Resources for Elected Officials

LGBTQ+ Equality Toolkit for Ohio Local Officials

Ohio has no statewide LGBTQ+ non-discrimination law, so local action is the only path. This toolkit collects the strongest, most-replicable models — comprehensive non-discrimination ordinances, conversion-therapy bans, safe-haven resolutions, and Pride proclamations — along with the home-rule authority and drafting help that make them possible.

NDOs lead the way

Roughly 37 Ohio municipalities plus Cuyahoga County prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Columbus (1974) is the template; the count keeps growing.

Resolutions are lowest-risk

Safe-haven resolutions, Pride proclamations, and resolutions opposing anti-LGBTQ+ state bills carry little legal exposure — they express policy preferences rather than create binding law.

Home rule is the key

Article XVIII of the Ohio Constitution grants broad authority. Only a conflicting state "general law" can preempt a local ordinance — and none addresses SOGI, so NDOs fill a gap.

Know the headwinds

HB 68, HB 183, HB 8, and SB 1 constrain action on healthcare, bathrooms, schools, and universities. The March 31, 2026 Supreme Court ruling puts conversion-therapy bans at legal risk.

1.Non-Discrimination Ordinances (NDOs)

What they do: Prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity or expression (SOGI) in some or all of: employment, housing, and public accommodations. The strongest ("comprehensive") ordinances cover all three areas and include an enforcement mechanism.

Current count: Equality Ohio executive director Dwayne Steward stated the number of local NDOs "rose to 37 last year" (i.e., in 2025), per NBC4/WCMH (Feb. 2026). The Movement Advancement Project's Ohio Equality Profile reports 40 cities with full SOGI protections in private employment, housing, and public accommodations — covering 31% of the state population — plus 16 municipalities with partial protections and 1 county (Cuyahoga). The ACLU of Ohio (as of Feb. 20, 2024) counted 35 localities plus 1 county. Numbers differ by date and counting method; verify before publishing a single figure.

Comprehensive SOGI NDOs (employment + housing + public accommodations)

Jurisdictions include: Akron, Athens, Beachwood, Bexley, Bowling Green, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Cleveland Heights, Columbus, Coshocton, Cuyahoga County, Dayton, Dublin, East Cleveland, Galion, Gambier, Golf Manor, Kent, Lakewood, Medina, Newark, Norwood, Oberlin, Olmsted Falls, Oxford, Portsmouth, Reynoldsburg, Sandusky, Shaker Heights, South Euclid, Toledo, University Heights, Westerville, Worthington, Yellow Springs, Youngstown, Whitehall (2025), and Grove City (Dec. 2025).

Partial protections: Canton (employment + housing only). Employee-only protections (city/county workers): Cuyahoga Falls, Franklin County, Gahanna, Hamilton, Hamilton County, Laura, Lima, Lucas County, Montgomery County, Summit County, Wood County.

Model — City of Columbus

Title 23, Chapter 2331 ("Discriminatory Practices; Civil Rights"). Columbus passed the first Ohio sexual-orientation protection in January 1974 (housing and public accommodations); "gender identity or expression" and four other classes were added on December 15, 2008. Twelve protected classes now span employment, housing, and public accommodations ("employer" = anyone employing four or more persons in the city).

Enforcement: The Columbus Community Relations Commission (CRC) investigates, mediates, or refers complaints; a charge must be filed within six months. A violation is a first-degree misdemeanor (up to 180 days and/or up to $1,000 for an individual; up to $5,000 for an organization). A standard religious exemption applies.

Model — Dublin & Worthington

Dublin publicly posts its Law Director memo and draft ordinance — an Ohio-specific template with a civil/administrative (not criminal) enforcement model, a religious-organization exemption, and a legal-basis discussion citing home-rule authority and Walker v. City of Toledo. Worthington files complaints with the City Clerk and refers them to the Ohio Civil Rights Commission, EEOC, or Law Director — a clean administrative approach recommended by its Community Relations Commission.

