As Introduced
136th General Assembly
Regular Session H. B. No. 78
2025-2026
Representatives Miller, J., Hall, T.
Cosponsors: Representatives Click, Brennan, Grim, Rader, Williams, Denson,
Russo
A B I L L
To amend section 3501.01 and to enact sections
4507.60, 4507.61, and 4507.62 of the Revised
Code to authorize the use of a digital driver's
license or state identification card.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That section 3501.01 be amended and sections
4507.60, 4507.61, and 4507.62 of the Revised Code be enacted to
read as follows:
Sec. 3501.01. As used in the sections of the Revised Code
relating to elections and political communications:
(A) "General election" means the election held on the
first Tuesday after the first Monday in each November.
(B) "Regular municipal election" means the election held
on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November in each
odd-numbered year.
(C) "Regular state election" means the election held on
the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November in each
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even-numbered year.
(D) "Special election" means any election other than those
elections defined in other divisions of this section. A special
election may be held only on the first Tuesday after the first
Monday in May or November, on the first Tuesday after the first
Monday in August in accordance with section 3501.022 of the
Revised Code, or on the day authorized by a particular municipal
or county charter for the holding of a primary election, except
that in any year in which a presidential primary election is
held, no special election shall be held in May, except as
authorized by a municipal or county charter, but may be held on
the third Tuesday after the first Monday in March.
(E)(1) "Primary" or "primary election" means an election
held for the purpose of nominating persons as candidates of
political parties for election to offices, and for the purpose
of electing persons as members of the controlling committees of
political parties and as delegates and alternates to the
conventions of political parties. Primary elections shall be
held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in May of each
year except in years in which a presidential primary election is
held.
(2) "Presidential primary election" means a primary
election as defined by division (E)(1) of this section at which
an election is held for the purpose of choosing delegates and
alternates to the national conventions of the major political
parties pursuant to section 3513.12 of the Revised Code. Unless
otherwise specified, presidential primary elections are included
in references to primary elections. In years in which a
presidential primary election is held, all primary elections
shall be held on the third Tuesday after the first Monday in
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March except as otherwise authorized by a municipal or county
charter.
(F) "Political party" means any group of voters meeting
the requirements set forth in section 3517.01 of the Revised
Code for the formation and existence of a political party.
(1) "Major political party" means any political party
organized under the laws of this state whose candidate for
governor or nominees for presidential electors received not less
than twenty per cent of the total vote cast for such office at
the most recent regular state election.
(2) "Minor political party" means any political party
organized under the laws of this state that meets either of the
following requirements:
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this division, the
political party's candidate for governor or nominees for
presidential electors received less than twenty per cent but not
less than three per cent of the total vote cast for such office
at the most recent regular state election. A political party
that meets the requirements of this division remains a political
party for a period of four years after meeting those
requirements.
(b) The political party has filed with the secretary of
state, subsequent to its failure to meet the requirements of
division (F)(2)(a) of this section, a petition that meets the
requirements of section 3517.01 of the Revised Code.
A newly formed political party shall be known as a minor
political party until the time of the first election for
governor or president which occurs not less than twelve months
subsequent to the formation of such party, after which election
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the status of such party shall be determined by the vote for the
office of governor or president.
(G) "Dominant party in a precinct" or "dominant political
party in a precinct" means that political party whose candidate
for election to the office of governor at the most recent
regular state election at which a governor was elected received
more votes than any other person received for election to that
office in such precinct at such election.
(H) "Candidate" means any qualified person certified in
accordance with the provisions of the Revised Code for placement
on the official ballot of a primary, general, or special
election to be held in this state, or any qualified person who
claims to be a write-in candidate, or who knowingly assents to
being represented as a write-in candidate by another at either a
primary, general, or special election to be held in this state.
(I) "Independent candidate" means any candidate who claims
not to be affiliated with a political party, and whose name has
been certified on the office-type ballot at a general or special
election through the filing of a statement of candidacy and
nominating petition, as prescribed in section 3513.257 of the
Revised Code.
(J) "Nonpartisan candidate" means any candidate whose name
is required, pursuant to section 3505.04 of the Revised Code, to
be listed on the nonpartisan ballot, including all candidates
for judge of a municipal court, county court, or court of common
pleas, for member of any board of education, for municipal or
township offices in which primary elections are not held for
nominating candidates by political parties, and for offices of
municipal corporations having charters that provide for separate
ballots for elections for these offices.
