As Introduced
136th General Assembly
Regular Session H. B. No. 145
2025-2026
Representative Bird
Cosponsors: Representatives Williams, Johnson, Daniels, McClain, Hiner, John,
Creech
A B I L L
To amend sections 3301.0732 and 3313.48 of the
Revised Code regarding the minimum number of
hours in a school year.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 3301.0732 and 3313.48 of the
Revised Code be amended to read as follows:
Sec. 3301.0732. The minimum education standards prescribed
by the director of education and workforce for nonchartered
nonpublic schools under section 3301.07 of the Revised Code
shall comply with and shall be limited to this section.
(A) A nonchartered nonpublic school that is not seeking a
charter from the department of education and workforce because
of truly held religious beliefs shall annually certify in a
report to the parents of its pupils that the school meets
minimum education standards for nonchartered nonpublic schools
as described in this section. A copy of the report shall be
filed with the department of education and workforce on or
before the thirtieth day of September of each year.
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(B) A nonchartered nonpublic school shall be open for
instruction with pupils in attendance for not less than four
hundred fifty-fiveeighty-two hours in the case of pupils in
kindergarten unless such pupils are provided all-day
kindergarten, in which case the pupils shall be in attendance
for nine hundred tensixty-three hours; nine hundred tensixty-
three hours in the case of pupils in grades one through six; and
one thousand onefifty-four hours in the case of pupils in grades
seven through twelve in each school year.
(C) The parents of a child enrolled in a nonchartered
nonpublic school shall be responsible for reporting their
child's enrollment or withdrawal from that school to the
treasurer of the board of education of the city, exempted
village, or local school district in which the pupil resides.
Pupil attendance is reported for the purposes of facilitating
the administration of laws relating to compulsory education and
the employment of minors. An individual in charge of the
nonchartered nonpublic school may, as a matter of convenience,
provide the report to the treasurer on behalf of the parents.
The attendance report shall include the name, age, and
place of residence of each pupil below eighteen years of age.
The report shall be made within the first two weeks of the
beginning of each school year. In the case of pupil withdrawal
or entrance during the school year, notice shall be given to the
treasurer of the appropriate board of education within the first
week of the next school month.
(D) Teachers and administrators at nonchartered nonpublic
schools shall hold at least a bachelor's degree, or the
equivalent, from a recognized college or university.
(E) The curriculum of each nonchartered nonpublic school
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shall include the study of the following subjects:
(1) Language arts;
(2) Geography, the history of the United States and Ohio,
and national, state, and local government;
(3) Mathematics;
(4) Science;
(5) Health;
(6) Physical education;
(7) The fine arts, including music;
(8) First aid, safety, and fire prevention;
(9) Other subjects as prescribed by the nonchartered
nonpublic school.
(F) Each nonchartered nonpublic school shall follow
regular procedures for promotion from grade to grade for pupils
who have met the school's educational requirements.
(G) Each nonchartered nonpublic school shall comply with
all applicable health, fire, and safety laws.
(H) Pupils attending a nonchartered nonpublic school shall
not be entitled to pupil transportation or auxiliary services. A
nonchartered nonpublic school is not entitled to reimbursement
for administrative costs.
Sec. 3313.48. (A) The board of education of each city,
exempted village, local, and joint vocational school district
shall provide for the free education of the youth of school age
within the district under its jurisdiction, at such places as
will be most convenient for the attendance of the largest number
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thereof. Each school so provided and each chartered nonpublic
school shall be open for instruction with pupils in attendance,
including scheduled classes, supervised activities, and approved
education options but excluding lunch and breakfast periods and
extracurricular activities, for not less than four hundred
fifty-fiveeighty-two hours in the case of pupils in kindergarten
unless such pupils are provided all-day kindergarten, as defined
in section 3321.05 of the Revised Code, in which case the pupils
shall be in attendance for nine hundred tensixty-three hours;
nine hundred tensixty-three hours in the case of pupils in
grades one through six; and one thousand onefifty-four hours in
the case of pupils in grades seven through twelve in each school
year, which may include all of the following:
(1) Up to the equivalent of two school days per year
during which pupils would otherwise be in attendance but are not
required to attend for the purpose of individualized parent-
teacher conferences and reporting periods;
(2) Up to the equivalent of two school days per year
during which pupils would otherwise be in attendance but are not
required to attend for professional meetings of teachers;
(3) Morning and afternoon recess periods of not more than
fifteen minutes duration per period for pupils in grades
kindergarten through six.
(B) Not later than thirty days prior to adopting a school
calendar, the board of education of each city, exempted village,
and local school district shall hold a public hearing on the
school calendar, addressing topics that include, but are not
limited to, the total number of hours in a school year, length
of school day, and beginning and end dates of instruction. The
public hearing required under this division need not be a
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separate, individual hearing and may be part of another public
hearing or board meeting.
(C) No school operated by a city, exempted village, local,
or joint vocational school district shall reduce the number of
hours in each school year that the school is scheduled to be
open for instruction from the number of hours per year the
school was open for instruction during the previous school year
unless the reduction is approved by a resolution adopted by the
district board of education. Any reduction so approved shall not
result in fewer hours of instruction per school year than the
applicable number of hours required under division (A) of this
section.
(D) Prior to making any change in the hours or days in
which a high school under its jurisdiction is open for
instruction, the board of education of each city, exempted
village, and local school district shall consider the
compatibility of the proposed change with the scheduling needs
of any joint vocational school district in which any of the high
school's students are also enrolled. The board shall consider
the impact of the proposed change on student access to the
instructional programs offered by the joint vocational school
district, incentives for students to participate in career-
technical education, transportation, and the timing of
graduation. The board shall provide the joint vocational school
district board with advance notice of the proposed change and
the two boards shall enter into a written agreement prescribing
reasonable accommodations to meet the scheduling needs of the
joint vocational school district prior to implementation of the
change.
(E) Subject to section 3327.016 of the Revised Code, prior
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to making any change in the hours or days in which a school
under its jurisdiction is open for instruction, the board of
education of each city, exempted village, and local school
district shall consider the compatibility of the proposed change
with the scheduling needs of any community school established
under Chapter 3314. of the Revised Code to which the district is
required to transport students under sections 3314.09 and
3327.01 of the Revised Code. The board shall consider the impact
of the proposed change on student access to the instructional
programs offered by the community school, transportation, and
the timing of graduation. The board shall provide the sponsor,
governing authority, and operator of the community school with
advance notice of the proposed change, and the board and the
governing authority, or operator if such authority is delegated
to the operator, shall enter into a written agreement
prescribing reasonable accommodations to meet the scheduling
needs of the community school prior to implementation of the
change.
(F) Subject to section 3327.016 of the Revised Code, prior
to making any change in the hours or days in which the schools
under its jurisdiction are open for instruction, the board of
education of each city, exempted village, and local school
district shall consult with the chartered nonpublic schools to
which the district is required to transport students under
section 3327.01 of the Revised Code and shall consider the
effect of the proposed change on the schedule for transportation
of those students to their nonpublic schools. The governing
authority of a chartered nonpublic school shall consult with
each school district board of education that transports students
to the chartered nonpublic school under section 3327.01 of the
Revised Code prior to making any change in the hours or days in
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which the nonpublic school is open for instruction.
(G) The department of education and workforce shall not
adopt or enforce any rule or standard that imposes on chartered
nonpublic schools the procedural requirements imposed on school
districts by divisions (B), (C), (D), and (E) of this section.
Section 2. That existing sections 3301.0732 and 3313.48 of
the Revised Code are hereby repealed.
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