As Introduced

127th General Assembly
Regular Session
2007-2008
H. B. No. 246


Representative Stewart, J. 


A BILL
To amend sections 1711.11 and 1711.53 and to enact 1
section 3717.14 of the Revised Code to require 2
concession owners and operators, amusement ride 3
owners and operators, and certain food 4
establishments to provide the names and addresses 5
of their employees when requested by the chief of 6
police or county sheriff.7


BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

       Section 1. That sections 1711.11 and 1711.53 are amended and 8
section 3717.14 of the Revised Code is enacted to read as follows:9

       Sec. 1711.11.  (A) No person shall operate any concession at10
any fair or exposition conducted by a county or independent11
agricultural society or by the Ohio expositions commission without12
first obtaining from the director of agriculture a license to do13
so under division (B) of this section, nor shall any officer,14
agent, or employee of a county or independent agricultural society15
or of the Ohio expositions commission grant a privilege or16
concession to any person to do so, unless the person holds a17
license.18

       For the purposes of this section, "concession" means any19
show, amusement other than an amusement ride as defined in section 20
1711.50 of the Revised Code, game, or novelty stand operation at a 21
fair or exposition, but does not include food or drink operations.22

       (B) A license shall be issued by the director only upon a23
written application containing a detailed description of the24
concession. Blank applications for licenses shall be prepared and25
furnished by the director.26

       (C) No license shall be issued until the applicant has paid a 27
fee of seventy dollars to the director, except that no fee shall 28
be collected from nonprofit organizations which are recorded as 29
such by the secretary of state or with the internal revenue30
service. The director shall pay the fee into the state treasury to 31
the credit of the amusement ride inspection fund established by32
section 1711.53 of the Revised Code.33

       (D) A license issued under this section shall contain a34
detailed description of the concession licensed, shall expire on35
the thirty-first day of December following the date of issue, and36
shall be kept by the licensee in a conspicuous place where the37
licensee's concession is in operation.38

       (E)(1) The director shall employ and provide training for a39
chief inspector and additional inspectors and employees as40
necessary to administer and enforce this section. The director may 41
appoint or contract with other persons to perform inspections of 42
concessions, provided that the persons meet the qualifications for 43
inspectors established by rules adopted under division (G) of this 44
section and are not owners or employees of owners of any45
concession subject to inspection under this section. No person46
shall inspect a concession who, within six months prior to the47
date of inspection, was an employee of the owner of the48
concession.49

       (2) Before the director contracts with other persons to50
inspect concessions, the director shall seek the advice of the51
advisory council on amusement ride safety on whether to contract52
with those persons. The advice shall not be binding upon the53
director. After having received the advice of the council the54
director may proceed to contract for amusement ride inspectors and55
award the contract to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder56
in accordance with section 9.312 of the Revised Code. In order to57
determine the lowest responsive and responsible bid, the director,58
with the advice of the council, shall adopt rules governing the59
terms of the contract between the department of agriculture and60
the inspector. The rules shall prescribe the training and work61
experience required of an inspector, any insurance or bonds62
required of an inspector, and all the services the inspector will63
be required to perform on behalf of the department in an efficient64
professional manner.65

       (F) This section does not require the officers of any county 66
or independent agricultural society or of the Ohio expositions 67
commission to grant any privilege or concession to any licensee.68

       (G) The director shall enforce this section and, in69
accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, adopt all rules70
that are necessary for its enforcement. If the director finds that 71
this section has been violated or that the licensee has been72
dishonest or has been fraudulent in dealings with the public, the73
director, in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code,74
shall revoke the licensee's license or fine the licensee not more75
than one thousand dollars, or both. The director, for a period not 76
exceeding two years from the date of revocation, may refuse to77
issue another license to a person for a concession for which the78
person's license has been revoked. Notwithstanding section 119.1279
of the Revised Code, all appeals from any fine by, or order of,80
the director shall be to the court of common pleas of the county81
where the place of business of the person is located or to the82
common pleas court of the county in which the person is a resident83
or in which the concession is located.84

