H2Ohio
A trio of senate bills related to agriculture were introduced in the Ohio General Assembly this month. The bills touch on a variety of topics, from CAUV recoupment charges, to training an agricultural workforce, to creating a state food and agriculture policy council.
Senate Bill 285, available here, was introduced by Senator Tim Schaffer (R-Lancaster) on October 8 and referred to the Senate Ways and Means Committee. The bill would exempt certain conservation uses from recoupment charges when land is converted from an agricultural use. Typically, if agricultural land is converted to another use, it is subject to a recoupment charge equal to the previous three years of tax savings it received because it was valued using its current agricultural use value (CAUV). SB 285 would not require a recoupment charge to be paid if the agricultural land is acquired by a conservation organization and is used for certain environmental response projects related to water quality or wetlands, or if it is used for an H2Ohio water project. That being said, if the land ceases to be used for conservation, recoupment charges would apply. SB 285 had its first hearing in the Senate Ways and Means Committee on October 28.
Sponsored by Senator Paula Hicks-Hudson (D-Toledo), SB 287, entitled “Farming And Workforce” was introduced on October 8, and had its first hearing in the Senate Finance Committee on October 28. The bill, which is available here, would create the Farming and Workforce Development Program. This program would provide training for Ohio residents between 16 and 35 years of age to prepare them for employment in seasonal crop farming. The program would not exclude people who have been convicted or pled guilty to a felony from eligibility. The bill would require Ohio State University Extension and Central State University Extension to develop guidelines and policies for the application process, coursework, and running of the Farming and Workforce Development Program, and would appropriate $500,000 from the state general revenue fund to get the program started.
Finally, Senate Bill 288 was also introduced on October 8. Also sponsored by Senator Hicks-Hudson, the bill, available here, would create the Ohio Food and Agriculture Policy Council. The Council would be tasked with making recommendations to the General Assembly that strengthen Ohio’s food and farm economies, engaging in advocacy, education, and policy work for the health of Ohio’s citizens and the sustainability of the state’s natural resources. Specifically, the Council would be charged with delivering an annual report to the General Assembly detailing its recommendations on:
- Food security;
- Food access;
- Food production and distribution;
- Food waste;
- Economic development;
- Food procurement;
- Food chain workers; and
- Food systems resilience.
The Council would be housed under the Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA). The Director of ODA would serve on the council, as well as the following members, who would be appointed by the Governor:
- One member who is a representative of the Ohio Hospital Association;
- One member from Ohio State University Extension;
- One member from Central State University Extension;
- Three members from Ohio Farm Bureau;
- One member who represents urban farming;
- One member who represents rural farming;
- One member who represents statewide food banks; and
- One member who is a registered lobbyist representing Ohio Cooperatives.
Senate Bill 288 would appropriate $500,000 to create the Ohio Food and Agriculture Policy Council and has been referred to the Senate Finance Committee.
Be sure to stay tuned to the Ag Law Blog for continuing updates on Ohio Legislation affecting agriculture!
Tags: Ohio legislation, conservation, H2Ohio
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Over the past month, we’ve shared several blog posts examining aspects of the State Operating Budget, HB 96 and how it makes changes to agricultural law in Ohio. Below, we note some more assorted provisions in the bill related to agriculture.
Pork Marketing
HB 96 establishes a state “pork marketing program to promote the sale of pork and pork products,” but only if the National Pork Checkoff created under federal law ceases to operate. Checkoff programs for agricultural commodities gather fees on products in order to better promote the products and to conduct research. If the National Pork Checkoff ends, the new law would require the Ohio Pork Council to accept nominees and hold elections for a state pork marketing program operating committee. The committee would consist of 12 members, including the Director of the Ohio Department of Agriculture, the executive vice president of the Ohio Pork Council, four pork producers appointed by the director, and six members from each of the six districts established throughout the state. The operating committee would be able to levy assessments on the value of animals, pork, or pork products sold or imported in the state. This provision of HB 96, which again, is only triggered if the National Pork Checkoff ceases to operate, was likely included in the State Operating Budget due to reports in February of this year that the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) was reviewing and possibly cutting federal agricultural checkoff programs.
