130th Ohio General Assembly
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(126th General Assembly)
(Substitute House Bill Number 58)



AN ACT
To amend sections 109.71, 109.73, 109.79, 4973.17, and 4973.171 of the Revised Code relative to the appointment and commissioning of amusement park police officers and to the training of those officers and to declare an emergency.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Ohio:

SECTION 1. That sections 109.71, 109.73, 109.79, 4973.17, and 4973.171 of the Revised Code be amended to read as follows:

Sec. 109.71.  There is hereby created in the office of the attorney general the Ohio peace officer training commission. The commission shall consist of nine members appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate and selected as follows: one member representing the public; two members who are incumbent sheriffs; two members who are incumbent chiefs of police; one member from the bureau of criminal identification and investigation; one member from the state highway patrol; one member who is the special agent in charge of a field office of the federal bureau of investigation in this state; and one member from the department of education, trade and industrial education services, law enforcement training.

As used in sections 109.71 to 109.77 of the Revised Code:

(A) "Peace officer" means:

(1) A deputy sheriff, marshal, deputy marshal, member of the organized police department of a township or municipal corporation, member of a township police district or joint township police district police force, member of a police force employed by a metropolitan housing authority under division (D) of section 3735.31 of the Revised Code, or township constable, who is commissioned and employed as a peace officer by a political subdivision of this state or by a metropolitan housing authority, and whose primary duties are to preserve the peace, to protect life and property, and to enforce the laws of this state, ordinances of a municipal corporation, resolutions of a township, or regulations of a board of county commissioners or board of township trustees, or any of those laws, ordinances, resolutions, or regulations;

(2) A police officer who is employed by a railroad company and appointed and commissioned by the governor pursuant to sections 4973.17 to 4973.22 of the Revised Code;

(3) Employees of the department of taxation engaged in the enforcement of Chapter 5743. of the Revised Code and designated by the tax commissioner for peace officer training for purposes of the delegation of investigation powers under section 5743.45 of the Revised Code;

(4) An undercover drug agent;

(5) Enforcement agents of the department of public safety whom the director of public safety designates under section 5502.14 of the Revised Code;

(6) An employee of the department of natural resources who is a natural resources law enforcement staff officer designated pursuant to section 1501.013, a park officer designated pursuant to section 1541.10, a forest officer designated pursuant to section 1503.29, a preserve officer designated pursuant to section 1517.10, a wildlife officer designated pursuant to section 1531.13, or a state watercraft officer designated pursuant to section 1547.521 of the Revised Code;

(7) An employee of a park district who is designated pursuant to section 511.232 or 1545.13 of the Revised Code;

(8) An employee of a conservancy district who is designated pursuant to section 6101.75 of the Revised Code;

(9) A police officer who is employed by a hospital that employs and maintains its own proprietary police department or security department, and who is appointed and commissioned by the governor pursuant to sections 4973.17 to 4973.22 of the Revised Code;

(10) Veterans' homes police officers designated under section 5907.02 of the Revised Code;

(11) A police officer who is employed by a qualified nonprofit corporation police department pursuant to section 1702.80 of the Revised Code;

(12) A state university law enforcement officer appointed under section 3345.04 of the Revised Code or a person serving as a state university law enforcement officer on a permanent basis on June 19, 1978, who has been awarded a certificate by the executive director of the Ohio peace officer training commission attesting to the person's satisfactory completion of an approved state, county, municipal, or department of natural resources peace officer basic training program;

(13) A special police officer employed by the department of mental health pursuant to section 5119.14 of the Revised Code or the department of mental retardation and developmental disabilities pursuant to section 5123.13 of the Revised Code;

(14) A member of a campus police department appointed under section 1713.50 of the Revised Code;

(15) A member of a police force employed by a regional transit authority under division (Y) of section 306.35 of the Revised Code;

(16) Investigators appointed by the auditor of state pursuant to section 117.091 of the Revised Code and engaged in the enforcement of Chapter 117. of the Revised Code;

