Columbus, OH

Columbus bars weeds and rank growth over 12 inches anywhere on private property, with a narrow exemption for genuine agricultural, horticultural, or native pollinator gardens that…

Columbus makes it unlawful for a property owner to let a tree, shrub, or plant block a public street, sidewalk, or sightline: the recreation and parks director can declare it a…

Columbus requires that compost be kept out of regular trash carts and stored instead in a clearly labeled compost container that controls temperature, moisture, odor, and pathogens…

Columbus requires 1:1 caliper-inch replacement for public trees removed on city streets, parks, and public property, planted on-site or funded through the Tree Fund.

Ohio Revised Code 3701.344 and Ohio Administrative Code 3701-28 expressly allow rainwater collection for private water systems, with health department approval required for potable use.

Columbus bars leaving an inoperable vehicle on a public street, easement, or right-of-way for more than 72 hours, and separately bars keeping one on private property outside an…

Columbus bars anyone from painting house numbers on curbs in the public right-of-way without the abutting property owner's prior written consent, and any numbers painted must still…

Columbus loading zones are reserved for active loading and unloading of passengers or merchandise. Vehicles can't sit past any posted time limit or longer than fifteen minutes without…

New apartment and condo buildings in Columbus with four or more dwelling units must wire 20% of required parking as EV Capable and have working EV chargers installed at 2% of spaces…

Columbus runs its own city vehicle pound under Chapter 2107 of the Columbus City Codes, and charges a weight-based release service charge of $125.00 to $280.00 plus $18.00 or $23.00 a…

Columbus bans parking any vehicle in the same street spot for more than 72 consecutive hours; you must move it at least 75 feet or risk a parking infraction citation.

Columbus bans stopping on designated snow-emergency streets once the mayor declares a snow emergency, with towing at the owner's expense.

Columbus bars parking within 5 feet of driveways, at intersections, hydrants, crosswalks, and against the flow of traffic, under Code Chapter 2151.

Columbus requires any parking area, including driveways, to be paved with concrete, asphalt, or another hard surface: gravel, dirt, or grass parking is not allowed under the zoning…

Columbus bars parking or storing boats, trailers, camping trailers, and other recreational vehicles in required parking spaces, front setback areas, unimproved surfaces, or required…

Columbus bans parking or storing commercial vehicles like dump trucks, semis, and garbage trucks on residentially zoned lots, with a narrow exception for brief work-related or moving…

Columbus bans burning acceptable or unacceptable waste, including trash, yard debris, recyclables, and bulk refuse, anywhere within city limits, and violations carry a $1,000 civil…

Columbus requires an annual Fire Prevention Bureau permit for LP-gas containers over 30 gallons individually or 60 gallons combined, though single tanks up to 500 gallons are exempt…

Columbus allows small recreational fires and contained cooking fires but restricts open burning of yard waste within city limits. The Columbus Division of Fire enforces the Ohio Fire…

Columbus requires working smoke detectors outside sleeping areas and on every story of a dwelling unit, with hard-wired units mandatory in buildings built after April 26, 1978.

Columbus prohibits discharge of consumer fireworks within city limits. Ohio's 2022 law (ORC §3743.45) allows local municipalities to opt out; Columbus has banned private discharge…

Ohio Revised Code 1503.18 bans open-air fires outside municipal limits between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. during March, April, May, October, and November: the state's peak spring and fall…

Columbus measures retaining wall height from the higher-grade side, and walls acting as screening walls over six or seven feet need a zoning clearance depending on lot type.

Ohio has no Good Neighbor Fence Act for residential properties. ORC §971.02 covers agricultural partition fences only. Boundary disputes resolved through common law.

Columbus requires a zoning clearance before building a fence or wall over six feet on lots with fewer than four dwelling units, or over seven feet on larger residential and…

Columbus caps residential fences at 6 feet (7 feet on larger multi-unit or nonresidential lots) before a zoning clearance is required, under Title 33's site development standards.