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(K) "Party candidate" means any candidate who claims to be
a member of a political party and who has been certified to
appear on the office-type ballot at a general or special
election as the nominee of a political party because the
candidate has won the primary election of the candidate's party
for the public office the candidate seeks, has been nominated
under section 3517.012, or is selected by party committee in
accordance with section 3513.31 of the Revised Code.
(L) "Officer of a political party" includes, but is not
limited to, any member, elected or appointed, of a controlling
committee, whether representing the territory of the state, a
district therein, a county, township, a city, a ward, a
precinct, or other territory, of a major or minor political
party.
(M) "Question or issue" means any question or issue
certified in accordance with the Revised Code for placement on
an official ballot at a general or special election to be held
in this state.
(N) "Elector" or "qualified elector" means a person having
the qualifications provided by law to be entitled to vote.
(O) "Voter" means an elector who votes at an election.
(P) "Voting residence" means that place of residence of an
elector which shall determine the precinct in which the elector
may vote.
(Q) "Precinct" means a district within a county
established by the board of elections of such county within
which all qualified electors having a voting residence therein
may vote at the same polling place.
(R) "Polling place" means that place provided for each
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precinct at which the electors having a voting residence in such
precinct may vote.
(S) "Board" or "board of elections" means the board of
elections appointed in a county pursuant to section 3501.06 of
the Revised Code.
(T) "Political subdivision" means a county, township,
city, village, or school district.
(U) "Election officer" or "election official" means any of
the following:
(1) Secretary of state;
(2) Employees of the secretary of state serving the
division of elections in the capacity of attorney,
administrative officer, administrative assistant, elections
administrator, office manager, or clerical supervisor;
(3) Director of a board of elections;
(4) Deputy director of a board of elections;
(5) Member of a board of elections;
(6) Employees of a board of elections;
(7) Precinct election officials;
(8) Employees appointed by the boards of elections on a
temporary or part-time basis.
(V) "Acknowledgment notice" means a notice sent by a board
of elections, on a form prescribed by the secretary of state,
informing a voter registration applicant or an applicant who
wishes to change the applicant's residence or name of the status
of the application; the information necessary to complete or
update the application, if any; and if the application is
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complete, the precinct in which the applicant is to vote.
(W) "Confirmation notice" means a notice sent by a board
of elections, on a form prescribed by the secretary of state, to
a registered elector to confirm the registered elector's current
address.
(X) "Designated agency" means an office or agency in the
state that provides public assistance or that provides state-
funded programs primarily engaged in providing services to
persons with disabilities and that is required by the National
Voter Registration Act of 1993 to implement a program designed
and administered by the secretary of state for registering
voters, or any other public or government office or agency that
implements a program designed and administered by the secretary
of state for registering voters, including the department of job
and family services, the program administered under section
3701.132 of the Revised Code by the department of health, the
department of mental health and addiction services, the
department of developmental disabilities, the opportunities for
Ohioans with disabilities agency, and any other agency the
secretary of state designates. "Designated agency" does not
include public high schools and vocational schools, public
libraries, or the office of a county treasurer.
(Y) "National Voter Registration Act of 1993" means the
"National Voter Registration Act of 1993," 107 Stat. 77, 42
U.S.C.A. 1973gg.
(Z) "Voting Rights Act of 1965" means the "Voting Rights
Act of 1965," 79 Stat. 437, 42 U.S.C.A. 1973, as amended.
(AA)(1) "Photo identification" means one of the following
documents that includes the individual's name and photograph and
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is not expired:
(a) An Ohio driver's license , or state identification
card, including a digital license or identification provided in
accordance with section 4507.62 of the Revised Code, or interim
identification form issued by the registrar of motor vehicles or
a deputy registrar under Chapter 4506. or 4507. of the Revised
Code;
(b) A United States passport or passport card;
(c) A United States military identification card, Ohio
national guard identification card, or United States department
of veterans affairs identification card.
(2) A "copy" of an individual's photo identification means
images of both the front and back of a document described in
division (AA)(1) of this section, except that if the document is
a United States passport, a copy of the photo identification
means an image of the passport's identification page that
includes the individual's name, photograph, and other
identifying information and the passport's expiration date.
(BB) "Driver's license" means a license or permit issued
by the registrar or a deputy registrar under Chapter 4506. or
4507. of the Revised Code that authorizes an individual to
drive. "Driver's license" includes a driver's license,
commercial driver's license, probationary license, restricted
license, motorcycle operator's license, or temporary instruction
permit identification card. "Driver's license" does not include
a limited term license issued under section 4507.09 of the
Revised Code.
