As Introduced
136th General Assembly
Regular Session H. B. No. 60
2025-2026
Representatives Humphrey, Williams
Cosponsors: Representatives Russo, Upchurch, Lett, Brewer, Jarrells, Rogers,
Brennan, Sigrist, Synenberg, Piccolantonio, Rader, Baker, Brent
A B I L L
To amend section 3517.13 of the Revised Code to
allow a candidate to use campaign funds to pay
certain child care costs.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That section 3517.13 of the Revised Code be
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 3517.13. (A)(1) No campaign committee of a statewide
candidate shall fail to file a complete and accurate statement
required under division (A)(1) of section 3517.10 of the Revised
Code.
(2) No campaign committee of a statewide candidate shall
fail to file a complete and accurate monthly statement, and no
campaign committee of a statewide candidate or a candidate for
the office of chief justice or justice of the supreme court
shall fail to file a complete and accurate two-business-day
statement, as required under section 3517.10 of the Revised
Code.
As used in this division, "statewide candidate" has the
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17 H. B. No. 60 Page 2
As Introduced
same meaning as in division (F)(2) of section 3517.10 of the
Revised Code.
(B) No campaign committee shall fail to file a complete
and accurate statement required under division (A)(1) of section
3517.10 of the Revised Code.
(C) No campaign committee shall fail to file a complete
and accurate statement required under division (A)(2) of section
3517.10 of the Revised Code.
(D) No campaign committee shall fail to file a complete
and accurate statement required under division (A)(3) or (4) of
section 3517.10 of the Revised Code.
(E) No person other than a campaign committee shall
knowingly fail to file a statement required under section
3517.10 or 3517.107 of the Revised Code.
(F) No person shall make cash contributions to any person
totaling more than one hundred dollars in each primary, special,
or general election.
(G)(1) No person shall knowingly conceal or misrepresent
contributions given or received, expenditures made, or any other
information required to be reported by a provision in sections
3517.08 to 3517.13 of the Revised Code.
(2)(a) No person shall make a contribution to a campaign
committee, political action committee, political contributing
entity, legislative campaign fund, political party, or person
making disbursements to pay the direct costs of producing or
airing electioneering communications in the name of another
person.
(b) A person does not make a contribution in the name of
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45 H. B. No. 60 Page 3
As Introduced
another when either of the following applies:
(i) An individual makes a contribution from a partnership
or other unincorporated business account, if the contribution is
reported by listing both the name of the partnership or other
unincorporated business and the name of the partner or owner
making the contribution as required under division (I) of
section 3517.10 of the Revised Code.
(ii) A person makes a contribution in that person's
spouse's name or in both of their names.
(H) No person within this state, publishing a newspaper or
other periodical, shall charge a campaign committee for
political advertising a rate in excess of the rate such person
would charge if the campaign committee were a general rate
advertiser whose advertising was directed to promoting its
business within the same area as that encompassed by the
particular office that the candidate of the campaign committee
is seeking. The rate shall take into account the amount of space
used, as well as the type of advertising copy submitted by or on
behalf of the campaign committee. All discount privileges
otherwise offered by a newspaper or periodical to general rate
advertisers shall be available upon equal terms to all campaign
committees.
No person within this state, operating a radio or
television station or network of stations in this state, shall
charge a campaign committee for political broadcasts a rate that
exceeds:
(1) During the forty-five days preceding the date of a
primary election and during the sixty days preceding the date of
a general or special election in which the candidate of the
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74 H. B. No. 60 Page 4
As Introduced
campaign committee is seeking office, the lowest unit charge of
the station for the same class and amount of time for the same
period;
(2) At any other time, the charges made for comparable use
of that station by its other users.
(I) Subject to divisions (K), (L), (M), and (N) of this
section, no agency or department of this state or any political
subdivision shall award any contract, other than one let by
competitive bidding or a contract incidental to such contract or
which is by force account, for the purchase of goods costing
more than five hundred dollars or services costing more than
five hundred dollars to any individual, partnership,
association, including, without limitation, a professional
association organized under Chapter 1785. of the Revised Code,
estate, or trust if the individual has made or the individual's
spouse has made, or any partner, shareholder, administrator,
executor, or trustee or the spouse of any of them has made, as
an individual, within the two previous calendar years, one or
more contributions totaling in excess of one thousand dollars to
the holder of the public office having ultimate responsibility
for the award of the contract or to the public officer's
campaign committee.
