To enact sections 9.131, 4113.80, 4113.81, 5321.171, 5321.172, 5321.173, 5321.174, and 5321.175 of the Revised Code to allow an employee who is a victim of domestic violence to take unpaid leave for purposes relating to the incident of domestic violence; to allow an employee who is a victim of domestic violence to file a civil action against that employee's employer if the employer terminates the employee's employment as a result of the employee taking unpaid leave for purposes relating to the incident of domestic violence; to allow a tenant who is a victim of domestic violence to terminate a rental agreement or have the tenant's name removed from the rental agreement under certain circumstances; to require a landlord of a tenant who is a victim of domestic violence or menacing by stalking to change the lock to the dwelling unit where the tenant resides under certain circumstances; to require a metropolitan housing authority to transfer a tenant who is a victim of domestic violence or menacing by stalking if the tenant requests such a transfer and provides the metropolitan housing authority with certain specified information; and to prohibit a county, municipal corporation, township, or law enforcement agency of such a political subdivision from charging any victim of domestic violence a fee for assisting the victim.

Section 1. That sections 9.131, 4113.80, 4113.81, 5321.171, 5321.172, 5321.173, 5321.174, and 5321.175 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:

Sec. 9.131.  No county, municipal corporation, or township, nor any law enforcement agency of a county, municipal corporation, or township, may charge any victim of domestic violence or any property owner where a victim of domestic violence resides for any assistance that law enforcement officers provide to a victim of domestic violence.

As used in this section, "domestic violence" has the same meaning as in section 4113.80 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 4113.80.  As used in this section and section 4113.81 of the Revised Code:

(A) "Domestic violence" has the same meaning as in section 3113.31 of the Revised Code.

(B) "Employee" has the same meaning as in section 4113.51 of the Revised Code.

(C) "Employer" includes both of the following:

(1) The state or any agency or instrumentality of the state, and any municipal corporation, county, township, school district, or other political subdivision or any agency or instrumentality thereof;

(2) Any person who employs one hundred or more employees for each working day during each of twenty or more calendar work weeks in the current or preceding calendar year.

(D) "Person" means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, or association.

Sec. 4113.81.  (A)(1) Subject to divisions (A)(2), (B)(1), (C), and (D) of this section, an employee who is a victim of domestic violence and who has been employed by the employee's employer for at least twelve months may take a maximum of five days per year of unpaid leave, and an employee who is a victim of domestic violence and who has been employed by the employee's employer for less than twelve months may take a maximum of three days per year of unpaid leave, to do any of the following:

(a) File a petition under section 3113.31 of the Revised Code or attend a hearing on the petition, file a petition and a request for an ex parte order under section 3113.31 of the Revised Code or attend a hearing on the petition, or file a petition for a protection order or no-contact order under any substantially similar law of another state or a substantially similar municipal ordinance of this state or another state;

(b) File a motion for a protection order or attend a hearing on the protection order pursuant to section 2919.26 of the Revised Code or file a motion for a protection order or no-contact order issued under any substantially similar law of another state or a substantially similar municipal ordinance of this state or another state;

(c) File a motion for a protection order or attend a hearing on the protection order pursuant to section 2903.213 of the Revised Code or file a motion for a protection order or no-contact order issued under any substantially similar law of another state or a substantially similar municipal ordinance of this state or another state;

(d) Seek emergency medical attention related to an incident of domestic violence.

(2) An employee shall provide the employee's employer with as much notice as practicable before taking any unpaid leave under division (A)(1) of this section.

(B)(1) An employee shall make reasonable efforts when possible to address matters related to domestic violence during nonwork hours.

(2) Subject to divisions (B)(1) and (3), (C), and (D) of this section, if it is not reasonably practical for an employee to schedule appointments outside the employee's working hours, the employee may take unpaid leave under division (A)(1) of this section with notice to the employee's employer pursuant to division (B)(3) of this section to do any of the following:

(a) Seek nonemergency medical attention related to an incident of domestic violence;

(b) Meet with law enforcement officers with respect to an incident of domestic violence;

(c) Seek legal assistance or other assistance from a counselor, social worker, victim advocate, health care provider, or other professional who assists persons in dealing with an incident of domestic violence;

(d) Attend a court proceeding concerning a civil protection order under section 3113.31 of the Revised Code or other injunctive relief for the employee's self or the employee's child;

(e) Attend a criminal court proceeding relating to the prosecution of an incident of domestic violence.

