As Introduced
136th General Assembly
Regular Session S. B. No. 79
2025-2026
Senators Blessing, Blackshear
A B I L L
To amend sections 1331.01, 1331.04, and 1331.16 and
to enact sections 1331.05 and 1331.50 of the
Revised Code to regulate the use of pricing
algorithms.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 1331.01, 1331.04, and 1331.16 be
amended and sections 1331.05 and 1331.50 of the Revised Code be
enacted to read as follows:
Sec. 1331.01. As used in sections 1331.01 to 1331.14 and
1331.50 of the Revised Code:
(A) "Commercial terms" means any of the following:
(1) Level of service;
(2) Availability;
(3) Output, including quantities of products produced or
distributed or the amount or level of service provided;
(4) Rebates or discounts made available.
(B) "Distribute," "distribution," and "distributing"
include selling, licensing, providing access to, or otherwise
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making available by any means, including through a subscription
or the sale of a service.
(C) "Nonpublic competitor data" means nonpublic data that
is derived from or otherwise provided by another person that
competes in the same market as a person, or a related market.
"Nonpublic competitor data" does not include information
distributed, reported, or otherwise communicated in a way that
does not reveal any underlying data from a competitor, such as
narrative industry reports, news reports, business commentaries,
or generalized industry survey results.
(D) "Nonpublic data" means information that is not widely
available or easily accessible to the public, including
information about price, commercial terms, and related products
or services, regardless of whether the data is attributable to a
specific competitor or anonymized.
(E) "Person" includes corporations, partnerships, and
associations existing under or authorized by any state or
territory of the United States, and solely for the purpose of
the definition of division (C) (H) of this section, a foreign
governmental entity.
(B) (F) "Pricing algorithm" means any computational
process, including a computational process derived from machine
learning or other artificial intelligence techniques, that
processes data to recommend or set a price or commercial term
that is in or affecting commerce in this state.
(G) "Public office" means any state agency, public
institution, political subdivision, or other organized body,
office, agency, institution, or entity established by the laws
of this state for the exercise of any function of government.
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"Public office" does not include the nonprofit corporation
formed under section 187.01 of the Revised Code.
(C)(1) (H)(1) "Trust" is a combination of capital, skill,
or acts by two or more persons for any of the following
purposes:
(a) To create or carry out restrictions in trade or
commerce;
(b) To limit or reduce the production, or increase or
reduce the price of merchandise or a commodity;
(c) To prevent competition in manufacturing, making,
transportation, sale, or purchase of merchandise, produce, or a
commodity;
(d) To fix at a standard or figure, whereby its price to
the public or consumer is in any manner controlled or
established, an article or commodity of merchandise, produce, or
commerce intended for sale, barter, use, or consumption in this
state;
(e) To make, enter into, execute, or carry out contracts,
obligations, or agreements of any kind by which they bind or
have bound themselves not to sell, dispose of, or transport an
article or commodity, or an article of trade, use, merchandise,
commerce, or consumption below a common standard figure or fixed
value, or by which they agree in any manner to keep the price of
such article, commodity, or transportation at a fixed or
graduated figure, or by which they shall in any manner establish
or settle the price of an article, commodity, or transportation
between them or themselves and others, so as directly or
indirectly to preclude a free and unrestricted competition among
themselves, purchasers, or consumers in the sale or
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transportation of such article or commodity, or by which they
agree to pool, combine, or directly or indirectly unite any
interests which they have connected with the sale or
transportation of such article or commodity, that its price
might in any manner be affected;
(f) To refuse to buy from, sell to, or trade with any
person because such person appears on a blacklist issued by, or
is being boycotted by, any foreign corporate or governmental
entity.
(2) "Trust" also means a combination of capital, skill, or
acts by two or more bidders or potential bidders, or one or more
bidders or potential bidders and any person affiliated with a
public office, to restrain or prevent competition in the letting
or awarding of any public contract in derogation of any statute,
ordinance, or rule requiring the use of competitive bidding or
selection in the letting or awarding of the public contract.
(3) "Trust," as defined in this section, does not include
bargaining by a labor organization in negotiating or effecting
contracts with an employer or employer group with reference to
minimum payment to any member of the labor organization for any
motor vehicles owned, driven, and used exclusively by such
member in the performance of the member's duties of employment
pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement between the labor
organization and the employer or employer group.
(4) A trust as defined in this division is unlawful and
void.
