On January 8, 2025, Governor DeWine signed House Bill 206 (“HB 206”) into law. It permits school districts to establish a policy that authorizes the superintendent to expel a student for up to 180 school days for actions that pose “imminent and severe endangerment” to the health and safety of other students or school employees. That same day, Governor DeWine also signed Senate Bill 208 (“SB 208”) into law which requires districts that entirely prohibit open enrollment, or otherwise only allow open enrollment for students in adjacent districts, to include an exception for military children in their open enrollment policies. The provisions of HB 206 and SB 208 are both set to go into effect on April 9, 2025.
Ohio Enacts Parents’ Bill of Rights
This week, Governor DeWine signed House Bill 8 (“HB 8”), also known as the Parents’ Bill of Rights, which, among other things, requires public school districts to adopt a policy that promotes parental involvement in the public school system by providing parental notification on student health and well-being and instructional materials that contain sexuality content as well as reaffirms a parent’s right to make decisions regarding their child’s education. HB 8 also includes provisions related to release time for religious instruction.
The bill will take effect within 90 days of the Governor’s signature – on or about April 8, 2025.