(3) The employee shall provide notice as soon as the employee knows of the need for unpaid leave under division (A)(1) of this section for the reasons set forth in division (B)(2) of this section and when an appointment necessitating that unpaid leave has been scheduled. In no case shall the employee provide notice any later than the start of the employee's shift or the beginning of the employee's work day.

(C)(1) An employer may require an employee who takes unpaid leave pursuant to divisions (A) and (B) of this section to provide documentation of the domestic violence. The employee may satisfy the documentation requirement by providing the employer with any of the following:

(a) If the leave is to file a petition under section 3113.31 of the Revised Code, a petition and a request for an ex parte order under section 3113.31 of the Revised Code, a motion for a protection order or no-contact order issued under any substantially similar law of another state or a substantially similar municipal ordinance of this state or another state, a motion for a protection order pursuant to section 2919.26 of the Revised Code, a motion for a protection order or no-contact order issued under any substantially similar law of another state or a substantially similar municipal ordinance of this state or another state, a motion for a protection order pursuant to section 2903.213 of the Revised Code, or a motion for a protection order or no-contact order issued under any substantially similar law of another state or a substantially similar municipal ordinance of this state or another state, documentation of that filing from the court;

(b) If the leave is to attend a court proceeding described in division (A)(1)(b) or (c) or (B)(2)(d) or (e) of this section, documentation of that proceeding from the court, the docket, pleadings, subpoenas, the prosecutor, the victim's attorney, or a victim advocate;

(c) If the leave is for medical purposes, documentation supporting the fact of treatment by the health care provider;

(d) If the leave is to meet with a law enforcement officer or a prosecutor, documentation of that meeting from the officer or prosecutor;

(e) If the leave is to meet with counsel, an attorney, or other person providing assistance or services, documentation of that meeting from the counsel, attorney, or person providing the assistance or services.

(2) An employer who requires documentation as set forth in division (C)(1) of this section shall grant the employee a reasonable period of time not to exceed fourteen days to provide the documentation. The employer may discharge or otherwise discipline the employee for taking the unpaid leave without the approval of the employer if the employee fails to supply the documentation within the period of time granted by the employer.

(D) The maximum amount of unpaid leave an employee who is a victim of domestic violence and who has been employed by the employee's employer for less than twelve months may take per year under this section is three days. The maximum amount of unpaid leave an employee who is a victim of domestic violence and who has been employed by the employee's employer for at least twelve months may take per year under this section is five days. An employee who is a victim of domestic violence may elect to substitute, or an employer may require the employee to substitute, any accrued paid vacation leave or personal leave the employee may have for the unpaid leave taken pursuant to this section.

(E) If an employee who is the victim of domestic violence takes unpaid leave pursuant to this section and the taking of that unpaid leave results in the termination of the employee's employment, that employee may file a civil action against the employer in the common pleas court of the county of that employment. That civil action filed under this division is the employee's sole and exclusive remedy. The relief the court may grant shall be limited to reinstatement of the employee's employment with back pay plus reasonable attorney's fees. That civil action shall be barred unless it is filed within one hundred eighty days immediately following the termination of the employee's employment.

Sec. 5321.171.  (A) As used in this section and sections 5321.172 and 5321.173 of the Revised Code:

(1) "Domestic violence" means the occurrence of one or more of the following acts against a household member:

(a) Attempting to cause or recklessly causing bodily injury;

(b) Placing another person by the threat of force in fear of imminent serious physical harm or committing a violation of section 2903.211 or 2911.211 of the Revised Code;

(c) Committing any act with respect to a child that would result in the child being an abused child, as defined in section 2151.031 of the Revised Code;

(d) Committing a sexually oriented offense as defined in section 2950.01 of the Revised Code.

(2) "Household member" means an individual who meets either of the following requirements:

(a) The individual is one of the following and is specifically identified in the lease agreement:

(i) The tenant's parent, child, spouse, or person living as a spouse;

(ii) The parent or child of the tenant's spouse or former spouse;

(iii) The parent or child of a person living as a spouse of the tenant;

(iv) An individual otherwise related by consanguinity or affinity to the tenant.