(CC) "State identification card" means a card issued by
the registrar or a deputy registrar under sections 4507.50 to
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4507.52 of the Revised Code.
(DD) "Interim identification form" means the document
issued by the registrar or a deputy registrar to an applicant
for a driver's license or state identification card that
contains all of the information otherwise found on the license
or card and that an applicant may use as a form of
identification until the physical license or card arrives in the
mail.
Sec. 4507.60. As used in sections 4507.60 to 4507.62 of
the Revised Code:
(A) "Digital license or identification" means a digital
copy of a person's physical driver's license or identification
card that is contained within a mobile application loaded onto a
person's electronic wireless communications device.
(B) "Electronic wireless communications device" has the
same meaning as in section 4509.103 of the Revised Code.
(C) "Licensee or cardholder" means a person who holds a
state-issued driver's license or identification card.
(D) "Mobile application entity" means the entity that
creates, owns, or manages the mobile application containing the
digital license or identification.
(E) "Peace officer" has the same meaning as in section
109.71 of the Revised Code.
(F) "Proof of identity" means the use of a driver's
license or identification card, either in physical or digital
form, in order to provide evidence of a person's identity,
including that person's name, age, date of birth, distinguishing
number, address, or photographic image.
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(G) "Selfie" means an image of a person that is taken by
that person using a digital camera on the person's electronic
wireless communications device.
Sec. 4507.61. The registrar of motor vehicles shall
develop, implement, and administer a program that provides for
the use of a digital license or identification by residents of
this state. For purposes of the program, the registrar shall
adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code
that establish all of the following:
(A) A requirement that a person must have a valid physical
driver's license or identification card in order to qualify for
use of a digital license or identification;
(B) A mechanism by which the registrar shall receive data
and images, including a selfie of a licensee or cardholder, from
either the mobile application entity or the licensee or
cardholder, for purposes of both of the following:
(1) Verifying the identity of the licensee or cardholder;
(2) Ensuring the validity of the driver's license or
identification card.
(C) A verification process to determine that any data,
images, or selfie submitted in accordance with division (B) of
this section reasonably matches the data and digitalized
photographic records of the department of public safety for that
licensee or cardholder;
(D) Mechanisms to ensure that any information transmitted
by the bureau of motor vehicles to either the mobile application
or the digital driver's license or identification is encrypted
and protected in accordance with reasonable security standards
broadly available and cannot be intercepted while being
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transmitted from the bureau;
(E) Procedures that apply when a licensee or cardholder's
driver's license or identification card is expired, suspended,
or revoked;
(F) Any other procedures or requirements that the
registrar determines are necessary to implement and administer
this section and ensure the general privacy, security, and
safety of the data and images exchanged through the program.
Notwithstanding any provision of section 121.95 of the
Revised Code to the contrary, a regulatory restriction contained
in a rule adopted under this section is not subject to sections
121.95 to 121.953 of the Revised Code.
Sec. 4507.62. (A) At any time that a person is requested
to provide proof of identity, including requests made by a state
employee, a state official, or a peace officer, the person may
provide the proof of identity through a digital license or
identification, if all of the following apply:
(1) The person's driver's license or identification card
is valid and not expired, revoked, or suspended.
(2) One of the following has occurred:
(a) For an Ohio driver's license or identification card,
the registrar of motor vehicles has provided any identification
verification services required by the mobile application entity
prior to use of the digital license or identification in
accordance with section 4507.61 of the Revised Code.
(b) For a driver's license or identification card issued
by another state, the state agency responsible for verifying the
person's identity prior to use of the digital license or
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identification has performed all identification verification
services required by that state.
(3) The requestor of the proof of identity has the means
and authorization to accept and validate the digital license or
identification.
(B)(1) When a person utilizes an electronic wireless
communications device to present proof of identity, only the
evidence of that person's proof of identity displayed on the
device shall be viewed by the requestor. No other content of the
device shall be viewed for purposes of obtaining proof of
identity or for any other purpose.
(2) When a person provides an electronic wireless
communications device to the requestor of the proof of identity,
the person assumes the risk of any resulting damage to the
device unless the requestor purposely, knowingly, or recklessly
commits an action that results in damage to the device.
Section 2. That existing section 3501.01 of the Revised
Code is hereby repealed.
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