Columbus bans electric fences, barbed wire, and wire or metal prong fencing in residential districts unless needed for hazardous equipment or a pool.

Columbus limits a home-based business to one nonilluminated sign, capped at four square feet, mounted on a wall, window, ground pole, or post lamp, set back two feet from the street…

Columbus's zoning code caps a Type B home day care at six children at a time, no more than three under age two, before the operation is reclassified as a regulated child day care…

Columbus zoning bars home-based businesses from generating traffic, including client visits, heavier or different in kind than what the residential neighborhood would otherwise…

Columbus caps home-based businesses at 20% of a home's livable area and bars outside employees, signage beyond one sign, and retail sales from the house.

Ohio Cottage Food Law under ORC 3715.024 allows Franklin County residents to produce and sell non-potentially hazardous foods from home kitchens with no license or inspection, up to…

Ohio never created a microenterprise home kitchen permit, so there is nothing to apply for. It solved the same problem from the other end, by exempting home cooking from the food…

Columbus requires hot tubs and spas to meet the International Swimming Pool and Spa Code's barrier rules and National Electrical Code wiring standards under the city's adopted…

Columbus zoning classifies portable above-ground pools up to 30 inches deep as structures, banned from front yards but allowed as obstructions in the required rear yard behind the…

Columbus allows one accessory dwelling unit per residential lot, but renting it out short-term pulls the ADU into Chapter 598's hotel/motel and short-term-rental permit system, and the…

Columbus caps residential sheds at 15 feet tall, ties total shed area to your zoning district's lot coverage limit, and requires a zoning clearance once combined shed area tops 200…

Columbus allows one accessory dwelling unit per residential lot under Zoning Code § 3332.355, letting homeowners add a small attached, internal, or detached second unit without extra…

Ohio Revised Code 3781.10 makes the Residential Code of Ohio mandatory statewide, but Ohio has not adopted the tiny house appendix (IRC Appendix Q), so small dwellings must meet the…

Columbus requires a short-term rental host to be the dwelling's owner or a 'permanent occupant' who lives there more than half the year: it is not a primary-residence-only law, since…

In Columbus, renting a dwelling to the same person for 30 or more consecutive days falls outside the short-term rental permit, registration, and excise-tax requirements in City Code…

Columbus can deny, suspend, or revoke a short-term rental permit once a property racks up three or more calls for service in a rolling 12-month period.

Columbus taxes short-term rental stays at a combined 5.1% excise rate, collected by hosts or hosting platforms and remitted monthly to the city auditor by the 20th of each month.

Columbus doesn't set STR-specific quiet hours, but noise complaints count as a "call for service" under Chapter 598: three or more in a rolling 12 months gives the License Section…

Columbus requires every short-term rental host to obtain an annual city permit before listing a dwelling on Airbnb, Vrbo, or any booking platform, with a $250 fine per listing for…

Columbus bars booking websites from processing a short-term rental reservation unless the host has a valid city permit number on file, backed by a $250 misdemeanor fine.

Columbus bans car stereos and sound systems audible 50 feet from the vehicle and requires every gas-engine vehicle to run a working muffler at all times, both enforced as misdemeanor…

Columbus requires Department of Public Safety helicopters to fly major travel corridors, stay above 1,500 feet, and minimize noise over residential neighborhoods except during active…

Columbus does not impose a citywide ban on gas leaf blowers, but their use is governed by the general noise ordinance in Columbus City Code Chapter 2329. Landscaping equipment must not…

Columbus exempts noise from property-maintenance and code-compliance construction work between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m. under the city's noise ordinance; work outside that window is subject…

Columbus bars running a sound amplification system, auditory device, or stationary sound source from a home loud enough to be heard 50 feet past the property line, with a tighter…

Columbus caps hourly average sound levels by land-use zone: 60 dBA at night and 65 dBA by day in residential and institutional areas, 70/75 dBA in commercial zones, and 80 dBA anytime…

Columbus City Code Chapter 2327 (Animals) prohibits animals from creating unreasonable noise disturbances. Sustained barking that disturbs neighbors is a nuisance violation enforceable…

Columbus City Code §2329.11 sets residential noise limits at 65 dBA/75 dBc (10 AM–10 PM) and prohibits clearly audible sound from property line 10 PM–10 AM. Average hourly maximum of…

Columbus zoning lists pet grooming as a permitted commercial use in C-3 districts, but only with no outside runs or boarding on site.

Columbus prohibits keeping any venomous reptile or arthropod, and any constrictor snake over twelve feet long, as pets: the only exemptions are public zoos and research institutions.

Columbus permits veterinary clinics as a commercial use, but small-animal vets in C-1 and C-2 districts cannot offer long-term boarding, kenneling, or outside runs and stables under…

Ohio removed statewide breed-specific language in 2012 (HB 14). However, home-rule cities may still enact local breed restrictions. Check Columbus code.

Columbus dogs must stay leashed or under direct control off their owner's property, and can never run at large under City Code 2327.11.

Franklin County zoning caps backyard honeybee colonies by lot size, two on a quarter acre or less, up to six on more than half an acre, and requires flyway fencing and state apiary…

Backyard chickens, ducks and rabbits are allowed on unincorporated Franklin County residential lots under five acres, capped by a point system that scales from four points on small…

Ohio's companion animal cruelty law universally criminalizes neglect typical of hoarding situations, with felony penalties applying uniformly regardless of municipal boundaries.

Ohio does not ban feeding wildlife everywhere. The statewide rule that exists, Ohio Administrative Code 1501:31-9-01(P), applies only on land the Division of Wildlife owns, controls or…

Columbus makes it a crime to tow a vehicle off private property unless the removal conforms with the legal requirements for private-property towing, with penalties that escalate on…

Columbus confines adult entertainment establishments and adult stores to M-Manufacturing districts and makes them keep 250 feet from schools, parks, day cares, churches, and…

Columbus requires massage and bath establishments to register with the License Section, pay a $150 fee, and renew every year before opening.

Columbus requires secondhand dealers to post a sign, log every purchase in a numbered record book, and file daily reports with police under City Codes Chapter 541.

Vape shops and any retailer selling tobacco products in Columbus must hold a valid license from the Columbus Board of Health before selling: unlicensed sales draw a civil penalty under…

Columbus requires a Special Event permit before holding a street fair, festival, or block party that uses public streets, issued by the Department of Recreation and Parks after police…

Columbus requires a Special Event permit before any parade, race, or street closure: apply through the Department of Recreation and Parks or face a fourth-degree misdemeanor charge.

Restaurants that want tables on the public sidewalk need a written lease from the Public Service Director, plus $500 upfront and $50 a year after that.

Columbus requires businesses to lease public sidewalk or right-of-way space from the Department of Public Service before installing cafe seating, parklets, planters, benches, or other…

Closing a public street for a residential block party in Columbus requires a Special Event permit from the Department of Recreation and Parks before any barricades go up: no exception…

Using a Columbus park or reserving a facility for a gathering requires a permit from the Recreation and Parks director, with all fees, terms and conditions strictly enforced.

Columbus requires residents to pull collection containers back from the curb by 2 p.m. the day after pickup and keep them stored near the home until 6 p.m. the evening before the next…

Columbus law exempts recyclables from the bag-everything rule: household trash must go in tied, sealed bags, but recyclables are set out loose in the recycling container under City…

Columbus requires dumpsters to sit on a designated, screened pad outside required yards and setbacks, clear of aisles, driveways, and parking, under the zoning code's general site…

Columbus bans depositing waste into waterways or onto streets, alleys, rights-of-way, and vacant lots, backing the ban with a $1,000 civil fine per violation plus first-degree…

