Roemer, Young Reintroduce Catalytic Converter Theft Legislation

COLUMBUS – State Reps. Bill Roemer (R-Richfield) and Bob Young (R-Green) introduced House Bill 110, which regards catalytic converter theft. Catalytic converters are important to vehicles because they change harmful compounds from an engine’s emissions into safe gases released from the car’s exhaust system.

The bill intends to protect consumers from catalytic converter theft and create more transparent guidelines for businesses. 

“Since its first introduction as House Bill 408 in the 134th General Assembly, the rate of catalytic converter theft is even higher in Ohio and across the country,” Young said. “We must work to help the countless number of Ohioans who have been victimized by this crime.” 

The proposed legislation brands catalytic converters as “special purchase articles,” which makes it illegal to be sold to any entity without proof of ownership. 

“Unfortunately, catalytic converters are easy to steal, and they contain rhodium which is a precious metal sold to scrap recyclers for significant dollars,” Roemer said. “With the right tools, many criminals can commit this crime in less than 60 seconds which impacts many Ohioans.”

Some of the changes to the legislation from the last general assembly include:

·         Expanding the Ohio Department of Public Safety’s (DPS) authority to go after unlicensed scrap yards or other “bad actor” businesses acting as scrap yards who are unlicensed and thus skirting current Ohio law.

·         Requiring DPS under certain circumstances to ensure investigations are happening by local law enforcement agencies when catalytic converter theft is occurring. 

·         Adding a trigger provision so if or when Congress passes a bill requiring vehicles to be stamped with a vehicle identification number, DPS can create a rule to prohibit the sale of converters that do not match the title presented.

·         Allowing retribution assessment for the theft of catalytic converters to go back to the law enforcement agencies responsible for investigating the crime. (i.e. DPS, local sheriffs, and local municipal police departments)

Specifying the proof of ownership a buyer must obtain from the seller when purchasing a catalytic converter.
 

The legislation has not yet been assigned to a committee.