(17) A special police officer designated by the superintendent of the state highway patrol pursuant to section 5503.09 of the Revised Code or a person who was serving as a special police officer pursuant to that section on a permanent basis on October 21, 1997, and who has been awarded a certificate by the executive director of the Ohio peace officer training commission attesting to the person's satisfactory completion of an approved state, county, municipal, or department of natural resources peace officer basic training program;

(18) A special police officer employed by a port authority under section 4582.04 or 4582.28 of the Revised Code or a person serving as a special police officer employed by a port authority on a permanent basis on May 17, 2000, who has been awarded a certificate by the executive director of the Ohio peace officer training commission attesting to the person's satisfactory completion of an approved state, county, municipal, or department of natural resources peace officer basic training program;

(19) A special police officer employed by a municipal corporation who has been awarded a certificate by the executive director of the Ohio peace officer training commission for satisfactory completion of an approved peace officer basic training program and who is employed on a permanent basis on or after the effective date of this amendment March 19, 2003, at a municipal airport, or other municipal air navigation facility, that has scheduled operations, as defined in section 119.3 of Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations, 14 C.F.R. 119.3, as amended, and that is required to be under a security program and is governed by aviation security rules of the transportation security administration of the United States department of transportation as provided in Parts 1542. and 1544. of Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations, as amended;

(20) A police officer who is employed by an owner or operator of an amusement park that has an average yearly attendance in excess of six hundred thousand guests and that employs and maintains its own proprietary police department or security department, and who is appointed and commissioned by a judge of the appropriate municipal court or county court pursuant to section 4973.17 of the Revised Code.

(B) "Undercover drug agent" has the same meaning as in division (B)(2) of section 109.79 of the Revised Code.

(C) "Crisis intervention training" means training in the use of interpersonal and communication skills to most effectively and sensitively interview victims of rape.

(D) "Missing children" has the same meaning as in section 2901.30 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 109.73.  (A) The Ohio peace officer training commission shall recommend rules to the attorney general with respect to all of the following:

(1) The approval, or revocation of approval, of peace officer training schools administered by the state, counties, municipal corporations, public school districts, technical college districts, and the department of natural resources;

(2) Minimum courses of study, attendance requirements, and equipment and facilities to be required at approved state, county, municipal, and department of natural resources peace officer training schools;

(3) Minimum qualifications for instructors at approved state, county, municipal, and department of natural resources peace officer training schools;

(4) The requirements of minimum basic training that peace officers appointed to probationary terms shall complete before being eligible for permanent appointment, which requirements shall include a minimum of fifteen hours of training in the handling of the offense of domestic violence, other types of domestic violence-related offenses and incidents, and protection orders and consent agreements issued or approved under section 2919.26 or 3113.31 of the Revised Code, a minimum of six hours of crisis intervention training, and a specified amount of training in the handling of missing children and child abuse and neglect cases, and the time within which such basic training shall be completed following such appointment to a probationary term;

(5) The requirements of minimum basic training that peace officers not appointed for probationary terms but appointed on other than a permanent basis shall complete in order to be eligible for continued employment or permanent appointment, which requirements shall include a minimum of fifteen hours of training in the handling of the offense of domestic violence, other types of domestic violence-related offenses and incidents, and protection orders and consent agreements issued or approved under section 2919.26 or 3113.31 of the Revised Code, a minimum of six hours of crisis intervention training, and a specified amount of training in the handling of missing children and child abuse and neglect cases, and the time within which such basic training shall be completed following such appointment on other than a permanent basis;

(6) Categories or classifications of advanced in-service training programs for peace officers, including programs in the handling of the offense of domestic violence, other types of domestic violence-related offenses and incidents, and protection orders and consent agreements issued or approved under section 2919.26 or 3113.31 of the Revised Code, in crisis intervention, and in the handling of missing children and child abuse and neglect cases, and minimum courses of study and attendance requirements with respect to such categories or classifications;