Columbus requires trash, recycling, and compost carts to sit at least four feet from parked vehicles at the curb, then come back within ten feet of the house by 2 p.m. the day after…

Columbus Refuse Collection runs no trash routes on eleven City-observed holidays, and the 2026 calendar puts Indigenous Peoples Day on Monday, October 12, 2026, between Labor Day and…

In Columbus, leaves go out with the bi-weekly curbside yard waste pickup, which the city says is available for most Columbus residents, in paper bags or marked containers of no more…

Columbus requires collection containers to sit at least four feet from parked vehicles at the curb, then be pulled back within ten feet of the house or garage by 2 p.m. the day after…

Columbus lets recyclables go loose into the collection container: they're the one waste stream exempt from the citywide bagging rule for residential collection.

Columbus residents must schedule bulk pickup through the Division of Refuse Collection and cannot set items outdoors more than 72 hours before the scheduled collection date.

Columbus's Housing Code sets numeric habitability minimums for rentals, including heat to 70°F, 110°F hot water, and working kitchen and bathroom fixtures in every dwelling unit.

Columbus requires owners or local operators of every residential rental property to register annually with the Department of Building and Zoning Services, including owner, operator…

Columbus does not have rent control. Ohio Revised Code §5321.02 preempts local governments from enacting rent control ordinances. Landlords in Columbus may set and increase rents…

Columbus does not have a just-cause eviction ordinance. Ohio follows standard landlord-tenant law under ORC Chapter 5321. Landlords may terminate month-to-month tenancies with 30 days'…

Before filing an eviction in Ohio, a landlord must serve a 3-day notice to leave the premises under Ohio Revised Code 1923.04, including specific statutory warning language. The…

Under Ohio Revised Code 5321.04(A)(8), a landlord must give a tenant reasonable notice before entering and may enter only at reasonable times, except in an emergency. The statute…

Ohio Revised Code 5321.17 sets notice periods to end a periodic tenancy: 30 days for month-to-month and 7 days for week-to-week, given before the periodic rental date. A fixed-term…

Ohio sets no statutory cap on residential security deposits under Ohio Rev. Code 5321.16. The landlord must itemize deductions in writing and return the balance within 30 days after…

Ohio recognizes adverse possession after 21 years, the limitation period in Ohio Revised Code 2305.04 for an action to recover real property. A squatter must possess the land openly…

Columbus Code § 902.02 bars placing furniture, signs, vending gear, or any obstruction on sidewalks, bikeways, streets, or the right-of-way without a Director-issued right-of-way…

Columbus requires a permit from the Director of Public Service before anyone repairs, installs, or maintains any structure, sign, or utility line in the public right-of-way, per City…

Columbus puts sidewalk and driveway-entrance repair squarely on the abutting property owner, with a permit required before any work and a misdemeanor charge for letting damage sit.

Columbus requires an electrical permit before any wiring, alteration, or repair in a building, obtained by an OCIEB-licensed contractor or the occupying homeowner.

Columbus's Health Division inspects dwellings for lead paint above 0.3 milligrams per square centimeter, declares contaminated surfaces a public nuisance, and orders owners to remove…

In Columbus residential districts, a child day care center is allowed only as an accessory use tied to a school or church, with a required transportation plan.

Columbus requires a sequence of building-official inspections for permitted work, from foundation through final, before each phase can be covered or the building occupied.

Columbus requires a permit from the Department of Building and Zoning Services before any plumbing work, issued only to a licensed contractor or an occupying homeowner.

Columbus requires buildings that already have an NFPA 13 or 13R sprinkler system to extend that protection to covered balconies, decks, and ground-floor patios of dwelling units…

Columbus requires a permit from the building official before any construction, alteration, repair, or demolition, and every permitted job is subject to inspection at each stage before…

Ohio requires annual elevator inspections under Ohio Building Code and ORC Chapter 4105. The Ohio Department of Commerce Division of Industrial Compliance oversees elevator safety…

Renting a city-owned boat dock, stake, or mooring in Columbus requires a permit from the Department of Recreation and Parks, plus proof of current vessel registration and annual…

Columbus requires new and substantially improved buildings in mapped flood hazard areas to elevate the lowest floor at least 1.5 feet above the base flood elevation, a freeboard buffer…

Columbus requires an approved site drainage plan and permit before anyone grades, excavates, or fills land, so runoff doesn't flood the street or a neighbor's yard.