(b) The individual is an adult who notified the landlord within fourteen days after entering the tenant's household that the individual is occupying the tenant's housing unit as the individual's usual place of residence.

(B)(1) A tenant may terminate a rental agreement or have the tenant's name removed from the rental agreement as a cotenant if that tenant, or a household member of that tenant, is a victim of domestic violence. To terminate a rental agreement or to remove the tenant's name as a cotenant from the agreement, the tenant shall notify the landlord in writing that the tenant or household member is a victim of domestic violence and shall supply the landlord with any of the following:

(a) A civil protection order issued after a full hearing under section 2903.214 or 3113.31 of the Revised Code or a consent agreement approved under section 3113.31 of the Revised Code;

(b) A temporary protection order or a no-contact order issued under section 2919.26 of the Revised Code, a criminal protection order issued under section 2903.213 of the Revised Code, or a protection order or no-contact order issued under any substantially similar law of another state or a substantially similar municipal ordinance of this state or another state.

(2) A tenant shall give the landlord the written notice this section requires within ninety days after the incident of domestic violence. The tenant and landlord shall terminate the rental agreement, or the landlord shall remove the tenant's name from the rental agreement, by a mutually agreed upon date, not to exceed thirty days after the date the tenant gives the required notice. If the tenant and landlord do not agree on a date to terminate the rental agreement or remove the tenant's name from the agreement, the rental agreement shall terminate or the landlord shall remove the tenant's name from the rental agreement thirty days after the tenant gives the required notice.

(3) At any time within thirty days after a tenant having the tenant's name removed from a rental agreement for which there is at least one cotenant, the landlord may terminate the rental agreement as to any or all cotenants.

(4) A tenant who terminates a rental agreement or removes the tenant's name from a rental agreement is liable for the tenant's share of rent, prorated up to the date of the termination of the rental agreement or the removal of the tenant's name from the rental agreement.

(5) Except as otherwise provided in section 5321.16 of the Revised Code, if a tenant terminates a rental agreement or removes the tenant's name from a rental agreement as provided in this section, the landlord is entitled to retain the tenant's share of any security deposit.

(C) In response to a request to terminate a rental agreement or remove the tenant's name from a rental agreement pursuant to division (B) of this section, a landlord may offer the tenant an opportunity to rent another unit at the location that is sufficiently distant from the tenant's current unit. Whether to accept that offer is at the tenant's discretion.

(D) No landlord shall knowingly terminate a tenancy because of the status of a tenant or household member as a victim of domestic violence or the offense of menacing by stalking, because the tenant or a household member requested emergency services as such a victim, or because the tenant previously terminated a rental agreement in accordance with this section.

(E) A tenant who is injured by a landlord's violation of division (D) of this section may recover damages in the amount of one month's rent and any security deposit as section 5321.16 of the Revised Code provides, plus reasonable attorney's fees.

(F) A landlord does not incur any additional duty of care for a tenant the landlord accommodates pursuant to this section and section 5321.172 of the Revised Code, and the landlord gains no new or additional liability for any third party act that occurs after an accommodation the landlord makes pursuant to those sections.

Sec. 5321.172.  (A) A landlord of a tenant who is a victim of domestic violence or the offense of menacing by stalking shall change the lock to the dwelling unit where the tenant resides upon receipt of a written request from the tenant and a copy of a court order or protection order that orders the respondent or defendant named in the order to stay away from the tenant. Within forty-eight hours after receiving the notice and a copy of the order, the landlord shall change the lock and shall make a good faith effort to provide a key to the new lock to the tenant and any remaining cotenant not later than twenty-four hours after the landlord changes the lock. The tenant shall reimburse the landlord for the actual expense the landlord incurs in changing the lock. If the landlord fails to change the lock within the forty-eight-hour time period as this section requires, the tenant may change the lock without the landlord's permission. If the tenant changes the lock, the tenant shall do so in a competent and workmanlike manner with locks of similar or better quality than the original lock and shall make a good faith offer to provide a key to the landlord and any remaining cotenant not later than twenty-four hours after the tenant changes the lock. If within thirty days after the landlord changes the lock the tenant does not reimburse the landlord for the expenses the landlord incurs in changing the locks, the landlord may deduct that amount from the security deposit or assess that amount as a charge to the tenant.