(7) Permitting persons who are employed as members of a campus police department appointed under section 1713.50 of the Revised Code, who are employed as police officers by a qualified nonprofit corporation police department pursuant to section 1702.80 of the Revised Code, or who are appointed and commissioned as railroad police officers or hospital police officers pursuant to sections 4973.17 to 4973.22 of the Revised Code, or who are appointed and commissioned as amusement park police officers pursuant to section 4973.17 of the Revised Code to attend approved peace officer training schools, including the Ohio peace officer training academy, and to receive certificates of satisfactory completion of basic training programs, if the private college or university that established the campus police department, qualified nonprofit corporation police department, railroad company, or hospital, or amusement park sponsoring the police officers pays the entire cost of the training and certification and if trainee vacancies are available;

(8) Permitting undercover drug agents to attend approved peace officer training schools, other than the Ohio peace officer training academy, and to receive certificates of satisfactory completion of basic training programs, if, for each undercover drug agent, the county, township, or municipal corporation that employs that undercover drug agent pays the entire cost of the training and certification;

(9)(a) The requirements for basic training programs for bailiffs and deputy bailiffs of courts of record of this state and for criminal investigators employed by the state public defender that those persons shall complete before they may carry a firearm while on duty;

(b) The requirements for any training received by a bailiff or deputy bailiff of a court of record of this state or by a criminal investigator employed by the state public defender prior to June 6, 1986, that is to be considered equivalent to the training described in division (A)(9)(a) of this section.

(10) Establishing minimum qualifications and requirements for certification for dogs utilized by law enforcement agencies;

(11) Establishing minimum requirements for certification of persons who are employed as correction officers in a full-service jail, five-day facility, or eight-hour holding facility or who provide correction services in such a jail or facility;

(12) Establishing requirements for the training of agents of a county humane society under section 1717.06 of the Revised Code, including, without limitation, a requirement that the agents receive instruction on traditional animal husbandry methods and training techniques, including customary owner-performed practices.

(B) The commission shall appoint an executive director, with the approval of the attorney general, who shall hold office during the pleasure of the commission. The executive director shall perform such duties as may be assigned by the commission. The executive director shall receive a salary fixed pursuant to Chapter 124. of the Revised Code and reimbursement for expenses within the amounts available by appropriation. The executive director may appoint officers, employees, agents, and consultants as the executive director considers necessary, prescribe their duties, and provide for reimbursement of their expenses within the amounts available for reimbursement by appropriation and with the approval of the commission.

(C) The commission may do all of the following:

(1) Recommend studies, surveys, and reports to be made by the executive director regarding the carrying out of the objectives and purposes of sections 109.71 to 109.77 of the Revised Code;

(2) Visit and inspect any peace officer training school that has been approved by the executive director or for which application for approval has been made;

(3) Make recommendations, from time to time, to the executive director, the attorney general, and the general assembly regarding the carrying out of the purposes of sections 109.71 to 109.77 of the Revised Code;

(4) Report to the attorney general from time to time, and to the governor and the general assembly at least annually, concerning the activities of the commission;

(5) Establish fees for the services the commission offers under sections 109.71 to 109.79 of the Revised Code, including, but not limited to, fees for training, certification, and testing;

(6) Perform such other acts as are necessary or appropriate to carry out the powers and duties of the commission as set forth in sections 109.71 to 109.77 of the Revised Code.

(D) In establishing the requirements, under division (A)(12) of this section, the commission may consider any portions of the curriculm curriculum for instruction on the topic of animal husbandry practices, if any, of the Ohio state university college of veterinary medicine. No person or entity that fails to provide instruction on traditional animal husbandry methods and training techniques, including customary owner-performed practices, shall qualify to train a humane agent for appointment under section 1717.06 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 109.79.  (A) The Ohio peace officer training commission shall establish and conduct a training school for law enforcement officers of any political subdivision of the state or of the state public defender's office. The school shall be known as the Ohio peace officer training academy. No bailiff or deputy bailiff of a court of record of this state and no criminal investigator employed by the state public defender shall be permitted to attend the academy for training unless the employing court of the bailiff or deputy bailiff or the state public defender, whichever is applicable, has authorized the bailiff, deputy bailiff, or investigator to attend the academy.