Every lot and parcel in Columbus pays a stormwater service charge based on impervious area, billed with a flat 1-ERU rate for residential properties.

Columbus requires a Special Flood Hazard Area Development and Use Permit before any construction, fill, or grading in a FEMA-mapped flood zone, with elevation and floodproofing…

Ohio Revised Code Chapter 1506 grants the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Office of Coastal Management exclusive authority over Lake Erie shore structures, erosion areas, and…

Columbus limits billboard illumination near homes and institutions to 6 a.m.-11 p.m., allows 24-hour lighting farther away, and caps automatic changeable copy brightness at 0.3…

Columbus requires commercial, institutional, and manufacturing site lighting to use fully shielded, recessed fixtures aimed downward and away from neighboring properties, with height…

Columbus requires commercial, institutional, and manufacturing site lighting to use fully shielded, recessed fixtures aimed downward, with fixture heights capped at 28 feet, or 18 feet…

Columbus's photo traffic enforcement program uses cameras to ticket red-light runners and school-zone speeders, with $95 administrative fines mailed to vehicle owners under Columbus…

Stopping, standing, or parking a vehicle in a marked bike lane is a parking infraction under Columbus City Code, and vehicles may only enter a bike lane for a narrow list of exceptions…

Columbus lets the Director of Public Service license and regulate shared e-scooter, e-bike and bike-share vendors by rule, covering how devices operate on city streets and vendor…

Ohio calls a golf cart an under-speed vehicle and, unlike states that simply refuse to register one, treats it as a titleable and registrable vehicle: R.C. 4501.01(XX) defines it by…

Columbus caps stationary noise sources, including generators, at 50 feet beyond a residential property line under the community noise code, with civil fines up to $5,000 for repeat…

Columbus bans loud vehicle sound systems audible 50 feet or more outside the car on any public street or parking area, with escalating misdemeanor penalties for repeat offenders.

Columbus caps noise from bars, nightclubs, and other commercial sources at 70 dBA between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m., and separately bars sound audible at a residential property line 100 feet…

Columbus lets you install a theft alarm on your vehicle, but City Code § 2137.19 requires it be wired so it can't double as your horn or ordinary warning signal.

Columbus classifies air-conditioning and refrigeration equipment as a "stationary sound source" under its noise code, capping how far the sound can carry past your property line before…

Columbus's noise ordinance treats idling and unloading delivery trucks as stationary sound sources, banning nighttime noise audible at a residential property line 100 feet away between…

Columbus caps window signage at 25% of the window's area per City Code § 3377.23, with permanent signs over 10 square feet counted against a business's total allowed graphic area.

Columbus bars signs in or overhanging Interstate System right-of-way and sets a 660-foot line for both on-premises and off-premises signs.

Columbus limits automatic changeable copy billboards to C-3, C-4, C-5 and M districts, caps brightness at 0.3 foot-candles above ambient, and requires 8-second static message holds.

Columbus lets residents post an on-premise garage or yard sale sign up to four square feet without a zoning permit, but the sale itself is capped at two events a year, four days at a…

Ohio Revised Code Section 3517.20 universally requires identification disclaimers on political campaign signs, while ORC 5589.33 prohibits placing signs in the rights-of-way of public…

Columbus bans urinating or defecating on public streets, parks, and buildings, and on private property not open to the public, under a strict-liability ordinance enforced citywide as a…

Columbus bans loitering in a public place with intent to commit or aid a drug offense, repeatedly flagging pedestrians or cars, blocking passage, or lookout duty, under City Code §…

Columbus polices loud, unruly parties as disorderly conduct, a fourth-degree misdemeanor for making unreasonable noise or fighting that disturbs others.