Caution

A reported case (Columbus Community Church v. City of Upper Arlington, ~2020) involved a dispute over local SOGI ordinance scope. Secondary summaries are inconsistent — verify the precise holding with your city attorney before relying on it.

2.Conversion-Therapy Bans

What they do: Prohibit licensed mental-health professionals from practicing conversion therapy on minors. They typically exempt clergy and religious counselors.

16 Ohio communities ban the practice (15 cities plus Cuyahoga County, per The Buckeye Flame, Jan. 2026): Cincinnati (2015 — the nation's first; $200/day civil fine; the only Ohio jurisdiction with a record of enforcement), Columbus, Dayton, Athens (2017), Lakewood (2018), Kent (2019), Toledo (2020), Cleveland, Cleveland Heights, Akron, Reynoldsburg (2022), Lorain, Whitehall (2024), Westerville and Cuyahoga County (2025 — first and only county; covers minors and "vulnerable adults"), and Oberlin (2026, the 15th city; $500–$1,000/day).

Critical legal warning

On March 31, 2026 the U.S. Supreme Court decided Chiles v. Salazar 8–1 (Gorsuch, J.), holding that Colorado's ban, as applied to talk therapy by a licensed counselor, is a content- and viewpoint-based regulation of speech subject to strict scrutiny, and remanded to the Tenth Circuit. On December 17, 2025, the Sixth Circuit (binding on Ohio) blocked enforcement of Michigan's ban in Catholic Charities of Jackson v. Whitmer. These rulings make all 16 Ohio bans legally vulnerable. MAP notes Chiles "does not prevent states or localities from regulating conversion practices" but sends the case back under a different standard. Officials considering a new ban must work with counsel on narrow, conduct-focused drafting.

3.Other Municipal LGBTQ+ Equality Measures

Safe-haven / welcoming resolutions

Athens unanimously passed Resolution R-01-25 (March 3, 2025) declaring the city a "safe haven for transgender and non-binary individuals seeking gender-affirming healthcare," drafted by the OU YDSA chapter with ACLU of Ohio support. It urges the administration to protect patient privacy, support telehealth/pop-up clinics, and oppose criminal prosecution of providers and patients. Cleveland Heights and Cincinnati passed similar resolutions. As the Athens law director confirmed, a resolution expresses policy preferences and does not alter state law, minimizing legal exposure — making these ideal model templates.

Pride proclamations and flag-raisings

Common, low-risk leadership actions scored by HRC's Municipal Equality Index. Salt Lake City's adoption of official city flags (LGBTQ+, trans) was cited nationally in 2025 as a workaround to a state flag-display restriction — a model for Ohio cities facing similar limits.

Trans-inclusive employee benefits

Many Ohio cities offer trans-inclusive health coverage for municipal employees (an MEI-scored category). But HB 68's ban on gender-affirming care for minors means cities cannot meaningfully cover employees' minor dependents. The proposed Cleveland Gender Freedom Policy (a DSA-led 2026 petition ordinance) would continue coverage for gender-affirming care "even if such care must legally be provided outside the State of Ohio" and make enforcement of anti-trans laws the city's "lowest possible priority."

Domestic partnership registries

Cleveland Heights was first (2002/2004), followed by Toledo (2007), Cuyahoga County and Oberlin (2012), Yellow Springs (2009), and others. After Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) these are largely symbolic for same-sex couples but still serve unmarried couples.

All-gender restrooms & inclusive procurement

Designating single-occupancy restrooms in municipal buildings as all-gender is a common MEI-scored policy. (HB 183 mandates single-sex multi-user facilities in K-12 schools and colleges — not municipal buildings — but confirm scope with counsel.) Cities with NDOs can also extend non-discrimination requirements to contractors.

"Gay/trans panic" defense bans

No Ohio jurisdiction has banned this defense; it is typically a state-level (penal code) measure. The Williams Institute and the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association publish model legislation, and local officials can pass resolutions urging the General Assembly to act.

