Chapter 109:2-18 | Continuing Professional Training for Peace Officers and Troopers

Rule 109:2-18-01 | Definitions.

• Effective: March 30, 2026
• Promulgated Under: 119.03

As used in this chapter,

(A) "Peace Officer" has the same meaning as in section 109.71 of the Revised Code.

(B) "Trooper" means an individual appointed as a state highway patrol trooper under section 5503.01 of the Revised Code.

(C) "Appointing Authority" means any agency or entity that appoints a peace officer or trooper.

(D) "Public Appointing Authority" means any agency that appoints a peace officer as defined in divisions (A)(1), (A)(3) to (A)(8), (A)(10), (A)(12), (A)(13), (A)(15) to (A)(19), and (A)(22) to (A)(25) of section 109.71 of the Revised Code and the Ohio state highway patrol.

(E) "Responsible Agency" means the appointing authority charged with the responsibility for documenting the peace officer or trooper's training.

(F) "Commission" means the Ohio peace officer training commission.

(G) "Executive Director" means the executive director of the Ohio peace officer training commission.

(H) "Continuing Professional Training" means the training prescribed by section 109.803 of the Revised Code.

(I) "OHLEG" means the Ohio law enforcement gateway.

(J) "Full-time" means peace officers or troopers who are in active pay status receiving compensation and benefits for forty hours in a work week or eighty hours in a fourteen-day period. For purposes of this chapter, active pay status has the same meaning as in rule 123:1-47-01 of the Administrative Code.

(K) "Base hourly rate" means the hourly rate at which a peace officer or trooper is compensated excluding overtime, shift-differential, and other similar enhancements to the hourly rate of pay. For peace officers or troopers who receive an annual salary, base hourly rate is the base annual salary divided by two thousand eighty hours for fulltime appointments or the base annual salary divided by the anticipated annual hours for less than fulltime appointments.

(L) "Mandatory continuing professional training hours" means the twenty-four hours of continuing professional training, described in paragraph (A) of rule 109:2-18-02 of the Administrative Code, that each peace officer and trooper is required to complete each calendar year.

(M) "Additional continuing professional training hours" means any continuing professional training hours, beyond the mandatory twenty-four hours described in paragraph (A) of rule 109:2-18-02 of the Administrative Code, completed in a single calendar year.

(N) "Hospital" has the same meaning as in section 3722.01 of the Revised Code.

(O) "Hospital Security Personnel" means an individual directly employed by a hospital system, or a hospital that is not part of a hospital system, as to perform security functions. Hospital security personnel do not have the authority or duties of a peace officer.

(P) "OPOTA" means the Ohio peace officer training academy.

Last updated March 30, 2026 at 7:37 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 109.803
Amplifies: 109.803, 109.73, 109.75
Five Year Review Date: 7/1/2029
Prior Effective Dates: 12/16/2021

Rule 109:2-18-02 | Officer training requirements.

• Effective: March 30, 2026
• Promulgated Under: 119.03

(A) Every appointing authority shall require each of its appointed peace officers and troopers to complete a minimum of twenty-four hours of continuing professional training each calendar year.

(B) Every peace officer and trooper must complete the mandatory continuing professional training hours each calendar year in order to carry a firearm while on duty and perform the functions of a peace officer or trooper. The commission may require that some or all of the mandatory continuing professional training hours address specific topics based upon current training needs. Any training topics required by the commission for a calendar year shall be announced no later than October first of the preceding calendar year.

(C) Newly certified peace officers shall be exempt from continuing professional training requirements for the calendar year in which the peace officer completed peace officer basic training. Newly commissioned troopers shall be exempt from continuing professional training requirements for the calendar year in which the trooper completed the highway patrol cadet training program.

(D) Regardless of when a peace officer or trooper receives an appointment during a calendar year, the peace officer or trooper is required to complete continuing professional training for the calendar year in which the peace officer or trooper was appointed. If a peace officer or trooper was not appointed by any agency in a calendar year where continuing professional training was required, the peace officer or trooper is not required to complete continuing professional training for the calendar year or years in which the peace officer or trooper was not appointed by any agency.

(E) Sheriffs completing training pursuant to division (B) of section 109.80 and division (E) of section 311.01 of the Revised Code may receive credit towards the peace officer continuing professional training requirement as long as the training satisfies the requirements of this chapter.

(F) Chiefs of police completing training pursuant to division (A) of section 109.804 of the Revised Code may receive credit towards the peace officer continuing professional training requirement as long as the training satisfies the requirements of this chapter.

(G) Officers completing statutorily mandated training may receive credit towards the peace officer continuing professional training requirement for the calendar year the training is taken as long as the training satisfies the requirements of this chapter.

(H) Peace officers and troopers may receive credit for up to four hours of continuing professional training for time spent while on duty providing drug use prevention education training if all of the following requirements are met:

(1) The curricula and lesson plans utilized must be evidenced-based.

(2) The students instructed must be in a school district, community school established under Chapter 3314. of the Revised Code, STEM school established under Chapter 3326. of the Revised Code or a college-preparatory boarding school established under Chapter 3328. of the Revised Code, and

(3) The peace officer or trooper providing the training meets the instructor requirements found in paragraph (A)(4)(a) of rule 109:2-18-03 of the Administrative Code.

(I) A law enforcement agency utilizing a peace officer or trooper to provide training described in a paragraph (H) of this rule may use any hours in excess of four that the officer or trooper accumulates while providing that training for other peace officers or troopers appointed by the agency to offset the number of continuing professional training hours required. No more than four hours of training per officer or trooper may be offset pursuant to this paragraph.