The Ohio peace officer training commission shall develop the training program, which shall include courses in both the civil and criminal functions of law enforcement officers, a course in crisis intervention with six or more hours of training, and training in the handling of missing children and child abuse and neglect cases, and shall establish rules governing qualifications for admission to the academy. The commission may require competitive examinations to determine fitness of prospective trainees, so long as the examinations or other criteria for admission to the academy are consistent with the provisions of Chapter 124. of the Revised Code.

The Ohio peace officer training commission shall determine tuition costs which shall be sufficient in the aggregate to pay the costs of operating the academy. The costs of acquiring and equipping the academy shall be paid from appropriations made by the general assembly to the Ohio peace officer training commission for that purpose, or from gifts or grants received for that purpose.

The law enforcement officers, during the period of their training, shall receive compensation as determined by the political subdivision that sponsors them or, if the officer is a criminal investigator employed by the state public defender, as determined by the state public defender. The political subdivision may pay the tuition costs of the law enforcement officers they sponsor and the state public defender may pay the tuition costs of criminal investigators of that office who attend the academy.

If trainee vacancies exist, the academy may train and issue certificates of satisfactory completion to peace officers who are employed by a campus police department pursuant to section 1713.50 of the Revised Code, by a qualified nonprofit corporation police department pursuant to section 1702.80 of the Revised Code, or by a railroad company, who are amusement park police officers appointed and commissioned by a judge of the appropriate municipal court or county court pursuant to section 4973.17 of the Revised Code, or who are hospital police officers appointed and commissioned by the governor pursuant to sections 4973.17 to 4973.22 of the Revised Code, provided that no such officer shall be trained at the academy unless the officer meets the qualifications established for admission to the academy and the qualified nonprofit corporation police department, railroad company, or hospital, or amusement park or the private college or university that established the campus police department prepays the entire cost of the training. A qualified nonprofit corporation police department, railroad company, or hospital, or amusement park or a private college or university that has established a campus police department is not entitled to reimbursement from the state for any amount paid for the cost of training the railroad company's peace officers or the peace officers of the qualified nonprofit corporation police department, campus police department, or hospital, or amusement park.

The academy shall permit investigators employed by the state medical board to take selected courses that the board determines are consistent with its responsibilities for initial and continuing training of investigators as required under sections 4730.26 and 4731.05 of the Revised Code. The board shall pay the entire cost of training that investigators receive at the academy.

(B) As used in this section:

(1) "Law enforcement officers" include any undercover drug agent, any bailiff or deputy bailiff of a court of record, and any criminal investigator who is employed by the state public defender.

(2) "Undercover drug agent" means any person who:

(a) Is employed by a county, township, or municipal corporation for the purposes set forth in division (B)(2)(b) of this section but who is not an employee of a county sheriff's department, of a township constable, or of the police department of a municipal corporation or township;

(b) In the course of the person's employment by a county, township, or municipal corporation, investigates and gathers information pertaining to persons who are suspected of violating Chapter 2925. or 3719. of the Revised Code, and generally does not wear a uniform in the performance of the person's duties.

(3) "Crisis intervention training" has the same meaning as in section 109.71 of the Revised Code.

(4) "Missing children" has the same meaning as in section 2901.30 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 4973.17.  (A) Upon the application of any bank, building and loan association, or association of banks or building and loan associations in this state, the secretary of state may appoint and commission any persons that the bank, building and loan association, or association of banks or building and loan associations designates, or as many of those persons as the secretary of state considers proper, to act as police officers for and on the premises of that bank, building and loan association, or association of banks or building and loan associations, or elsewhere, when directly in the discharge of their duties. Police officers so appointed shall be citizens of this state and of good character. They shall hold office for three years, unless, for good cause shown, their commission is revoked by the secretary of state, or by the bank, building and loan association, or association of banks or building and loan associations, as provided by law.

