Rep. Stewart Champions Legislation to Increase Transparency in Parole Board Hearings

State Representative Brian Stewart (R-Ashville) announced that legislation he jointly sponsored with State Representative Latyna Humphrey (D-Columbus) passed through the Ohio House with bipartisan, unanimous support earlier this month.  House Bill 31 requires the electronic recording of all Ohio Parole Board hearings and ensures that those records are available upon request from members of the public. 

Under current law, the Ohio Parole Board is not required to record its hearings, limiting the ability for inmates, attorneys, families and stakeholders to review or appeal the proceedings. House Bill 31 addresses this issue. 

“This bill simply aligns parole board hearings with other court proceedings and traffic hearings in that there is a record from the meeting,” said Rep. Stewart. “As of 2022, of which is the most current data, roughly 22,000 Ohioans were under parole, and 191,000 under probation. With so many parolees, it would make sense to have some kind of recording available for reference.”

Under the legislation, any party, person or entity will be able to request an electronic recording of a parole hearing from the Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. These recordings are required to be kept confidential and are not allowed to be copied or posted to the internet. 

In an effort to protect the privacy of any victims mentioned in the hearing, the bill ensures that recordings exclude personally identifiable information, such as names, contact information, social security numbers and other details about the victim or their immediate family. 

House Bill 31 is now in the Ohio Senate for further consideration.