Animal and Consumer Protection Fund
The Operating Budget establishes the Animal and Consumer Protection Fund, which will be used to fund the Ohio Livestock Care Standards Board, the regulation of captive deer producers, the regulation of wild animals and snakes, and the regulation of garbage-fed swine and poultry. The new language would channel various fees collected from permits for the possession of dangerous wild animals to go to the Animal and Consumer Protection Fund, when they previously went to the “dangerous and restricted animal fund.”
HB 96 also gives ODA the power to assess civil penalties against those who violate livestock dealer laws. The civil penalties would replace the finding of first-degree misdemeanor for violators (however, the fifth-degree felony penalty for violating certain provisions of the livestock dealer law remains). Money collected from these civil penalties would also go to the Animal and Consumer Protection Fund.
Food Processing Establishments
Under Ohio law, a food processing establishment is defined as a premises or part of a premises where food is processed, packaged, manufactured, or otherwise held or handled for distribution to another location or for sale at wholesale.” New language included in HB 96 would exempt small egg producers (those who annually maintain 500 or fewer birds) from food processing establishment requirements.
Hemp
HB 96 gives ODA permission to transfer the authority to regulate hemp cultivation in Ohio to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and requires ODA to establish a program to monitor and regulate hemp processing. On July 25, 2025, ODA started the process of transferring the regulation of hemp cultivation in the state to the USDA. As of January 1, 2026, hemp growers must be licensed through USDA, and ODA cultivation licenses will be voided. More information about the transition is available here.
Although the steps are in motion to transfer regulation of cultivation of hemp to USDA, HB 96 still allows ODA and universities with agricultural programs to cultivate and process hemp without a license for research purposes.
Finally, the budget bill allows ODA to issue hemp processing licenses if either of the following apply:
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- The individual holds the applicable license in another state
- The individual has satisfactory work experience, a government certification, or private certification as a hemp processor in a state that does not issue the applicable license.
H2Ohio
It has been widely reported that the state budget made cuts to the H2Ohio Program. In Governor DeWine’s proposed budget released in January, he called for $270 million to fund the program, but in the final version of the budget as passed by the General Assembly, only around $165 million was allocated to the program for 2026 and 2027. ODA’s H2Ohio funds will be $107.2 million for 2026-2027, compared to $171.4 million received in 2024—2025. Bigger cuts were made to ODNR , which will have $42.4 million for H2Ohio (down from $69.4 million in 2024—2025), and Ohio EPA, which will receive $15 million for H2Ohio (down from $ 51.4 million in 2024—2025).
In the version of HB 96 delivered to Governor DeWine, the General Assembly also added a provision that money in the H2Ohio fund could not be used for the purchase of land or for the purchase of conservation easements to further the goals of the H2Ohio program. This provision, however, was vetoed by Governor DeWine.
We hope you’ve found our series on agriculture in the state budget informative thus far! You can find HB 96 in its entirety here. There has been talk of legislation to “fix” certain parts of the budget bill as passed. Please stay tuned to the Ohio Ag Law Blog, where we will be sure to update you on any changes the General Assembly makes this fall!
Tags: Ohio legislation, hemp, hemp cultivation, hemp processing, pork checkoff, H2Ohio, Ohio livestock care standards
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Written by Jeffrey Lewis, Attorney and Research Specialist, OSU Agricultural & Resource Law Program
Ohio is thirsty for some quality H2O, but the legislature has recently struggled with how to get it. After debating two separate water quality bills for over a year, the Ohio House of Representatives and the Ohio Senate finally passed H.B. 7 in December. The bi-partisan bill aims to improve water quality in Ohio’s lakes and rivers but doesn’t establish a permanent H2Ohio Trust Fund as the House had first proposed.
Even so, H.B. 7 will help fund and implement Governor Mike DeWine’s H2Ohio program. DeWine unveiled his water quality plan in 2019 to help reduce phosphorus runoff, prevent algal blooms, and prevent lead contamination in Ohio’s waterways. In July 2019, the Ohio General Assembly invested $172 million to fund the H2Ohio initiative. H.B. 7 continues those efforts by creating a statewide Watershed Planning and Management Program and directing the Ohio Department of Agriculture to implement a pilot program to assist farmers and others in phosphorus reduction efforts.