(B) Upon the application of a company owning or using a railroad in this state and subject to section 4973.171 of the Revised Code, the secretary of state may appoint and commission any persons that the railroad company designates, or as many of those persons as the secretary of state considers proper, to act as police officers for and on the premises of the railroad company, its affiliates or subsidiaries, or elsewhere, when directly in the discharge of their duties. Police officers so appointed, within the time set by the Ohio peace officer training commission, shall successfully complete a commission approved training program and be certified by the commission. They shall hold office for three years, unless, for good cause shown, their commission is revoked by the secretary of state, or railroad company, as provided by law.

Any person holding a similar commission in another state may be commissioned and may hold office in this state without completing the approved training program required by this division provided that the person has completed a substantially equivalent training program in the other state. The Ohio peace officer training commission shall determine whether a training program in another state meets the requirements of this division.

(C) Upon the application of any company under contract with the United States atomic energy commission for the construction or operation of a plant at a site owned by the commission, the secretary of state may appoint and commission persons the company designates, not to exceed one hundred fifty, to act as police officers for the company at the plant or site owned by the commission. Police officers so appointed shall be citizens of this state and of good character. They shall hold office for three years, unless, for good cause shown, their commission is revoked by the secretary of state or by the company, as provided by law.

(D)(1) Upon the application of any hospital that is operated by a public hospital agency or a nonprofit hospital agency and that employs and maintains its own proprietary police department or security department and subject to section 4973.171 of the Revised Code, the secretary of state may appoint and commission any persons that the hospital designates, or as many of those persons as the secretary of state considers proper, to act as police officers for the hospital. No person who is appointed as a police officer under this division shall engage in any duties or activities as a police officer for the hospital or any affiliate or subsidiary of the hospital unless all of the following apply:

(a) The chief of police of the municipal corporation in which the hospital is located or, if the hospital is located in the unincorporated area of a county, the sheriff of that county has granted approval to the hospital to permit persons appointed as police officers under this division to engage in those duties and activities. The approval required by this division is general in nature and is intended to cover in the aggregate all persons appointed as police officers for the hospital under this division; a separate approval is not required for each appointee on an individual basis.

(b) Subsequent to the grant of approval described in division (D)(1)(a) of this section, the hospital has entered into a written agreement with the chief of police of the municipal corporation in which the hospital is located or, if the hospital is located in the unincorporated area of a county, with the sheriff of that county, that sets forth the standards and criteria to govern the interaction and cooperation between persons appointed as police officers for the hospital under this division and law enforcement officers serving the agency represented by the chief of police or sheriff who signed the agreement in areas of their concurrent jurisdiction. The written agreement shall be signed by the appointing authority of the hospital and by the chief of police or sheriff. The standards and criteria may include, but are not limited to, provisions governing the reporting of offenses discovered by hospital police officers to the agency represented by the chief of police or sheriff, provisions governing investigatory responsibilities relative to offenses committed on hospital property, and provisions governing the processing and confinement of persons arrested for offenses committed on hospital property. The agreement required by this division is intended to apply in the aggregate to all persons appointed as police officers for the hospital under this division; a separate agreement is not required for each appointee on an individual basis.

(c) The person has successfully completed a training program approved by the Ohio peace officer training commission and has been certified by the commission. A person appointed as a police officer under this division may attend a training program approved by the commission and be certified by the commission regardless of whether the appropriate chief of police or sheriff has granted the approval described in division (D)(1)(a) of this section and regardless of whether the hospital has entered into the written agreement described in division (D)(1)(b) of this section with the appropriate chief of police or sheriff.