Columbus bans grabbing, touching, or following someone to keep soliciting an exchange after they've said no: a second-degree misdemeanor citywide.

Columbus bans possessing alcohol with intent to consume it in any city park, with narrow exceptions for permitted golf courses, the Zoo, and a handful of named parks.

Columbus bans walking along a roadway when a sidewalk is available, and pedestrians crossing outside a marked or unmarked crosswalk must yield to traffic under City Code § 2171.05.

Columbus keeps skateboards, roller skates and coasters off city streets entirely, letting riders cross only in a marked crosswalk.

Columbus sets its frost line depth at 32 inches, published by the Department of Building and Zoning Services in the communication that completes Ohio's blank design criteria table.

Columbus adopts a ground snow load of 20 pounds per square foot, the figure Ohio's code leaves for each jurisdiction to supply.

Ohio pre-fills four design criteria for the whole state, 115 mph wind speed, severe weathering, moderate to heavy termite risk and required ice barrier underlayment, and delegates the…

Columbus requires written Building and Fire Code Official approval before installing a permanent natural gas grill, fire pit, or decorative fire feature, plus an emergency shut-off…

Columbus requires written sign-off from the Building and Fire Code Official before you permanently install a natural gas grill, fire pit, or other decorative fire feature outdoors.

The Downtown Commission reviews new construction, additions and demolition in Columbus's Downtown District against adopted Design Guidelines covering setbacks, height, entrances…

Columbus requires every residential rental property to register annually with the Department of Building and Zoning Services, and subjects registered properties to a Preventative…

Tenants who report housing code violations to Columbus can request an inspection without their identity becoming public: the code enforcement officer must keep the complainant's…

Columbus levies a combined 5.1% excise tax on hotel, motel, and short-term rental stays under 30 days, collected by the vendor and remitted monthly to the city auditor.

Columbus code bars owners and occupants from letting any sewer, water closet, or drain leak or sit out of repair, and requires plumbing fixtures and water/waste pipes to stay in good…

Columbus bans mobile food trucks and trailers from sidewalks outright: only licensed pushcarts may vend there, and even they must stay clear of intersections, crosswalks, building…

Columbus splits the city into congestion, commercial, and non-commercial zones, each with its own rules for where a licensed mobile food vending unit may park in the public right of…

Columbus requires a mobile food vending license from the Building and Zoning Services License Section before operating any food truck, trailer, pushcart, or pedi-food cart within city…

Columbus bars city staff from holding people on ICE detainer requests alone and requires council approval before police can sign a 287(g) enforcement agreement.

Columbus maintains official lists of tree species approved for planting along public streets, parks, and public places, plus a prohibited list that cannot be planted without the…

Want to plant a tree in the parkway strip along a Columbus street? You need a Recreation and Parks Department permit first, and the species has to come from the department's approved…

Columbus allows farming, gardens, and greenhouses in every residential zoning district under Title 33, with a one-acre minimum for the agricultural use and a 100-foot setback for…

On tracts larger than five acres anywhere in unincorporated Franklin County, agriculture is zoning-exempt by state law: no zoning certificate is required for farm buildings or…

Columbus requires a fire code construction permit before installing or modifying a solar photovoltaic power system, reviewed and issued by the fire code official under the Columbus…

Ohio has NO solar access law unlike California or Florida. HOAs in Franklin County may restrict or prohibit solar panels through covenants. Ohio ORC §5301.055 (2024 pending) proposed…

Columbus requires property owners and occupants to clear snow and ice from adjacent public sidewalks within a reasonable time after snowfall. Columbus City Code §902.03 mandates…

Columbus requires owners of vacant lots to maintain their property. Grass and weeds must not exceed 12 inches in height. Vacant lots must be free of litter, debris, and hazardous…

