Ohio House Passes Legislation to Ban TikTok on Government Devices, Overhaul Village Dissolution Process

COLUMBUS—State Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-Loveland) spearheaded legislative efforts to ban TikTok on government devices and overhaul the current village dissolution process, which today both passed the Ohio House of Representatives.

House Bill 17 will ban the download, installation, and use of any applications or services owned by an entity located in China, including TikTok, on government devices.

“This critical legislation will protect our state’s sensitive information and as a result, all Ohioans,” said Schmidt. 

The bill does not prohibit Ohioans from using TikTok or other Chinese-based applications on their personal devices.

House Bill 101 will simplify the process for concluding the operations of a dissolved village.

“As we have seen in the past, village dissolution can difficult for the residents of the dissolving village,” said Schmidt. “This common-sense bill seeks to simplify that process, ultimately providing necessary support to important parts of our communities.”

The bill will require the establishment of a Transition Supervisory Board responsible for managing multiple aspects of the transition, such as tax collection, debt resolution, property distribution, continuity of utility services, and more. The legislation will also mandate additional support from former village officials and an appointed receiver-trustee to assist the Board.

Both bills head to the Ohio Senate for further consideration.