The Legal Ledger

As of September 10, 2012, applicants for licensure or public employment no longer are required to complete Declaration of Material Assistance/Non-assistance (DMA) forms. These forms were required to be completed by certain applicants to certify that they had not provided "material assistance" to a terrorist organization. HB 487, which became effective on September 10, 2012, repealed statutory provisions requiring the completion of these forms.

The OSBA Legal Assistance Fund (LAF) recently participated in an Ohio Supreme Court case between The Ohio State University (Ohio State) and ESPN. The LAF joined the Ohio Legal Rights Service, Community Legal Aid Services, and Northeast Ohio Legal Services, and submitted an amici curiae brief arguing that Ohio State was prohibited from disclosing the records requested by ESPN pursuant to Ohio's Public Records Act and the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

What is a public record?

RC 149.43(A)(1) defines a public record as "records kept by any public office including any state, county, city, village, township, and school district units, and records pertaining to the delivery of educational services by an alternative school in this state kept by the nonprofit or for-profit entity operating the alternative school." A record is defined in RC 149.011 (G) to include "any document, device, or item, regardless of physical form or characteristic, including electronic records."

I recently listened to a webinar conducted by the Ohio Historical Society (OHS) that was designed to review best practices for managing and retaining public records in Ohio. The host of the webinar mentioned a change that HB 153 made to record retention practices. It has the potential to lessen the burden on school districts with regard to the disposal of records, so it's worth repeating.

House Bill 66, which takes effect May 4, 2012, requires the Auditor of State to maintain a system for the reporting of fraud, including the misuse of public money by any public official or office. The system allows individuals to make anonymous complaints through a toll-free telephone number, the Auditor of State's website, or through the United States mail. The Auditor's office is required to keep a log of all complaints filed.

With the end of the school year just around the corner and the conclusion of the fiscal year soon after, many school districts are searching for ways to tighten their belts. Rehiring retirees, while often controversial locally, is one option that a district might consider. School boards can renegotiate contracts in order to gain more control over costs, all while retaining experienced personnel. If a board of education decides to pursue a strategy of rehiring retirees, it must follow certain guidelines in order to comply with Ohio law.

No. In advisory opinion 2011-038 (2011 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 038), the Ohio Attorney General (OAG) concluded that a public body (in this instance the State Board of Education) may not vote in an open meeting by secret ballot. The OAG determined that voting by secret ballot would violate Ohio's open meetings law in much the same way as a violation occurs when public officials whisper or pass documents among themselves during meetings or when a vote would improperly be taken during executive session.

Yes. On April 22, 2010, the Ohio Ethics Commission (OEC) issued Advisory Opinion No. 2010-01 regarding the application of the Ethics Law to community school officials. All governing boards of community schools are required to sign contracts agreeing to be bound by RC Chapter 102 and Section 2921.42.

Yes. The general rule is that boards must first offer the opportunity to direct, supervise, or coach a pupil activity program to qualified, licensed individuals in the district (RC 3313.53). Boards of education are permitted to employ non-licensed individuals who have pupil activity permits to direct, supervise, or coach a pupil activity program, but only if the board passes a resolution that outlines two things.

A number of districts have received public records requests asking for specific information relating to the curriculum that is being provided in the district. Please keep the following points in mind when complying with these requests: