Ohio Passes Senate Bill 337

The bill applies to any individual subject to a "collateral sanction" (a penalty, disability, or disadvantage related to employment or occupational licensing as a result of a conviction of or plea of guilty to an ). The bill allows such an individual to petition a court for a “certificate of qualification for employment” for relief from certain barriers to employment or occupational licensing.

A certificate of qualification for employment lifts the automatic bar of a collateral sanction and provides that a licensing authority must consider on a case-by-case basis whether to grant or deny or restore a license of an eligible offender. However, a certificate may not grant automatic relief for collateral sanctions to individuals applying for or holding a license as a health care professional if he or she is convicted of or pleads guilty to a variety of charges including murder, manslaughter, kidnapping, robbery, arson, etc.

Senate Bill 337 also offers protections for employers that hire and employ certificate holders from tort liability for negligent hiring and retention claims.

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