Sec. 1331.04. Every combination, contract, or agreement in
the form of a trust, including any violation of section 1331.05
of the Revised Code, is declared to be a conspiracy against
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trade and illegal. No person shall engage in such conspiracy or
take part therein, or aid or advise in its commission, or, as
principal, manager, director, agent, servant, or employer, or in
any other capacity, knowingly carry out any of the stipulations,
purposes, prices, or rates, or furnish any information to assist
in carrying out such purposes, or orders thereunder, or in
pursuance thereof, or in any manner violate sections 1331.01 to
1331.14 of the Revised Code. Each day's violation of this
section is a separate offense.
Sec. 1331.05. (A) As used in this section, "price" means
the amount of money or other thing of value, whether tangible or
not, expected, required, or given in payment for any product or
service, including compensation paid to an employee or
independent contractor for services provided.
(B) No person shall use or distribute a pricing algorithm
that uses, incorporates, or is trained with nonpublic competitor
data.
(C) In any civil or criminal action or proceeding for a
violation of sections 1331.01 to 1331.14 of the Revised Code,
the court shall presume that the defendant entered into an
agreement, contract, combination, or conspiracy against trade if
the plaintiff establishes either or both of the following:
(1) That the defendant distributed the pricing algorithm
to two or more persons and either or both of the following
applies:
(a) The defendant intended the pricing algorithm to be
used to set or recommend a price or commercial term of a product
or service in the same market or a related market.
(b) Two or more persons used the pricing algorithm to set
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or recommend a price or commercial term of a product or service
in the same market or a related market.
(2) That both of the following apply:
(a) The defendant used the pricing algorithm to set or
recommend a price or commercial term of a product or service.
(b) The pricing algorithm was used by another person to
set or recommend a price or commercial term of a product or
service in the same market or a related market.
(D) The presumption described in division (C) of this
section does not apply to a defendant if the defendant did not
develop or distribute the pricing algorithm and demonstrates, by
clear and convincing evidence, that the defendant did not have
actual knowledge and could not have reasonably known that the
pricing algorithm used nonpublic competitor data.
(E) In a civil case in which the presumption described in
division (C) of this section applies, any person that
distributed the pricing algorithm and knew, or could reasonably
have known, that the pricing algorithm would use, incorporate,
or be trained with nonpublic competitor data is jointly and
severally liable for any violation of sections 1331.01 to
1331.14 of the Revised Code.
(F) Nothing in this section impairs or limits the
applicability of this chapter or any other state or federal
antitrust laws.
Sec. 1331.16. (A) As used in this section, "documentary
material" means the either of the following:
(1) The original or any copy of any writings, drawings,
graphs, charts, photographs, phonorecords, and other data
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compilation from which intelligence, relevant to any
investigation conducted to determine if any person is or has
been engaged in a violation of this chapter, can be perceived
with or without the use of detection devices ;
(2) Information on the development or distribution of a
pricing algorithm, including information on the person
responsible for the development or distribution and how the
pricing algorithm works .
(B) Whenever the attorney general has reasonable cause to
believe that any person, as defined in section 1331.01 of the
Revised Code, may be in possession, custody, or control of any
documentary material or may have knowledge of any fact that is
relevant to any investigation conducted to determine if any
person is or has been engaged in a violation of this chapter,
the attorney general or the attorney general's designated
representative may issue in writing, and cause to be served upon
any person or the representative or agent of the person, an
investigative demand that requires the person to produce the
documentary material for inspection and copying or reproduction,
to answer under oath and in writing written interrogatories, or
to appear and testify under oath before the attorney general or
the attorney general's duly authorized representative, or that
requires the person to do any combination of the three demands.
(C) Each investigative demand shall:
(1) Describe the conduct under investigation and state the
provisions of law applicable thereto;
(2) If it is a demand for production of documentary
material:
(a) Describe with reasonable particularity the documentary
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material to be produced;
(b) Prescribe a return date that will provide a reasonable
period of time within which the material may be assembled and
made available for inspection and copying or reproduction;
(c) Identify the custodian to whom the material shall be
made available.
(3) If it is a demand for answers to written
interrogatories:
(a) Identify the representative of the attorney general to
whom the answers shall be made;
(b) Prescribe a date by which the answers shall be
presented.
(4) If it is a demand for the giving of oral testimony:
(a) Prescribe a date, time, and place at which oral
testimony shall be taken;
(b) Identify the representative of the attorney general
who shall conduct the oral examination.
