Representative Lanese's House Bill 61 Passes the Ohio House of Representatives

COLUMBUS— The Ohio House of Representatives passed Representative Laura Lanese's House Bill 61 to ensure sensitive personal information of forensic psychologists and other mental health evaluators are exempt from disclosure under Ohio’s public records law.

“House Bill 61 is a simple, straight-forward bill.” said Lanese (R-Grove City). “With this bill residential and familial information of these mental health evaluators will be protected under Ohio’s public records law. These workers and their families may be vulnerable to retaliation from their clients, who could become threatening or violent. These professionals perform vital work for our state, and it's important to ensure their safety and the safety of their families as much as possible. The bill now moves forward for consideration in the Senate.”

Representative Lanese previously sponsored House Bill 406 in the 132nd General Assembly to provide the same exemption to these mental health workers. House Bill 61 is bipartisan with fellow Franklin County Representative Beth Liston (D-Dublin) as the joint sponsor. The Ohio House passed the bill 93 to 1.