(2)(a) A person who is appointed as a police officer under division (D)(1) of this section is entitled, upon the grant of approval described in division (D)(1)(a) of this section and upon the person's and the hospital's compliance with the requirements of divisions (D)(1)(b) and (c) of this section, to act as a police officer for the hospital on the premises of the hospital and of its affiliates and subsidiaries that are within the territory of the municipal corporation served by the chief of police or the unincorporated area of the county served by the sheriff who signed the written agreement described in division (D)(1)(b) of this section, whichever is applicable, and anywhere else within the territory of that municipal corporation or within the unincorporated area of that county. The authority to act as a police officer as described in this division is granted only if the person, when engaging in that activity, is directly in the discharge of the person's duties as a police officer for the hospital. The authority to act as a police officer as described in this division shall be exercised in accordance with the standards and criteria set forth in the written agreement described in division (D)(1)(b) of this section.

(b) Additionally, a person appointed as a police officer under division (D)(1) of this section is entitled, upon the grant of approval described in division (D)(1)(a) of this section and upon the person's and the hospital's compliance with the requirements of divisions (D)(1)(b) and (c) of this section, to act as a police officer elsewhere, within the territory of a municipal corporation or within the unincorporated area of a county, if the chief of police of that municipal corporation or the sheriff of that county, respectively, has granted approval for that activity to the hospital, police department, or security department served by the person as a police officer and if the person, when engaging in that activity, is directly in the discharge of the person's duties as a police officer for the hospital. The approval described in this division may be general in nature or may be limited in scope, duration, or applicability, as determined by the chief of police or sheriff granting the approval.

(3) Police officers appointed under division (D)(1) of this section shall hold office for three years, unless, for good cause shown, their commission is revoked by the secretary of state or by the hospital, as provided by law. As used in divisions (D)(1) to (3) of this section, "public hospital agency" and "nonprofit hospital agency" have the same meanings as in section 140.01 of the Revised Code.

(E)(1) Upon the application of any owner or operator of an amusement park that has an average yearly attendance in excess of six hundred thousand guests and that employs and maintains its own proprietary police department or security department and subject to section 4973.171 of the Revised Code, any judge of the municipal court or county court that has territorial jurisdiction over the amusement park may appoint and commission any persons that the owner or operator designates, or as many of those persons as the judge considers proper, to act as police officers for the amusement park. If the amusement park is located in more than one county, any judge of the municipal court or county court of any of those counties may make the appointments and commissions as described in this division. No person who is appointed as a police officer under this division shall engage in any duties or activities as a police officer for the amusement park or any affiliate or subsidiary of the owner or operator of the amusement park unless all of the following apply:

(a) The appropriate chief or chiefs of police of the political subdivision or subdivisions in which the amusement park is located as specified in this division have granted approval to the owner or operator of the amusement park to permit persons appointed as police officers under this division to engage in those duties and activities. If the amusement park is located in a single municipal corporation or a single township, the chief of police of that municipal corporation or township is the appropriate chief of police for the grant of approval under this division. If the amusement park is located in two or more townships, two or more municipal corporations, or one or more townships and one or more municipal corporations, the chiefs of police of all of the affected townships and municipal corporations are the appropriate chiefs of police for the grant of approval under this division, and the approval must be jointly granted by all of those chiefs of police. The approval required by this division is general in nature and is intended to cover in the aggregate all persons appointed as police officers for the amusement park under this division. A separate approval is not required for each appointee on an individual basis.

(b) Subsequent to the grant of approval described in division (E)(1)(a) of this section, the owner or operator has entered into a written agreement with the appropriate chief or chiefs of police of the political subdivision or subdivisions in which the amusement park is located as specified in this division and has provided the sheriff of the county in which the political subdivision or subdivisions are located with a copy of the agreement. If the amusement park is located in a single municipal corporation or a single township, the chief of police of that municipal corporation or township is the appropriate chief of police for entering into the written agreement under this division. If the amusement park is located in two or more townships, two or more municipal corporations, or one or more townships and one or more municipal corporations, the chiefs of police of all of the affected townships and municipal corporations are the appropriate chiefs of police for entering into the written agreement under this division, and the written agreement must be jointly entered into by all of those chiefs of police. The written agreement between the owner or operator and the chief or chiefs of police shall address the scope of activities, the duration of the agreement, and mutual aid arrangements and shall set forth the standards and criteria to govern the interaction and cooperation between persons appointed as police officers for the amusement park under this division and law enforcement officers serving the agency represented by the chief of police who signed the agreement. The written agreement shall be signed by the owner or operator and by the chief or chiefs of police who enter into it. The standards and criteria may include, but are not limited to, provisions governing the reporting of offenses discovered by the amusement park's police officers to the agency represented by the chief of police of the municipal corporation or township in which the offense occurred, provisions governing investigatory responsibilities relative to offenses committed on amusement park property, and provisions governing the processing and confinement of persons arrested for offenses committed on amusement park property. The agreement required by this division is intended to apply in the aggregate to all persons appointed as police officers for the amusement park under this division. A separate agreement is not required for each appointee on an individual basis.