When Columbus code enforcement declares a structure a public nuisance, the owner gets a written abatement order: miss the deadline and the city can fix it, lien the property, or…

Minors under 13 may not be out in public from one hour after sunset until 4:30 a.m.; minors 13 and older face a midnight-to-4:30-a.m. curfew unless working, in the military, or a…

Columbus parks open daily at 7:00 a.m. and close at 11:00 p.m. under Columbus City Codes Section 919.05, with exceptions only for director-approved activities, registered camping, and…

Columbus caps building height by district: 35 feet is the default limit citywide unless a taller height district applies, with mapped districts up to 60, 110, or 200 feet under the…

Residential lots in Columbus need a minimum 5-foot side yard (3 feet on lots 40 feet wide or less), a rear yard covering at least 25% of the lot, and a front building line set by block…

In Columbus's Title 33 residential zoning districts, a dwelling or manufactured home, alone or combined with any other roofed structure, cannot cover more than 50 percent of the lot…

Columbus respects 'No Soliciting' and 'No Trespassing' signs posted on residential property. Under Columbus City Code and Ohio trespass law, solicitors who ignore posted signs may be…

Columbus requires door-to-door peddlers, solicitors, and canvassers to hold a commercial sales license from the License Section, with a separate promoter's license for any business…

Columbus lets residents hold a garage or yard sale without a permit, but caps it at two sales per year and four days per sale under the zoning code's temporary-use exemption.

Columbus zoning confines an Ohio Division of Cannabis Control dispensary to the C-4 Regional Scale Commercial District: it is not a listed use in the C-1, C-2, or C-3 commercial…

Ohio's adult-use marijuana law, approved by Issue 2 in 2023 and now codified in ORC Chapter 3796, lets adults twenty-one and older grow up to six marijuana plants each, twelve per…

Ohio HOA board meetings are governed by the Ohio Planned Community Law (ORC Chapter 5312). The board must hold at least one annual meeting. Special meetings can be called by the…

Columbus HOA architectural review authority derives from the CC&Rs and Ohio Planned Community Law (ORC 5312). Standards must be set in governing documents. Ohio law does not mandate…

Ohio Planned Community Law (ORC 5312) requires HOA assessments to follow the declaration and bylaws. Assessments fund common expenses and are allocated to lots as specified in…

Ohio HOA disputes are resolved through the courts under ORC 5312. The final decision maker in any HOA dispute is a court of competent jurisdiction. HOA boards cannot take self-help…

Homeowner and condominium associations in Columbus enforce their Declarations under Ohio Revised Code Chapter 5311 (condominium) or Chapter 5312 (planned community). Boards must follow…

Ohio law voids any HOA rule, bylaw, or deed covenant that blocks a homeowner from flying the U.S. flag, the state flag, the POW/MIA flag, or a service flag. Associations keep authority…

Ohio's Planned Community Law lets a homeowners association bill a lot owner an "enforcement assessment" (the statute's term for an HOA fine) only when the declaration authorizes it…

Ohio runs condominiums under a separate lien statute from the one that governs planned communities, and the condominium version is the weaker of the two on paper. R.C. 5311.18(A)(1)…

Columbus code requires owners of multi-unit dwellings and business buildings to eliminate rodents, insects, and vermin, rodent-proof openings, and keep premises free of harborage…

Columbus's Recreation and Parks Department keeps an official list of prohibited tree species, including known invasive species, that cannot be planted along public streets, in parks…

Columbus City Code lets anyone record police interactions and protests under a federal injunction from Alsaada v. City of Columbus, so long as recording doesn't physically interfere…

Recreational drone operators in Franklin County must register with the FAA (drones over 0.55 pounds) and follow 14 CFR Part 107 and recreational rules under 49 USC 44809. Portions of…

Ohio Revised Code 4561.51, effective April 2025, makes it a state offense to fly a commercial drone in violation of FAA rules, and adds criminal penalties for interfering with…

Ohio's constitutional minimum wage (Article II Section 34a) sets a state floor that adjusts annually with inflation, while ORC 4111.02 limits local action.