(D) No investigative demand shall:
(1) Contain any requirement that would be unreasonable if
contained in a subpoena or a subpoena duces tecum issued by a
court in aid of a grand jury investigation;
(2) Except as provided in division (H) of this section,
require any answers to written interrogatories, the giving of
any oral testimony, or the production of any documentary
material that would be privileged from disclosure if demanded by
a subpoena or subpoena duces tecum issued by a court in aid of a
grand jury investigation.
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(E) Service of any investigative demand may be made and is
complete by doing either of the following:
(1) Depositing a copy of the demand in the United States
mails, by certified mail addressed to the person to be served at
his the person's principal office, place of business, or
residence;
(2) Delivering a copy of the demand to the person, or to
the representative or agent of the person.
(F) Any person who is served with a demand under this
section may be represented by counsel at the taking of that
person's testimony.
(G) In all respects, the taking of oral testimony,
answering of written interrogatories, and production of
documentary material under this section, except as otherwise
provided in this section, shall follow the procedures
established by the discovery provisions of the Rules of Civil
Procedure.
(H)(1) Whenever a natural person who is served with a
demand under this section refuses, on the basis of the person's
privilege against self-incrimination, to provide any oral
testimony, to answer any written interrogatories, or to produce
any documentary material, the attorney general or the attorney
general's designated representative may file a written request
with a court of common pleas, and the court, unless it finds
that to do so would not further the administration of justice,
shall compel that person to provide the oral testimony, to
answer the written interrogatories, or to produce the
documentary material if all of the following apply:
(a) The attorney general or the attorney general's
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designated representative makes a written request to the court
of common pleas to order the person to provide oral testimony,
to answer written interrogatories, or to produce documentary
material, notwithstanding his the person's claim of privilege;
(b) The written request is made to a court of common pleas
in the county in which the person resides, transacts business,
or is otherwise found, except that if the person transacts
business in more than one county, the request shall be made in
the county in which the person maintains his the person's
principal place of business;
(c) The court of common pleas informs the person that by
providing oral testimony, answering written interrogatories, or
producing documentary material the person will receive immunity
under division (H)(2) of this section.
(2) If, but for division (H) of this section, the person
would have been privileged to withhold any oral testimony,
answers to written interrogatories, or documentary material
given in these proceedings and if the person complies with an
order under division (H)(1) of this section that compels the
person to provide testimony, answers, or material, the person
shall not be prosecuted or subjected to any criminal penalty for
or on account of any transaction or matter concerning which, in
compliance with the order, the person provided testimony,
answers, or material.
(3) A person granted immunity under division (H)(2) of
this section may be subjected to a criminal penalty for any
violation of section 2921.11, 2921.12, or 2921.13 of the Revised
Code, or for contempt committed in providing oral testimony,
answers to written interrogatories, or documentary material in
compliance with the order.
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(I) Within twenty days after service of an investigative
demand upon any person pursuant to this section, or at any time
before the compliance date specified in the demand, whichever
period is shorter, the person may file in the court of common
pleas in the county in which the person resides, transacts
business, or is otherwise found, and serve upon the attorney
general, a request for an order of the court modifying or
setting aside the demand, except that if the person transacts
business in more than one county, the request shall be filed in
the county in which the person maintains the person's principal
place of business, or in any other county that may be agreed
upon by the person and the attorney general, or the attorney
general's designated representative. The application shall
specify each ground upon which the person relies in seeking
relief. The time allowed for compliance with the demand shall be
tolled during the pendency of the request in court.
(J) Whenever any person fails to fully comply with an
investigative demand served upon the person pursuant to this
section, the attorney general may file in the court of common
pleas in the county in which the person resides, transacts
business, or is otherwise found, and serve upon the person, a
request for an order of the court that compels compliance with
the demand, except that if the person transacts business in more
than one county, the request shall be filed in the county in
which the person maintains the person's principal place of
business, or in any other county that may be agreed upon by the
person and the attorney general, or the attorney general's
designated representative. If the court finds that the
noncompliance was in bad faith or for the purpose of delay, it
may order the person to pay to the attorney general the
reasonable expenses incurred in obtaining the order, including
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attorney's fees, and may invoke the sanctions provided by Rule
37 of the Rules of Civil Procedure.
(K) A person who obstructs an investigative demand made
under this section may be liable for criminal prosecution for a
violation of section 2921.13, 2921.31, or 2921.32 of the Revised
Code.
