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Read. Follow. Verify.Ohio SB 143 bans criminal background questions on private job applications and requires individualized assessments
Last action · March 19, 2025: Referred to Workforce DevelopmentSponsors: Hearcel Craig and 1 other
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What This Bill Would Do
Private employers in Ohio with five or more employees are prohibited from asking about an applicant's criminal background on initial job applications or inquiring into arrests not followed by conviction. Before denying employment based on a criminal record, employers must conduct an , provide written notice of a preliminary decision, and grant applicants at least five days to respond with evidence of rehabilitation or accuracy challenges.
Job seekers with criminal records gain procedural protections and a mandatory response window during hiring processes, while private employers face new restrictions on application screening and must follow formalized notification steps before disqualifying candidates.
- Fair-chance hiring laws, commonly known as 'ban-the-box' policies, restrict employers from asking about job applicants' criminal histories on initial application forms. context
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
job applicants with criminal backgrounds
Applicants cannot be asked about criminal history on initial forms, receive notice before preliminary rejections, and gain a window to challenge inaccuracies or present evidence of rehabilitation.
private employers with five or more employees
Employers must remove criminal history questions from initial applications, conduct individualized assessments before denying jobs, and provide written notices and response periods for disqualified applicants.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which employers are covered by this rule?
Can an employer still run a background check during the hiring process?
How much time does an applicant have to respond to a preliminary employment denial based on a background check?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
2 actions- Mar 19, 2025SenateCommitteeReferred to Workforce Development
- Mar 11, 2025SenateIntroducedIntroduced
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Ban-the-Box Expansion
The legislation establishes formal requirements for private employers regarding criminal background screening, mirroring fair-chance hiring policies adopted in other jurisdictions.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.legislature.ohio.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance75How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy60Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz35Current news / social attention level
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