Here’s a summary of the specifics included in H.B. 7, delivered to Governor DeWine on December 30 and awaiting his signature.
Watershed planning and management program
The new Watershed Planning and Management Program established by the bill aims to improve and protect Ohio’s lakes and rivers. The Director of Agriculture will be responsible for appointing watershed planning and management coordinators throughout the seven watershed districts in Ohio. The coordinators will be responsible for identifying sources and areas of water with quality impairment, engaging in watershed planning, restoration, protection, and management activities, collaborating with other state agencies involved in water quality activities, and providing an annual report to the Director of Agriculture regarding their region’s watershed planning and management.
Certification program for farmers
A certification program for farmers in northwestern Ohio is already up and running at ODA. Even so, H.B. 7 confirms that the legislature intends to collaborate with organizations representing agriculture, conservation, and the environment and institutions of higher education engaged in water quality research to establish a certification program for farmers who utilize practices designed to minimize impacts to water quality. H.B. 7 requires the Director of Agriculture to undertake all necessary actions to ensure that assistance and funding are provided to farmers who participate in the certification program.
Watershed pilot program to reduce phosphorus in Ohio’s water
H.B. 7 authorizes but does not require the Department of Agriculture, in conjunction with the Lake Erie Commission, the Ohio Soil and Water Conservation Commission, and the Ohio State University Extension, to establish a pilot program that assists farmers, agricultural retailers, and soil and water conservation districts in reducing phosphorous and dissolved reactive phosphorous in a watershed. The program, if established, would be funded from the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s budget for water quality initiatives. Funding must be used for purchases of equipment, soil testing, implementation of variable rate technology, tributary monitoring, drainage management strategies, and implementation of nutrient best management practices.
Public record exemption for voluntary Nutrient Management Plans
Currently, a person who owns or operates agricultural land may develop and implement a voluntary nutrient management plan. A voluntary nutrient management plan provides for the proper application of fertilizer. An individual that implements a proper voluntary nutrient management plan receives an affirmative defense in any civil lawsuit involving the application of the fertilizer. In addition to the affirmative defense offered by using a voluntary nutrient management plan, H.B. 7 specifies that the information, data, and associated records used in the development and execution of a voluntary nutrient management plan is not a public record and is not subject to Ohio’s laws governing public records.
Regional water and sewer districts expanded authority
In addition to political subdivisions, regional water and sewer districts will have the authority to make loans, grants, and enter into cooperative agreements with any person, which includes a natural person, a firm, a partnership, an association, or a corporation, for water resource projects.
Also, regional water and sewer districts will be able to expand to whom they can offer discounts to for water and sewer services. Currently, districts can only offer discounts to persons who are 65 or older and who are of low or moderate income or qualify for the homestead exemption. H.B. 7 allows those discounts to be offered to any person who is considered of low or moderate income or that qualifies for the homestead exemption.
CAUV eligibility of land used for biofuel production
Unrelated to water quality, H.B. 7 also modifies the requirements that land used in biofuel production must meet in order to be valued for property taxes at its current agricultural use value (CAUV). Currently, land used for biofuel production qualifies for the CAUV program if:
- The production facility is located on, or on property adjoining, farmland under common ownership; and
- At least 50% of the feedstock used in the production comes from land under common ownership or leasehold.
H.B. 7 makes three changes:
- Instead of the 50% feedstock requirement, House Bill 7 requires that, of the feedstock used in biofuel production, at least 50% must be “agricultural feedstock” (manure or food waste) and at least 20% of the “agricultural feedstock” must come from land under common ownership or leasehold.
- None of the feedstock used in biofuel production can include human waste.
- The biofuel production facility may be part of, or adjacent to, farmland that is under common leasehold or common ownership.
Useful links: Ohio General Assembly web page for H.B. 7.
Tags: water quality, H2Ohio, agricultural nutrient management, nutrient management plans
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