       (H) Any person holding a license issued under this section85
who permits or tolerates at any place on the fairground where the86
person's concession is in operation, any immoral show, lottery87
device, game of chance, or gambling of any kind, including pool88
selling and paddle wheels, or who violates the terms of the89
license issued to the person, shall forfeit the license, and the90
director shall not issue any other license to the person until91
after a period of two years from the forfeiture. For the purposes92
of this division, "lottery device," "game of chance," and93
"gambling of any kind" do not include the sale of lottery tickets94
by the state lottery commission pursuant to Chapter 3770. of the95
Revised Code at the state fairground during the state fair. For96
the purposes of this section and section 1711.09 of the Revised97
Code, contests, games, tournaments, and other activities, the98
outcome of which is predominantly determined by the skill of the99
contestants, participants, or players, whether or not the100
contestants, participants, or players pay a price for the101
opportunity to win a prize, do not constitute a game of chance or102
gambling within the meaning, purpose, and intent of this section103
and section 1711.09 of the Revised Code or sections 2915.01 to104
2915.04 of the Revised Code. The foregoing definition does not105
apply where the contest, game, tournament, or other activity106
contains or includes any mechanical or physical device which107
directly or indirectly impedes, impairs, or thwarts the skill of108
the contestant, participant, or player.109

       (I) Any owner or operator of a concession licensed pursuant 110
to this section shall provide the name and address of all of the 111
owner's or operator's employees employed at that concession within 112
forty-eight hours of a request for that information by the chief 113
of police of the municipal corporation or township in which the 114
owner's or operator's concession is located or, if the concession 115
is not located within a municipal corporation or township that has 116
a chief of police, by the sheriff of the county in which the 117
concession is located.118

       Sec. 1711.53.  (A)(1) No person shall operate an amusement119
ride within the state without a permit issued by the director of120
agriculture under division (A)(2) of this section. The owner of an 121
amusement ride, whether the ride is a temporary amusement ride or 122
a permanent amusement ride, who desires to operate the amusement 123
ride within the state shall, prior to the operation of the 124
amusement ride and annually thereafter, submit to the department 125
of agriculture an application for a permit, together with the 126
appropriate permit and inspection fee, on a form to be furnished 127
by the department. Prior to issuing any permit the department 128
shall, within thirty days after the date on which it receives the 129
application, inspect each amusement ride described in the 130
application. The owner of an amusement ride shall have the131
amusement ride ready for inspection not later than two hours after132
the time that is requested by the person for the inspection.133

       (2) For each amusement ride found to comply with the rules 134
adopted by the director under division (B) of this section and135
division (B) of section 1711.551 of the Revised Code, the director136
shall issue an annual permit, provided that evidence of liability137
insurance coverage for the amusement ride as required by section138
1711.54 of the Revised Code is on file with the department.139

       (3) The director shall issue with each permit a decal140
indicating that the amusement ride has been issued the permit. The141
owner of the amusement ride shall affix the decal on the ride at a142
location where the decal is easily visible to the patrons of the143
ride. A copy of the permit shall be kept on file at the same144
address as the location of the amusement ride identified on the145
permit, and shall be made available for inspection, upon146
reasonable demand, by any person. An owner may operate an147
amusement ride prior to obtaining a permit, provided that the148
operation is for the purpose of testing the amusement ride or149
training amusement ride operators and other employees of the owner150
and the amusement ride is not open to the public.151