4.School Board Policies (and State Constraints)

Ohio has no state law requiring SOGI-inclusive non-discrimination or anti-bullying policies. School boards face significant new state constraints:

What boards can still do: Honesty for Ohio Education (a 40+ organization coalition) publishes a "Don't Discriminate Guide to HB 8" toolkit, model resolutions, and a School Board Alliance. Bexley City Schools adopted a narrow compliance policy emphasizing "age-appropriate and developmentally appropriate lessons about gender diversity and acceptance." Boards retain discretion not to use birth names/genders (HB 8 does not require it) and can honor pronouns for students whose parents consent.

5.Model Legislation & Data Sources

6.How to Pass It — Mechanics & Ohio Home Rule

Ordinance vs. resolution. An ordinance creates binding local law (use for NDOs, conversion-therapy bans, benefits). A resolution expresses the body's position (use for safe-haven declarations, Pride proclamations, opposition to state bills) and carries far less legal risk. Ordinances typically require committee referral, multiple readings, public hearings, and a majority vote.

Home rule (Ohio Constitution, Article XVIII, Section 3). Adopted by Ohio voters in 1912, it grants municipalities the power of local self-government and the power to adopt local police, sanitary, and similar regulations "not in conflict with general laws." Only a general law that conflicts with a local ordinance preempts it. The three-part preemption test (City of Cleveland v. State, 2010) asks whether the ordinance is an exercise of police power, the statute is a general law, and the two conflict.

What this means for LGBTQ+ measures: NDOs and resolutions are on solid ground — Ohio's anti-discrimination statute (ORC Chapter 4112) does not address SOGI, so local NDOs fill a gap rather than conflict. Conversion-therapy bans are now vulnerable on First Amendment (not preemption) grounds. State law constrains gender-affirming care for minors (HB 68), school/college bathrooms (HB 183), school curriculum (HB 8), and public-university DEI (SB 1).

Practical advice

Engage the city/county attorney early — every successful Ohio NDO ran through legal review. Build a coalition — the Athens resolution succeeded because students, medical professionals, and the ACLU packed the chamber. Use a human relations commission for enforcement and education. Choose civil/administrative enforcement over criminal where possible. And anticipate opposition: standard religious exemptions answer "religious freedom"; no conflicting general law answers "state preemption"; and economic-competitiveness signals (per the 1,000+ member Ohio Business Competes coalition) answer "it's just symbolic."

7.Recommendations — A Staged Approach

Stage 1 Lowest risk · start now

  1. Pass a Pride proclamation and flag-raising resolution (annual, near-zero legal risk).
  2. Pass a resolution opposing state anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and/or a safe-haven resolution modeled on Athens R-01-25, vetted by your law director.
  3. If your jurisdiction lacks one, draft a comprehensive SOGI NDO using the Columbus, Dublin, or Worthington models with civil/administrative enforcement and a standard religious exemption. Contact Equality Ohio for drafting help.

Stage 2 After coalition-building & legal review

  1. Establish or empower a human relations commission to enforce the NDO and run education programs.
  2. Adopt all-gender single-occupancy restroom designations in municipal buildings and inclusive contractor/procurement requirements.
  3. Review municipal employee benefits for trans-inclusive coverage (note the HB 68 limit on minor dependents).

Stage 3 Higher legal risk · counsel required

  1. A conversion-therapy ban is now constitutionally vulnerable after Chiles (March 31, 2026) and the Sixth Circuit's Michigan ruling (Dec. 17, 2025); pursue only with narrow, conduct-focused drafting and a willingness to defend it.

Need help drafting an ordinance?

Equality Ohio offers direct drafting assistance to local officials. Reach their advocacy team at advocacy@equalityohio.org, or contact Ohio Pride PAC at info@ohiopride.org and we'll help connect you with the right resources and model language.

Caveats

Source URLs for verification

This toolkit is a starting point, not legal advice. Conditions change — always work with your city or county attorney before acting. Last reviewed: June 2026.

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