Ohio Senate Bill 331 added ORC 4113.85 preempting local paid sick leave, fringe benefit, and scheduling mandates on private employers statewide.

Ohio law preempts local predictive scheduling, fair workweek, and similar shift-notice ordinances, leaving employer scheduling unregulated by state mandate.

Ohio allows permitless concealed carry for qualifying adults aged 21 and over while still issuing concealed handgun licenses for reciprocity and other benefits.

Ohio Revised Code 9.68 preempts local firearm ordinances, reserving authority over firearms regulation almost entirely to the state legislature.

Ohio Revised Code 2923.16 governs how loaded and unloaded firearms may be transported in motor vehicles, with statewide rules preempting local conflicts.

Ohio's constitution, not any city zoning code, fixes where casinos can operate. Article XV, Section 6(C) authorizes exactly four casino facilities statewide: one each in Cincinnati…

Ohio requires every charitable organization to hold an attorney general license before running bingo, instant bingo, or electronic instant bingo. R.C. 2915.08 sets three license types…

Ohio's gambling statute bans operating a "game of chance conducted for profit," defined in R.C. 2915.01(E) as one "designed to produce income for the person who conducts or operates"…

Ohio legalized sports wagering effective January 1, 2023, but R.C. 3775.03 bars anyone from operating, conducting, or assisting sports gaming without a license from the Ohio Casino…

Sobriety checkpoints are lawful in Ohio, but no Ohio statute creates them. The Revised Code mentions them in exactly one place, R.C. 4511.043, which assumes an "authorized sobriety or…

Ohio has no statute that bans recording a police officer and no buffer-zone law keeping bystanders a set distance away. The General Assembly went the other direction in 2023: R.C…

Ohio is a stop-and-identify state. Under R.C. 2921.29 a person in a public place must give a law enforcement officer their name, address, or date of birth when the officer reasonably…

Ohio has no general statute telling you whether to consent to a search of your car, and nothing in the Revised Code makes refusing an offense. The single place the code regulates…

Ohio House Bill 242 preempts local plastic bag bans and fees, requiring uniform statewide treatment of auxiliary containers including plastic bags.

Ohio HB 242's auxiliary container preemption extends to polystyrene foam food containers, blocking local bans on Styrofoam takeout packaging.

Ohio prohibits the sale of tobacco, alternative nicotine, and vapor products to anyone under 21 under ORC 2927.02 and related regulations.

Ohio Revised Code 9.681, enacted in 2024 when lawmakers overrode a veto of budget bill HB 33, preempts local flavored tobacco and vapor product regulation, but courts have blocked it…

Ohio caps extra forward lighting by count, by mounting height and by total brightness, and it splits the numbers between the Revised Code and the Director of Public Safety's rules…

Ohio is one of the few states whose windshield statute uses the word camera. R.C. 4513.24(B)(1) bans nontransparent material on the glass apart from a four inch by six inch decal in a…

Ohio has never enacted a lane-splitting or lane-filtering statute, and neither phrase appears anywhere in the Revised Code. A motorcyclist who rides the white line between two lanes of…

R.C. 4503.21(A)(2) imposes two separate duties on an Ohio driver: the rear license plate must be securely fastened so as not to swing, and it shall not be covered by any material that…

Ohio does not prohibit radar detectors in private passenger vehicles. A full-text search of the Ohio Revised Code for the phrase returns no records, and the word radar appears in only…

Ohio permits studded tires on a fixed calendar window, not on weather conditions: R.C. 5589.081(B)(1) allows them only during the period running from the first day of November each…

Ohio splits its tint law across two instruments. R.C. 4513.241 creates the offence and the penalties but contains no percentage at all, and the numbers live in the Director of Public…