       (B) The director, in accordance with Chapter 119. of the152
Revised Code, shall adopt rules providing for a schedule of fines,153
with no fine exceeding five thousand dollars, for violations of154
sections 1711.50 to 1711.57 of the Revised Code or any rules 155
adopted under this division and for the classification of 156
amusement rides and rules for the safe operation and inspection of 157
all amusement rides as are necessary for amusement ride safety and 158
for the protection of the general public. Rules adopted by the 159
director for the safe operation and inspection of amusement rides 160
shall be reasonable and based upon generally accepted engineering 161
standards and practices. In adopting rules under this section, the 162
director may adopt by reference, in whole or in part, the national 163
fire code or the national electrical code (NEC) prepared by the 164
national fire protection association, the standards of the 165
American society for testing and materials (ASTM) or the American 166
national standards institute (ANSI), or any other principles, 167
tests, or standards of nationally recognized technical or 168
scientific authorities. Insofar as is practicable and consistent 169
with sections 1711.50 to 1711.57 of the Revised Code, rules 170
adopted under this division shall be consistent with the rules of 171
other states. The department shall cause sections 1711.50 to 172
1711.57 of the Revised Code and the rules adopted in accordance 173
with this division and division (B) of section 1711.551 of the 174
Revised Code to be published in pamphlet form and a copy to be 175
furnished without charge to each owner of an amusement ride who176
holds a current permit or is an applicant therefor.177

       (C) With respect to an application for a permit for an178
amusement ride, an owner may apply to the director for a waiver or 179
modification of any rule adopted under division (B) of this 180
section if there are practical difficulties or unnecessary 181
hardships for the amusement ride to comply with the rules. Any 182
application shall set forth the reasons for the request. The 183
director, with the approval of the advisory council on amusement 184
ride safety, may waive or modify the application of a rule to any 185
amusement ride if the public safety is secure. Any authorization 186
by the director under this division shall be in writing and shall 187
set forth the conditions under which the waiver or modification is 188
authorized, and the department shall retain separate records of 189
all proceedings under this division.190

       (D)(1) The director shall employ and provide for training of191
a chief inspector and additional inspectors and employees as may192
be necessary to administer and enforce sections 1711.50 to 1711.57193
of the Revised Code. The director may appoint or contract with194
other persons to perform inspections of amusement rides, provided195
that the persons meet the qualifications for inspectors196
established by rules adopted under division (B) of this section197
and are not owners, or employees of owners, of any amusement ride198
subject to inspection under sections 1711.50 to 1711.57 of the199
Revised Code. No person shall inspect an amusement ride who,200
within six months prior to the date of inspection, was an employee201
of the owner of the ride.202

       (2) Before the director contracts with other persons to203
inspect amusement rides, the director shall seek the advice of the204
advisory council on amusement ride safety on whether to contract205
with those persons. The advice shall not be binding upon the206
director. After having received the advice of the council, the207
director may proceed to contract with inspectors in accordance208
with the procedures specified in division (E)(2) of section209
1711.11 of the Revised Code.210

       (3) With the advice and consent of the advisory council on211
amusement ride safety, the director may employ a special212
consultant to conduct an independent investigation of an amusement213
ride accident. This consultant need not be in the civil service of 214
the state, but shall have qualifications to conduct the215
investigation acceptable to the council.216

       (E)(1) Except as otherwise provided in division (E)(1) of 217
this section, the department shall charge the following amusement218
ride fees:219

Permit $ 150 220
Annual inspection and reinspection per ride: 221
Kiddie rides $ 100 222
Roller coaster $ 950 223
Aerial lifts or bungee jumping facilities $ 450 224
Go karts $ 5 225
Other rides $ 160 226
Midseason operational inspection per ride $ 25 227
Expedited inspection per ride $ 100 228
Failure to cancel scheduled inspection per ride $ 100 229
Failure to have amusement ride ready for inspection 230
per ride $ 100 231

       The go kart inspection fee is in addition to the inspection232
fee for the go kart track.233

       The fees for an expedited inspection, failure to cancel a234
scheduled inspection, and failure to have an amusement ride ready235
for inspection do not apply to go karts.236

       As used in division (E)(1) of this section, "expedited237
inspection" means an inspection of an amusement ride by the238
department not later than ten days after the owner of the239
amusement ride files an application for a permit under this240
section.241