(L) The attorney general is responsible for the custody,
use, and necessary preservation of the documentary material made
available pursuant to a demand and for its return as provided by
this section. All documentary material, answers to written
interrogatories, and transcripts of oral testimony that are
provided pursuant to an investigative demand are, for purposes
of section 149.43 and division (E)(2) of section 1347.08 of the
Revised Code, trial preparation records, and shall be
confidential and shall not be subject to disclosure, inspection,
or copying except as provided in this section. Unless otherwise
ordered by a court of common pleas, no documentary material,
answers to written interrogatories, or transcripts of oral
testimony that are provided pursuant to an investigative demand
shall be available for inspection or copying by, nor shall the
contents of the material, answers, or transcripts be disclosed
to, any individual other than an authorized representative of
the attorney general, without the consent of the person who
provided the material, answers, or testimony, except that the
material, answers, or testimony may be used in any grand jury
investigation or, after reasonable notice to the person who
provided the material, answers, or testimony, in the conduct of
any case or other official proceeding involving an alleged
violation of this chapter. No employee of the office of the
attorney general shall purposely make available for inspection
or copying documentary material, answers to written
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interrogatories, or transcripts of oral testimony provided
pursuant to an investigative demand, nor disclose the contents
of the material, answers, or transcripts, except as provided by
this section.
(M) When copies of documentary material made available
pursuant to an investigative demand are no longer required for
use in a pending proceeding, or, absent any pending proceeding,
are no longer required in connection with the investigation for
which they were demanded, or at the end of twenty-four months
following the date when the material was made available,
whichever is sooner, all copies of the material shall be
returned, unless a request to extend the period beyond twenty-
four months has been filed in the court of common pleas in which
a request for an order compelling compliance pursuant to
division (J) of this section could be filed. This division shall
not require the return of any copies of the documentary material
that have passed into the control of any court or grand jury.
(N) Public officers and their deputies, assistants,
clerks, subordinates, and employees shall render and furnish to
the attorney general, or to the attorney general's designated
representatives when so requested, all information and
assistance in their possession or within their power.
(O) When any request is filed in any court of common pleas
under this section, the court shall have jurisdiction to hear
and determine the matter presented and to enter any order that
may be required to carry into effect the provisions of this
chapter.
(P) Nothing contained in this section impairs the
authority of the attorney general to file any complaint alleging
an antitrust violation that is not described in the demand, nor
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does this section prevent the use of any evidence, obtained
through this section or otherwise, in such an action.
(Q) Nothing in this section impairs the authority of the
attorney general or the attorney general's representatives to
lay before any grand jury that is impaneled in this state any
evidence, obtained through this section or otherwise, concerning
any alleged violation of this chapter, to invoke the power of
the courts to compel the production of any evidence before any
grand jury that is impaneled in this state, or to institute any
proceeding for the enforcement of any order or process that is
issued in execution of such power or to punish disobedience of
any such order or process by any person.
Sec. 1331.50. (A) As used in this section:
(1) "Gross receipts" has the same meaning as in section
5751.01 of the Revised Code.
(2) "Price" has the same meaning as in section 1331.05 of
the Revised Code.
(B) A person that owns or operates a commercial enterprise
with five million dollars or more in gross receipts for the most
recently completed federal taxable year, and that directly or
indirectly provides a service or product that uses a pricing
algorithm to recommend or set a price or commercial term, shall
clearly disclose the following:
(1) To a customer, before the customer purchases the
relevant product or service, that the price or a commercial term
is set or recommended by a pricing algorithm;
(2) To a current or prospective employee or independent
contractor, that the price or a commercial term for services
rendered as an employee or independent contractor is set or
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recommended by a pricing algorithm.
(C) A disclosure required by division (B)(1) or (2) of
this section shall state all of the following:
(1) Whether the pricing algorithm sets or recommends
different prices or commercial terms for either or both of the
following:
(a) Different customers seeking identical or nearly
identical products or services;
(b) Employees or independent contractors providing
substantially similar services.
(2) Whether the pricing algorithm was developed or
distributed by a person other than the person making the
disclosure;
(3) The identity of the person that developed or
distributed the pricing algorithm.
(D) A violation of this section is an unfair or deceptive
act or practice in violation of section 1345.02 of the Revised
Code.
Section 2. That existing sections 1331.01, 1331.04, and
1331.16 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.
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