To amend section 3109.50 of the Revised Code regarding the definition of rape and sexual battery for purposes of laws governing parental rights.
Summary
HB914 would amend Ohio Revised Code section 3109.50, which defines terms used in the state’s parental-rights statutes. The bill specifically revises the definitions of “rape” and “sexual battery” for purposes of sections 3109.501 to 3109.507, which govern parental rights and responsibilities, parenting time, and related court determinations. Under the bill, “rape” would mean a violation of Ohio’s rape statute or a comparable law from another state or foreign jurisdiction, and “sexual battery” would mean a violation of Ohio’s sexual battery statute only when the conduct involved is “sexual conduct,” or a similar out-of-state offense.
The practical effect is to narrow and clarify when certain sex offenses are treated as disqualifying or relevant under Ohio’s parental-rights laws. By tying these definitions directly to the criminal code, the bill would affect how courts and agencies evaluate parental rights in cases involving allegations or convictions of rape or sexual battery, potentially influencing custody, parenting time, and related family-law proceedings. It would also repeal the existing version of section 3109.50 and replace it with the amended language.
Impact
HB914 would change the statutory definitions that trigger application of Ohio’s parental-rights provisions in cases involving serious sexual offenses. The bill would directly affect section 3109.50 and, by extension, sections 3109.501 through 3109.507 of the Revised Code, which are used in family-court decisions involving parental rights, parenting time, and related protections. The amendment could influence which criminal convictions or comparable foreign offenses are recognized for these purposes, thereby affecting litigants, courts, and child-custody determinations.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have been introduced without recorded committee testimony or votes in the available materials, so there is no documented public debate to gauge support or opposition. Based on the caption and text, the measure is framed as a technical clarification to align family-law definitions with criminal statutes. The absence of recorded controversy suggests the bill was at an early stage and had not yet generated a visible partisan or stakeholder split in the available record.
Contention
No committee transcript or vote history is available, so specific points of contention are not documented. Potential areas of debate, however, would likely center on whether the revised definitions are sufficiently broad or narrow to protect children while preserving parental rights, and whether the bill’s reference to “sexual conduct” in the sexual-battery definition could change the scope of cases covered. Any disagreement would likely involve family-law practitioners, child-protection advocates, and criminal-law stakeholders concerned with how convictions translate into custody and parenting-time consequences.
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