Merit Institute Merit

The Ohio Merit-Based Credentialing Act (OH-ACSA)

Ohio state companion to ACSA. Extends O.R.C. Ch. 4796 universal licensure recognition, Ohio Department of Higher Education, and O.R.C. Ch. 5747 income-tax credits.

THE OHIO MERIT-BASED CREDENTIALING ACT (OH-ACSA)

Vehicle: State passage. Ohio General Assembly, regular session. Primary referral to House / Senate Commerce and Labor / Ways and Means / Finance.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE

This Act may be cited as the “Ohio Merit-Based Credentialing Act (OH-ACSA).”

SECTION 2. LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT

The General Assembly finds that Ohio enacted universal occupational-licensure recognition under O.R.C. Ch. 4796; that the Ohio Department of Higher Education operates under O.R.C. Title 33; that the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce operates under O.R.C. Title 33; that the Governor’s Office of Workforce Transformation operates TechCred and Individual Microcredential Assistance Program grants; that the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services operates under O.R.C. Ch. 5101; and that O.R.C. Ch. 5747 provides income-tax credits. This Act extends these frameworks.

TITLE I — DEFINITIONS & COORDINATION WITH OHIO LAW

Sec. 101. Definitions

  1. (a) “Ohio Recognized Merit Credential” or “OHRMC” means a competency-based credential designated by the Chancellor of Higher Education in coordination with the Director of Education and Workforce under Sec. 201.
  2. (b) “Federal FRAC” means a Federally Recognized Alternative Credential under Section 202 of the federal ACSA.
  3. (c) “Covered State licensing authority” means an agency issuing an occupational license under O.R.C. Title 47.

Sec. 102. Coordination with Existing Ohio Law

  1. (a) Consistent with:
  • O.R.C. Ch. 4796 (universal recognition).
  • O.R.C. Title 47 (occupational licensing).
  • O.R.C. Title 33 (education and higher education).
  • O.R.C. Ch. 5101 (Department of Job and Family Services).
  • O.R.C. Ch. 5747 (income tax).

TITLE II — OHIO RECOGNIZED MERIT CREDENTIALS

Sec. 201. Designation Authority

  1. (a) The Chancellor of Higher Education, in coordination with the Director of Education and Workforce, shall maintain an Ohio Recognized Merit Credentials registry (“OHRMC Registry”) in machine-readable form, updated at least annually, crosswalked to Federal FRAC.

Sec. 202. Degree-Optional State Employment

  1. (a) O.R.C. Ch. 124 (Department of Administrative Services, State Personnel) shall be applied so that an OHRMC-holder satisfies any position qualification stated in terms of a college degree, unless expressly required by Ohio statute.

TITLE III — TAX INCENTIVE FOR SKILLS-BASED HIRING

Sec. 301. Ohio Skills-Based Hiring Income-Tax Credit

  1. (a) A new credit is added to O.R.C. Ch. 5747 equal to a percentage of qualified first-year wages paid to an Ohio-resident employee whose qualifying pathway is an OHRMC or Federal FRAC.
  2. (b) Coordinated with federal IRC Sec. 45AA; aggregate cap.
  3. (c) Ohio Department of Taxation administers.

TITLE IV — OCCUPATIONAL LICENSURE PORTABILITY

Sec. 401. Licensure by Demonstrated Competency

  1. (a) Demonstrated-competency pathway accepting OHRMC, Federal FRAC, or examination-plus-supervised-experience.

Sec. 402. Interstate Recognition for Federal-Fund Recipients

  1. (a) Recognition by federally-funded authorities, consistent with Section 401 of the federal ACSA and O.R.C. Ch. 4796.

TITLE V — IMPLEMENTATION & GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 501. Severability

If any provision is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect the remainder.

Sec. 502. Effective Date

This Act shall take effect 90 days following enactment, except that Sec. 301 shall apply to tax years beginning on or after January 1 of the year following enactment.

Canonical federal version: ACSA. Other Ohio bills: OH-MEWRA, OH-GT&P, OH-AI-Workforce.