or other political subdivision based upon the acts or practices of such person, or its subsidiaries or affiliates, as an originator, grantor, servicer, or collector of loans or other forms of credit;

(2) Imposes reporting requirements or other obligations upon a person, or its subsidiaries or affiliates, based upon such person's, or its subsidiaries' or affiliates', acts or practices as an originator, grantor, servicer, or collector of loans or other forms of credit.

(D) If any provision of this section, or any application of any provision of this section, is for any reason held to be illegal or invalid, the illegality or invalidity shall not affect any legal and valid provision or application of this section, and the provisions and applications of this section shall be severable.

(E) Nothing in this section shall be construed to invalidate or prohibit any ordinance, resolution, regulation, or other action by a municipal corporation or other political subdivision to establish and administer voluntary neighborhood reinvestment programs in furtherance of the goals and purposes of the "Community Reinvestment Act of 1977," 91 Stat. 1147, 12 U.S.C.A. 2901, as amended.

(F) Nothing in this section shall be construed to invalidate any ordinance, resolution, regulation, or other action by a municipal corporation or other political subdivision that is required to meet the criteria for adequacy of law established by the United States department of housing and urban development in order to obtain certification as a fair housing assistance program.

Section 1.64 | Health care workers definitions.

• Effective: April 6, 2017
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 216 - 131st General Assembly

As used in the Revised Code:

(A) "Certified nurse-midwife" means an advanced practice registered nurse who holds a current, valid license issued under Chapter 4723. of the Revised Code and is designated as a certified nurse-midwife in accordance with section 4723.42 of the Revised Code and rules adopted by the board of nursing.

(B) "Certified nurse practitioner" means an advanced practice registered nurse who holds a current, valid license issued under Chapter 4723. of the Revised Code and is designated as a certified nurse practitioner in accordance with section 4723.42 of the Revised Code and rules adopted by the board of nursing.

(C) "Clinical nurse specialist" means an advanced practice registered nurse who holds a current, valid license issued under Chapter 4723. of the Revised Code and is designated as a clinical nurse specialist in accordance with section 4723.42 of the Revised Code and rules adopted by the board of nursing.

(D) "Physician assistant" means an individual who is licensed under Chapter 4730. of the Revised Code to provide services as a physician assistant to patients under the supervision, control, and direction of one or more physicians.

Section 1.65 | Insurance rating agencies.

• Effective: March 20, 2019
• Latest Legislation: Senate Bill 273 - 132nd General Assembly

(A) As used in the Revised Code, "insurance rating agency" means A.M. Best Rating Services, Inc., Demotech, Inc., or a rating agency certified or approved by a national entity that engages in an approval process that includes all of the following:

(1) A requirement for the rating agency to register and provide an annual updated filing;

(2) Record retention requirements;

(3) Financial reporting requirements;

(4) Policies for the prevention of misuse of material, nonpublic information;

(5) Management of conflicts of interest, including prohibited conflicts;

(6) Prohibited acts and practices;

(7) Disclosure requirements;

(8) Required policies, practices, and internal controls;

(9) Standards of training, experience, and competence for credit analysts.

(B) Any reference in the Revised Code to an entity named in division (A) of this section shall be construed as a reference to any insurance rating agency as defined in division (A) of this section. Any reference in the Revised Code to a specific entity not named in division (A) of this section but otherwise meeting the definition of "insurance rating agency" in division (A) of this section shall be construed as a reference to an insurance rating agency as defined by division (A) of this section.