(c) The person has successfully completed a training program approved by the Ohio peace officer training commission and has been certified by the commission. A person appointed as a police officer under this division may attend a training program approved by the commission and be certified by the commission regardless of whether the appropriate chief of police has granted the approval described in division (E)(1)(a) of this section and regardless of whether the owner or operator of the amusement park has entered into the written agreement described in division (E)(1)(b) of this section with the appropriate chief of police.

(2)(a) A person who is appointed as a police officer under division (E)(1) of this section is entitled, upon the grant of approval described in section (E)(1)(a) of this section and upon the person's and the owner or operator's compliance with the requirements of division (E)(1)(b) and (c) of this section, to act as a police officer for the amusement park and its affiliates and subsidiaries that are within the territory of the political subdivision or subdivisions served by the chief of police, or respective chiefs of police, who signed the written agreement described in division (E)(1)(b) of this section, and upon any contiguous real property of the amusement park that is covered by the written agreement, whether within or adjacent to the political subdivision or subdivisions. The authority to act as a police officer as described in this division is granted only if the person, when engaging in that activity, is directly in the discharge of the person's duties as a police officer for the amusement park. The authority to act as a police officer as described in this division shall be exercised in accordance with the standards and criteria set forth in the written agreement described in division (E)(1)(b) of this section.

(b) In addition to the authority granted under division (E)(2)(a) of this section, a person appointed as a police officer under division (E)(1) of this section is entitled, upon the grant of approval described in division (E)(1)(a) of this section and upon the person's and the owner or operator's compliance with the requirements of divisions (E)(1)(b) and (c) of this section, to act as a police officer elsewhere within the territory of a municipal corporation or township if the chief of police of that municipal corporation or township has granted approval for that activity to the owner or operator served by the person as a police officer and if the person, when engaging in that activity, is directly in the discharge of the person's duties as a police officer for the amusement park. The approval described in this division may be general in nature or may be limited in scope, duration, or applicability, as determined by the chief of police granting the approval.

(3) Police officers appointed under division (E)(1) of this section shall hold office for five years, unless, for good cause shown, their commission is revoked by the appointing judge or the judge's successor or by the owner or operator, as provided by law.

(F) A fee of fifteen dollars for each commission applied for under this section shall be paid at the time the application is made, and this amount shall be returned if for any reason a commission is not issued.

Sec. 4973.171.  (A) As used in this section, "felony" has the same meaning as in section 109.511 of the Revised Code.

(B)(1) The governor shall not appoint or commission a person as a police officer for a railroad company under division (B) of section 4973.17 of the Revised Code and shall not appoint or commission a person as a police officer for a hospital under division (D) of section 4973.17 of the Revised Code on a permanent basis, on a temporary basis, for a probationary term, or on other than a permanent basis if the person previously has been convicted of or has pleaded guilty to a felony.

(2)(a) The governor shall revoke the appointment or commission of a person appointed or commissioned as a police officer for a railroad company or as a police officer for a hospital under division (B) or (D) of section 4973.17 of the Revised Code if that person does either of the following:

(i) Pleads guilty to a felony;

(ii) Pleads guilty to a misdemeanor pursuant to a negotiated plea agreement as provided in division (D) of section 2929.43 of the Revised Code in which the person agrees to surrender the certificate awarded to that person under section 109.77 of the Revised Code.