(J) Subject to divisions (K), (L), (M), and (N) of this
section, no agency or department of this state or any political
subdivision shall award any contract, other than one let by
competitive bidding or a contract incidental to such contract or
which is by force account, for the purchase of goods costing
more than five hundred dollars or services costing more than
five hundred dollars to a corporation or business trust, except
a professional association organized under Chapter 1785. of the
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104 H. B. No. 60 Page 5
As Introduced
Revised Code, if an owner of more than twenty per cent of the
corporation or business trust or the spouse of that person has
made, as an individual, within the two previous calendar years,
taking into consideration only owners for all of that period,
one or more contributions totaling in excess of one thousand
dollars to the holder of a public office having ultimate
responsibility for the award of the contract or to the public
officer's campaign committee.
(K) For purposes of divisions (I) and (J) of this section,
if a public officer who is responsible for the award of a
contract is appointed by the governor, whether or not the
appointment is subject to the advice and consent of the senate,
excluding members of boards, commissions, committees,
authorities, councils, boards of trustees, task forces, and
other such entities appointed by the governor, the office of the
governor is considered to have ultimate responsibility for the
award of the contract.
(L) For purposes of divisions (I) and (J) of this section,
if a public officer who is responsible for the award of a
contract is appointed by the elected chief executive officer of
a municipal corporation, or appointed by the elected chief
executive officer of a county operating under an alternative
form of county government or county charter, excluding members
of boards, commissions, committees, authorities, councils,
boards of trustees, task forces, and other such entities
appointed by the chief executive officer, the office of the
chief executive officer is considered to have ultimate
responsibility for the award of the contract.
(M)(1) Divisions (I) and (J) of this section do not apply
to contracts awarded by the board of commissioners of the
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134 H. B. No. 60 Page 6
As Introduced
sinking fund, municipal legislative authorities, boards of
education, boards of county commissioners, boards of township
trustees, or other boards, commissions, committees, authorities,
councils, boards of trustees, task forces, and other such
entities created by law, by the supreme court or courts of
appeals, by county courts consisting of more than one judge,
courts of common pleas consisting of more than one judge, or
municipal courts consisting of more than one judge, or by a
division of any court if the division consists of more than one
judge. This division shall apply to the specified entity only if
the members of the entity act collectively in the award of a
contract for goods or services.
(2) Divisions (I) and (J) of this section do not apply to
actions of the controlling board.
(N)(1) Divisions (I) and (J) of this section apply to
contributions made to the holder of a public office having
ultimate responsibility for the award of a contract, or to the
public officer's campaign committee, during the time the person
holds the office and during any time such person was a candidate
for the office. Those divisions do not apply to contributions
made to, or to the campaign committee of, a candidate for or
holder of the office other than the holder of the office at the
time of the award of the contract.
(2) Divisions (I) and (J) of this section do not apply to
contributions of a partner, shareholder, administrator,
executor, trustee, or owner of more than twenty per cent of a
corporation or business trust made before the person held any of
those positions or after the person ceased to hold any of those
positions in the partnership, association, estate, trust,
corporation, or business trust whose eligibility to be awarded a
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164 H. B. No. 60 Page 7
As Introduced
contract is being determined, nor to contributions of the
person's spouse made before the person held any of those
positions, after the person ceased to hold any of those
positions, before the two were married, after the granting of a
decree of divorce, dissolution of marriage, or annulment, or
after the granting of an order in an action brought solely for
legal separation. Those divisions do not apply to contributions
of the spouse of an individual whose eligibility to be awarded a
contract is being determined made before the two were married,
after the granting of a decree of divorce, dissolution of
marriage, or annulment, or after the granting of an order in an
action brought solely for legal separation.
(O) No beneficiary of a campaign fund or other person
shall convert for personal use, and no person shall knowingly
give to a beneficiary of a campaign fund or any other person,
for the beneficiary's or any other person's personal use,
anything of value from the beneficiary's campaign fund,
including, without limitation, payments to a beneficiary for
services the beneficiary personally performs, except as
reimbursement for any of the following:
(1) Legitimate and verifiable prior campaign expenses
incurred by the beneficiary;
(2) Legitimate and verifiable ordinary and necessary prior
expenses incurred by the beneficiary in connection with duties
as the holder of a public office, including, without limitation,
expenses incurred through participation in nonpartisan or
bipartisan events if the participation of the holder of a public
office would normally be expected;
(3) Legitimate and verifiable ordinary and necessary prior
expenses incurred by the beneficiary while doing any of the
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194 H. B. No. 60 Page 8
As Introduced
following:
(a) Engaging in activities in support of or opposition to
a candidate other than the beneficiary, political party, or
ballot issue;
(b) Raising funds for a political party, political action
committee, political contributing entity, legislative campaign
fund, campaign committee, or other candidate;
(c) Participating in the activities of a political party,
political action committee, political contributing entity,
legislative campaign fund, or campaign committee;
(d) Attending a political party convention or other
political meeting.
For purposes of this division, an expense is incurred
whenever a beneficiary has either made payment or is obligated
to make payment, as by the use of a credit card or other credit
procedure or by the use of goods or services received on
account.
