Ohio's Planned Community Law was not touched this General Assembly
Ohio's Planned Community Law was not touched this General Assembly
2026-09-15 · Ohio · Legislation
Ohio long titles enumerate every Revised Code section a bill amends. A sweep of the long title of every one of the 806 bills in the 136th General Assembly returns exactly one hit across chapters 5311 and 5312 — and that one bill touches only the flag section.1
Chapter 5312, the Ohio Planned Community Law, is untouched by the entire 136th General Assembly. No bill amends any section of it. The single chapter 5311 hit is SB 202, which amends R.C. 5311.191, the display-restrictions section, to cover the thin blue line flag.
What that means the legislature did not do
The same title sweep establishes a list of null results. In the 136th General Assembly there is:
- No bill on association assessment liens, lien priority or association foreclosure. Nothing amends R.C. 5311.18 or anything in chapter 5312.
- No bill on reserve studies or reserve funds. Zero title hits.
- No condominium structural or safety inspection bill. The only general building-inspection measures are SB 6, enacted July 1, 2025, and HB 361, still pending — neither touches chapter 5311.
- No bill on accessory dwelling units. Zero hits for “accessory dwelling.”
- No bill on assistance animals or service animals in housing.
- No bill on association fines, board elections, records or open meetings.
- No solar-access bill running against covenants.
The caveat worth stating: these are title and section-level negatives. A bill could in principle reach a subject without naming the section in its title. But Ohio's drafting convention makes that unlikely, and the sweep covers every bill in the assembly.
The one enacted measure that does reach association practice
Senate Bill 101, signed March 17, 2026, is the most consequential recorded-instrument change of the General Assembly. Sponsored by Senator Louis W. Blessing III, it amends eleven sections and enacts four new ones — R.C. 5301.75 through 5301.78 — to “require certain liens filed with the county recorder to set forth the last known address of the lien debtor, to require a memorandum of trust or other qualifying instrument concerning real property to be recorded, and to prohibit certain contracts regarding residential real estate.”
An association that records assessment liens files exactly the kind of instrument the new lien-debtor address requirement reaches.
The chapters themselves are unchanged, and they remain the framework. Our Ohio governing statute page walks through them.
Four bill numbers that are commonly cited wrong
Ohio HOA commentary circulates several bill numbers that do not mean what they are said to mean. Each of these was checked against the General Assembly's own record.
HB 226 of the 136th General Assembly is not an HOA bill. It would enact R.C. 1349.07 “to require application stores to offer parental control options and to obtain parental consent before permitting individuals under 16 years of age to download certain applications.” It sits in House Judiciary. Material describing an Ohio “HB 226” as a condominium super-lien bill does not match this General Assembly — and HB 226 in the 135th and 134th General Assemblies was not an HOA bill either.
SB 187 of the 136th General Assembly is not an HOA bill. It would authorise a refundable income tax credit for investing in a sound recording production company.
HB 247, “Avery's Law,” is enacted and it is a dog law. It amends around forty sections across chapters including 955 “to make changes to the laws governing dogs, including dangerous and vicious dogs.” It was signed December 19, 2025 and took effect March 20, 2026. Anything describing it as pending is nine months out of date. It is genuinely relevant to Ohio associations dealing with dangerous-dog complaints — but as law, not as a proposal. Our Ohio pet restrictions page covers where that sits against a declaration.
SB 106 is enacted, and it is utility regulation. Signed June 24, 2026, it amends sections of chapters 4909 and 4928 regarding electric vehicle charging stations and ratemaking. It does not create an EV-charging right against an association — it amends no section of title 53.
And one that appears not to exist as described
An Ohio “HB 572” is widely described as a Homeowner Association Preservation Act amending R.C. 5311.18 and 5312.12 to create a super-priority assessment lien. HB 572 of the 135th General Assembly is a higher-education bill requiring a survey of teacher preparation programmes; it was reported out of committee on June 25, 2024, never got a floor vote, and died when the session expired. HB 572 in the 134th, 133rd and 132nd General Assemblies is none of these things either.
The super-lien bill may well exist in an earlier General Assembly — the sponsors named in the commentary left the House years ago. But a citation to “Ohio HB 572 (2023-2024)” as an HOA super-lien bill does not resolve against the record, and it cannot be relied on.
What actually governs, then
With the legislature inert on association law, three other sources are doing the work.
The appellate courts. 2025 and 2026 produced substantial Ohio appellate authority on rental restrictions, jury rights, attorney fees, chain of title and evidence — far more change than any statute delivered.
The municipalities. Cleveland's short-term rental chapter, Columbus's ADU legalisation and its rental registry all reached Ohio associations in this period, and none of them mentions covenants.
The secondary mortgage market. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's March 2026 project-standards update imposes, by underwriting rule, most of what a state reserve mandate would impose — with the reserve floor rising to 15 percent of annual budgeted assessment income for loan applications dated on or after January 4, 2027.
An Ohio board watching the Statehouse for what changes its obligations is watching the wrong building.
Related Ohio HOA Topics
- House Bill 226, 136th General Assembly (application stores and parental consent) ↩
- House Bill 247, "Avery's Law" (signed Dec. 19, 2025; effective Mar. 20, 2026) ↩
- Senate Bill 106, electric vehicle charging stations (signed June 24, 2026) ↩
- House Bill 572, 135th General Assembly (teacher preparation survey — died in the House) ↩
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