(b) The governor shall suspend the appointment or commission of a person appointed or commissioned as a police officer for a railroad company or as a police officer for a hospital under division (B) or (D) of section 4973.17 of the Revised Code if that person is convicted, after trial, of a felony. If the person files an appeal from that conviction and the conviction is upheld by the highest court to which the appeal is taken or if the person does not file a timely appeal, the governor shall revoke the appointment or commission of that person as a police officer for a railroad company or as a police officer for a hospital. If the person files an appeal that results in that person's acquittal of the felony or conviction of a misdemeanor, or in the dismissal of the felony charge against that person, the governor shall reinstate the appointment or commission of that person as a police officer for a railroad company or as a police officer for a hospital. A person whose appointment or commission is reinstated under division (B)(2)(b) of this section shall not receive any back pay unless that person's conviction of the felony was reversed on appeal, or the felony charge was dismissed, because the court found insufficient evidence to convict the person of the felony.

(3) Division (B) of this section does not apply regarding an offense that was committed prior to January 1, 1997.

(4) The suspension or revocation of the appointment or commission of a person as a police officer for a railroad company or as a police officer for a hospital under division (B)(2) of this section shall be in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code.

(C)(1) A judge of a municipal court or county court that has territorial jurisdiction over an amusement park shall not appoint or commission a person as a police officer for the amusement park under division (E) of section 4973.17 of the Revised Code on a permanent basis, on a temporary basis, for a probationary term, or on other than a permanent basis if the person previously has been convicted of or has pleaded guilty to a felony.

(2) The judge shall revoke the appointment or commission of a person appointed or commissioned as a police officer for an amusement park under division (E) of section 4973.17 of the Revised Code if that person does either of the following:

(a) Pleads guilty to a felony;

(b) Pleads guilty to a misdemeanor pursuant to a negotiated plea agreement as provided in division (D) of section 2929.43 of the Revised Code in which the person agrees to surrender the certificate awarded to that person under section 109.77 of the Revised Code.

(3) The judge shall suspend the appointment or commission of a person appointed or commissioned as a police officer for an amusement park under division (E) of section 4973.17 of the Revised Code if that person is convicted, after trial, of a felony. If the person files an appeal from that conviction and that conviction is upheld by the highest court to which the appeal is taken or if the person does not file a timely appeal, the judge shall revoke the appointment or commission of that person as a police officer for an amusement park. If the person files an appeal that results in that person's acquittal of the felony or conviction of a misdemeanor or in the dismissal of the felony charge against that person, the judge shall reinstate the appointment or commission of that person as a police officer for an amusement park. A person whose appointment or commission is reinstated under division (C)(3) of this section shall not receive any back pay unless that person's conviction of the felony was reversed on appeal, or the felony charge was dismissed, because the court found insufficient evidence to convict the person of a felony.

(4) Division (C) of this section does not apply regarding an offense that was committed prior to January 1, 1997.

(5) The suspension or revocation of the appointment or commission of a person as a police officer for an amusement park under division (C)(2) of this section shall be in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code.

SECTION 2. That existing sections 109.71, 109.73, 109.79, 4973.17, and 4973.171 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.

SECTION 3.  Section 109.71 of the Revised Code is presented in this act as a composite of the section as amended by both Sub. H.B. 545 and H.B. 675 of the 124th General Assembly. The General Assembly, applying the principle stated in division (B) of section 1.52 of the Revised Code that amendments are to be harmonized if reasonably capable of simultaneous operation, finds that the composite is the resulting version of the section in effect prior to the effective date of the section as presented in this act.

SECTION 4. This act is hereby declared to be an emergency measure necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, and safety. The reason for such necessity is that it is crucial that the appointment and commissioning of amusement park police officers that is authorized under this act, and the protections that will be afforded by the officers so appointed and commissioned, be available to the parks and their patrons by the time of the parks' opening in the spring of 2005. Therefore, this act shall go into immediate effect.

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