(P) No beneficiary of a campaign fund shall knowingly
accept, and no person shall knowingly give to the beneficiary of
a campaign fund, reimbursement for an expense under division (O)
of this section to the extent that the expense previously was
reimbursed or paid from another source of funds. If an expense
is reimbursed under division (O) of this section and is later
paid or reimbursed, wholly or in part, from another source of
funds, the beneficiary shall repay the reimbursement received
under division (O) of this section to the extent of the payment
made or reimbursement received from the other source.
(Q) No candidate or public official or employee shall
accept for personal or business use anything of value from a
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223 H. B. No. 60 Page 9
As Introduced
political party, political action committee, political
contributing entity, legislative campaign fund, or campaign
committee other than the candidate's or public official's or
employee's own campaign committee, and no person shall knowingly
give to a candidate or public official or employee anything of
value from a political party, political action committee,
political contributing entity, legislative campaign fund, or
such a campaign committee, except for the following:
(1) Reimbursement for legitimate and verifiable ordinary
and necessary prior expenses not otherwise prohibited by law
incurred by the candidate or public official or employee while
engaged in any legitimate activity of the political party,
political action committee, political contributing entity,
legislative campaign fund, or such campaign committee. Without
limitation, reimbursable expenses under this division include
those incurred while doing any of the following:
(a) Engaging in activities in support of or opposition to
another candidate, political party, or ballot issue;
(b) Raising funds for a political party, legislative
campaign fund, campaign committee, or another candidate;
(c) Attending a political party convention or other
political meeting.
(2) Compensation not otherwise prohibited by law for
actual and valuable personal services rendered under a written
contract to the political party, political action committee,
political contributing entity, legislative campaign fund, or
such campaign committee for any legitimate activity of the
political party, political action committee, political
contributing entity, legislative campaign fund, or such campaign
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252 H. B. No. 60 Page 10
As Introduced
committee.
Reimbursable expenses under this division do not include,
and it is a violation of this division for a candidate or public
official or employee to accept, or for any person to knowingly
give to a candidate or public official or employee from a
political party, political action committee, political
contributing entity, legislative campaign fund, or campaign
committee other than the candidate's or public official's or
employee's own campaign committee, anything of value for
activities primarily related to the candidate's or public
official's or employee's own campaign for election, except for
contributions to the candidate's or public official's or
employee's campaign committee.
For purposes of this division, an expense is incurred
whenever a candidate or public official or employee has either
made payment or is obligated to make payment, as by the use of a
credit card or other credit procedure, or by the use of goods or
services on account.
(R)(1) Division (O) or (P) of this section does not
prohibit a campaign committee from making direct advance or post
payment from contributions to vendors for goods and services for
which reimbursement is permitted under division (O) of this
section, except that no campaign committee shall pay its
candidate or other beneficiary for services personally performed
by the candidate or other beneficiary.
(2) If any expense that may be reimbursed under division
(O), (P), or (Q) of this section is part of other expenses that
may not be paid or reimbursed, the separation of the two types
of expenses for the purpose of allocating for payment or
reimbursement those expenses that may be paid or reimbursed may
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282 H. B. No. 60 Page 11
As Introduced
be by any reasonable accounting method, considering all of the
surrounding circumstances.
(3) For purposes of divisions (O), (P), and (Q) of this
section, mileage allowance at a rate not greater than that
allowed by the internal revenue service at the time the travel
occurs may be paid instead of reimbursement for actual travel
expenses allowable.
(4) For purposes of divisions (O), (P), and (Q) of this
section, the cost of child care provided by a person licensed to
provide child care under Chapter 5104. of the Revised Code is
considered an ordinary and necessary expense incurred by a
beneficiary while engaging in the activities and duties
described in those divisions, so long as the cost is incurred
only as a direct result of the beneficiary engaging in those
activities and duties and would not otherwise be incurred.
(S)(1) As used in division (S) of this section:
(a) "State elective office" has the same meaning as in
section 3517.092 of the Revised Code.
(b) "Federal office" means a federal office as defined in
the Federal Election Campaign Act.
(c) "Federal campaign committee" means a principal
campaign committee or authorized committee as defined in the
Federal Election Campaign Act.
(2) No person who is a candidate for state elective office
and who previously sought nomination or election to a federal
office shall transfer any funds or assets from that person's
federal campaign committee for nomination or election to the
federal office to that person's campaign committee as a
candidate for state elective office.
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
293
294
295
296
297
298
299
300
301
302
303
304
305
306
307
308
309
310
311 H. B. No. 60 Page 12
As Introduced
(3) No campaign committee of a person who is a candidate
for state elective office and who previously sought nomination
or election to a federal office shall accept any funds or assets
from that person's federal campaign committee for that person's
nomination or election to the federal office.