       (2) All fees and fines collected by the department under 242
sections 1711.50 to 1711.57 of the Revised Code shall be deposited 243
in the state treasury to the credit of the amusement ride 244
inspection fund, which is hereby created, and shall be used only 245
for the purpose of administering and enforcing sections 1711.11 246
and 1711.50 to 1711.57 of the Revised Code.247

       (3) The owner of an amusement ride shall be required to pay a248
reinspection fee only if the reinspection was conducted at the249
owner's request under division (F) of this section, if the250
reinspection is required by division (F) of this section because251
of an accident, or if the reinspection is required by division (F)252
of section 1711.55 of the Revised Code. If a reinspection is253
conducted at the request of the chief officer of a fair, festival,254
or event where the ride is operating, the reinspection fee shall255
be charged to the fair, festival, or event.256

       (4) The rules adopted under division (B) of this section257
shall define "kiddie rides," "roller coaster," "aerial lifts," "go 258
karts," and "other rides" for purposes of determining the fees259
under division (E) of this section. The rules shall define "other 260
rides" to include go kart tracks.261

       (F) A reinspection of an amusement ride shall take place if262
an accident occurs, if the owner of the ride or the chief officer263
of the fair, festival, or event where the ride is operating264
requests a reinspection, or if the reinspection is required by265
division (F) of section 1711.55 of the Revised Code.266

       (G) As a supplement to its annual inspection of a temporary267
amusement ride, the department may inspect the ride during each268
scheduled event, as listed in the schedule of events provided to269
the department by the owner pursuant to division (C) of section270
1711.55 of the Revised Code, at which the ride is operated in this271
state. These supplemental inspections are in addition to any other 272
inspection or reinspection of the ride as may be required under 273
sections 1711.50 to 1711.57 of the Revised Code, and the owner of 274
the temporary amusement ride is not required to pay an inspection 275
or reinspection fee for this supplemental inspection. Nothing in 276
this division shall be construed to prohibit the owner of a 277
temporary amusement ride having a valid permit to operate in this 278
state from operating the ride at a scheduled event before the279
department conducts a supplemental inspection.280

       (H) The department may annually conduct a midseason281
operational inspection of every amusement ride upon which it282
conducts an annual inspection pursuant to division (A) of this283
section. The midseason operational inspection is in addition to284
any other inspection or reinspection of the amusement ride as may285
be required pursuant to sections 1711.50 to 1711.57 of the Revised286
Code. The owner of an amusement ride shall submit to the287
department, at the time determined by the department, the288
midseason operational inspection fee specified in division (E) of289
this section. The director, in accordance with Chapter 119. of the 290
Revised Code, shall adopt rules specifying the time period during 291
which the department will conduct midseason operational292
inspections.293

       (I) Any owner or operator of an amusement ride licensed 294
pursuant to this section shall provide the name and address of all 295
of the owner's or operator's employees employed at that amusement 296
ride within forty-eight hours of a request for that information by 297
the chief of police of the municipal corporation or township in 298
which the owner's or operator's amusement ride is located or, if 299
the amusement ride is not located within a municipal corporation 300
or township that has a chief of police, by the sheriff of the 301
county in which the amusement ride is located.302

       Sec. 3717.14.  Any person licensed to operate a food 303
establishment pursuant to this chapter shall provide the name and 304
address of all of the person's employees employed at that food 305
establishment within forty-eight hours of a request for that 306
information by the chief of police of the municipal corporation or 307
township in which the person's food establishment is located or, 308
if the food establishment is not located within a municipal 309
corporation or township that has a chief of police, by the sheriff 310
of the county in which the food establishment is located.311

       As used in this section, "food establishment" means a 312
seasonal retail food establishment, temporary retail food 313
establishment, mobile retail food establishment, seasonal food 314
service operation, temporary food service operation, or mobile 315
food service operation.316

       Section 2. That existing sections 1711.11 and 1711.53 of the 317
Revised Code are hereby repealed.318