(B)(1) A landlord who receives a request and copy of an order under this section shall not, by any act, provide the respondent who is named in the order and who is a tenant of the dwelling unit access to the dwelling unit for which the landlord or tenant has changed the locks unless the order allows the respondent to return to the dwelling unit to retrieve the respondent's personal possessions and the respondent is accompanied by a law enforcement escort.

(2) A respondent who is a tenant of the dwelling unit remains liable under the rental agreement for rent or any damage to the dwelling unit as provided in the rental agreement, unless the respondent can demonstrate that the tenant who changed the lock or had the lock changed intentionally damaged the dwelling unit.

(C) A landlord who changes a lock to a dwelling unit in accordance with this section is not liable for excluding from the dwelling unit a respondent named in an order the landlord receives from a tenant under this section or for loss of use or damage to the respondent's personal property while that property is in the dwelling unit after the lock has been changed.

(D) If a landlord takes action to prevent a tenant who has complied with this section from changing a lock, the tenant may seek a temporary restraining order, preliminary injunction, or permanent injunction ordering the landlord to refrain from preventing the tenant from changing the lock.

Sec. 5321.173. (A) A victim of domestic violence or the offense of menacing by stalking who is a tenant in a unit owned or operated by a metropolitan housing authority as described in section 3735.27 of the Revised Code may request that the housing authority transfer the tenant to another location. The tenant shall make any such request for transfer in writing, informing the housing authority that the tenant or a household member is a victim of domestic violence or the offense of menacing by stalking and affirming that the tenant has made not more than one other such request during the previous five years. The tenant shall supply the housing authority with any one or more of the following as evidence of the need for the transfer:

(1) A civil protection order issued after a full hearing under section 2903.214 or 3113.31 of the Revised Code or a consent agreement approved under section 3113.31 of the Revised Code;

(2) A temporary protection order or a no-contact order issued under section 2919.26 of the Revised Code, a criminal protection order issued under section 2903.213 of the Revised Code, or a protection order or no-contact order issued under any substantially similar law of another state or a substantially similar municipal ordinance of this state or another state;

(3) Medical documentation describing the incident of domestic violence or menacing by stalking;

(4) A sworn, notarized statement provided by a counselor, social worker, victim advocate, health care provider, or other professional who assists or has assisted the tenant or household member in dealing with the incident of domestic violence or menacing by stalking.

(B) Upon receipt of a request made pursuant to this section, and if the tenant has not made more than one other such request during the previous five years, the housing authority shall move the tenant as soon as practicable to another location if the authority has a unit available in another location.

(C) A housing authority does not incur any additional duty of care for a tenant it transfers or fails to transfer pursuant to this section, and the authority gains no new or additional liability for any third party act that occurs after a transfer.

(D) If a metropolitan housing authority wrongfully fails to comply with division (B) of this section, the tenant may recover actual damages resulting from the failure to transfer, obtain injunctive relief, and obtain a judgment for reasonable attorney's fees.

Sec. 5321.174. (A) Except to the extent that a landlord reasonably believes it is necessary to share information for the safety of any tenant or any other person, any information a landlord receives from a tenant under section 5321.171, 5321.172, or 5321.173 of the Revised Code is confidential. A landlord shall not share any confidential information with any other past, current, or prospective landlord, and a landlord shall not share any information with respect to a tenant's status as a victim of domestic violence or the offense of menacing by stalking with any other past, current, or prospective landlord. If the tenant shares any information that the tenant provides to a landlord under this section, that sharing does not waive the confidentiality of the information or the nature of the privileged communication.

(B) A landlord is not liable for any good faith violation of the confidentiality requirement this section establishes.

Sec. 5321.175.  If a tenant has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to a violation of section 2919.25 of the Revised Code while the tenant was subject to the rental agreement, the landlord may terminate the tenant's rental agreement or may remove the tenant's name from a rental agreement and may retain the tenant's share of any security deposit.

Section 2.  Sections 5321.171, 5321.172, 5321.173, and 5321.174 of the Revised Code, as enacted by this act, apply to rental agreements entered into or renewed on or after the effective date of this act.