(T)(1) Except as otherwise provided in division (B)(6)(c)
of section 3517.102 of the Revised Code, a state or county
political party shall not disburse moneys from any account other
than a state candidate fund to make contributions to any of the
following:
(a) A state candidate fund;
(b) A legislative campaign fund;
(c) A campaign committee of a candidate for the office of
governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, auditor of
state, treasurer of state, attorney general, member of the state
board of education, or member of the general assembly.
(2) No state candidate fund, legislative campaign fund, or
campaign committee of a candidate for any office described in
division (T)(1)(c) of this section shall knowingly accept a
contribution in violation of division (T)(1) of this section.
(U) No person shall fail to file a statement required
under section 3517.12 of the Revised Code.
(V) No campaign committee shall fail to file a statement
required under division (K)(3) of section 3517.10 of the Revised
Code.
(W)(1) No foreign national shall, directly or indirectly
through any other person or entity, make a contribution,
expenditure, or independent expenditure or promise, either
312
313
314
315
316
317
318
319
320
321
322
323
324
325
326
327
328
329
330
331
332
333
334
335
336
337
338
339 H. B. No. 60 Page 13
As Introduced
expressly or implicitly, to make a contribution, expenditure, or
independent expenditure in support of or opposition to a
candidate for any elective office in this state, including an
office of a political party.
(2) No candidate, campaign committee, political action
committee, political contributing entity, legislative campaign
fund, state candidate fund, political party, or separate
segregated fund shall solicit or accept a contribution,
expenditure, or independent expenditure from a foreign national.
The secretary of state may direct any candidate, committee,
entity, fund, or party that accepts a contribution, expenditure,
or independent expenditure in violation of this division to
return the contribution, expenditure, or independent expenditure
or, if it is not possible to return the contribution,
expenditure, or independent expenditure, then to return instead
the value of it, to the contributor.
(3) As used in division (W) of this section, "foreign
national" has the same meaning as in section 441e(b) of the
Federal Election Campaign Act.
(X)(1) No state or county political party shall transfer
any moneys from its restricted fund to any account of the
political party into which contributions may be made or from
which contributions or expenditures may be made.
(2)(a) No state or county political party shall deposit a
contribution or contributions that it receives into its
restricted fund.
(b) No state or county political party shall make a
contribution or an expenditure from its restricted fund.
(3)(a) No corporation or labor organization shall make a
340
341
342
343
344
345
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356
357
358
359
360
361
362
363
364
365
366
367
368 H. B. No. 60 Page 14
As Introduced
gift or gifts from the corporation's or labor organization's
money or property aggregating more than ten thousand dollars to
any one state or county political party for the party's
restricted fund in a calendar year.
(b) No state or county political party shall accept a gift
or gifts for the party's restricted fund aggregating more than
ten thousand dollars from any one corporation or labor
organization in a calendar year.
(4) No state or county political party shall transfer any
moneys in the party's restricted fund to any other state or
county political party.
(5) No state or county political party shall knowingly
fail to file a statement required under section 3517.1012 of the
Revised Code.
(Y) The administrator of workers' compensation and the
employees of the bureau of workers' compensation shall not
conduct any business with or award any contract, other than one
awarded by competitive bidding, for the purchase of goods
costing more than five hundred dollars or services costing more
than five hundred dollars to any individual, partnership,
association, including, without limitation, a professional
association organized under Chapter 1785. of the Revised Code,
estate, or trust, if the individual has made, or the
individual's spouse has made, or any partner, shareholder,
administrator, executor, or trustee, or the spouses of any of
those individuals has made, as an individual, within the two
previous calendar years, one or more contributions totaling in
excess of one thousand dollars to the campaign committee of the
governor or lieutenant governor or to the campaign committee of
any candidate for the office of governor or lieutenant governor.
369
370
371
372
373
374
375
376
377
378
379
380
381
382
383
384
385
386
387
388
389
390
391
392
393
394
395
396
397
398 H. B. No. 60 Page 15
As Introduced
(Z) The administrator of workers' compensation and the
employees of the bureau of workers' compensation shall not
conduct business with or award any contract, other than one
awarded by competitive bidding, for the purchase of goods
costing more than five hundred dollars or services costing more
than five hundred dollars to a corporation or business trust,
except a professional association organized under Chapter 1785.
of the Revised Code, if an owner of more than twenty per cent of
the corporation or business trust, or the spouse of the owner,
has made, as an individual, within the two previous calendar
years, taking into consideration only owners for all of such
period, one or more contributions totaling in excess of one
thousand dollars to the campaign committee of the governor or
lieutenant governor or to the campaign committee of any
candidate for the office of governor or lieutenant governor.
Section 2. That existing section 3517.13 of the Revised
Code is hereby repealed.
399
400
401
402
403
404
405
406
407
408
409
410
411
412
413
414
415