(J) The training described in paragraph (H) of this rule cannot be used by a peace officer, trooper, or law enforcement agency to offset any hands-on training required by the commission. Any hours offset under paragraph (I) of this rule cannot offset any training hours covering topics mandated by the commission for the year unless the training described in paragraph (H) of this rule itself pertains to the topic or topics mandated by the commission.

(K) The executive director may extend the time for completion of the continuing professional training requirements upon written request from the appointing authority. Such request shall contain an explanation of the emergency circumstances which created the need for the extension. The application shall set forth the name of the peace officer or trooper for whom the extension is requested, the emergency circumstances, including documentation, for which the extension is requested, and the date on which the request was submitted to the commission. Factors which may be considered in granting or denying such requests include, but are not limited to, serious illness of the individual or an immediate family member, prolonged military service, or an unexpected shortage of manpower within the appointing agency. Based upon the emergency circumstances in any given case, the executive director may extend the required completion date. Extensions shall be for ninety days, absent a finding by the executive director that special circumstances exist for a longer extension.

(L) The executive director shall either grant or deny the request for extension within thirty days after the date on which the request was received by the commission. The executive director shall send written notice of the decision to the appointing authority.

(M) In the event a peace officer or trooper is concurrently appointed by more than one agency in a calendar year, the agency responsible for documenting the training of that peace officer or trooper shall be determined by order of priority as follows: (1) full-time, (2) part-time, and (3) other. In the event a peace officer or trooper only holds appointments of equal priority, the agency by which the peace officer or trooper was first appointed shall be the agency responsible for documenting the training and reimbursement eligibility.

(N) Continuing professional training does not include annual in-service firearms re-qualification pursuant to section 109.801 of the Revised Code.

(O) For purposes of this rule, "hands-on training" means

(1) Training that is not primarily lecture-based;

(2) Training that involves physical activity or exertion; and

(3) Training that involves direct practical experience for the students.

Last updated March 30, 2026 at 7:37 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 109.803
Amplifies: 109.803, 109.73, 109.75
Five Year Review Date: 10/17/2029
Prior Effective Dates: 1/1/2018

Rule 109:2-18-03 | Training and instructor qualification.

• Effective: March 30, 2026
• Promulgated Under: 119.03

(A) The requirements set forth herein are intended as minimum qualifications for continuing professional training. Appointing authorities are encouraged to exceed these minimum standards whenever possible. Continuing professional training shall be conducted in a program approved by the executive director and shall address matters directly related to the duties and responsibilities of a peace officer or trooper. The training shall be current, serve a recognized law enforcement purpose, and shall be designed to improve a participant's professional competence as peace officer or trooper. In addition, such training shall meet or exceed the following minimum requirements:

(1) Continuing professional training programs shall be conducted with a written, formal lesson plan or accompanied by a syllabus showing the content to be covered and associated hours.

(2) Training shall be conducted in a setting that is safe, physically suited to the educational activity, and conducive to effective learning. Physical skills training shall be conducted with appropriate training and safety equipment. Firearms training shall be conducted only on ranges in compliance with rule 1501:31-29-03 of the Administrative Code or ranges approved by the appointing authority for annual in-service firearms re-qualification.

(3) Other than training conducted via OPOTA online or other online training programs pre-approved by the executive director, the training shall be conducted in blocks of no less than one hour, where fifty minutes of actual instruction or other approved training activity constitutes one credit hour.

(4) The training shall be conducted only by instructors who meet at least one of the following criteria:

(a) The individual has five years of full-time sworn law enforcement experience and meets at least one of the following criteria:

(i) The individual is a commission-certified peace officer basic training instructor; or

(ii) The individual has, at a minimum, a four-year college degree; or

(iii) The individual has completed an instructional skills course approved by the executive director; or

(b) The individual is a certified or licensed professional and is providing instruction in a subject area directly related to the field for which the individual is certified or licensed.

(c) The individual and the training program the individual is conducting has been pre-approved by the executive director.

(5) Individuals permitted to conduct a training under this section may use the hours spent instructing a pre-approved course toward their own continuing professional training requirements as prescribed by the executive director.

(B) Appointing authorities, non-profit law enforcement professional organizations approved by the executive director, and not-for-profit law enforcement professional organizations approved by the executive director, divisions under the Ohio governor, Ohio attorney general, Ohio secretary of state, Ohio auditor of state and federal law enforcement agencies under the U.S. department of justice or U.S. department of homeland security may request a training program be pre-approved for continuing professional training credit. Appointing authorities, qualifying law enforcement professional organizations, and qualifying state or federal agencies seeking such pre-approval shall submit sufficient documentation to the executive director showing that the proposed training meets the requirements of paragraph (A) of this rule. Any request for pre-approval must be submitted to the executive director before the training occurs, or December first of the calendar year in which the training occurs, whichever date is earlier.

(C) Individuals who were certified peace officers or commission-certified instructors but have had such certification revoked or suspended, shall not teach continuing professional training.

Last updated March 30, 2026 at 7:37 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 109.803
Amplifies: 109.803, 109.73, 109.75
Five Year Review Date: 9/20/2027
Prior Effective Dates: 10/12/2007, 4/27/2023

Rule 109:2-18-04 | Reimbursement of training costs.

• Effective: March 30, 2026
• Promulgated Under: 119.03

(A) Except as otherwise provided in rule 109:2-18-02 of the Administrative Code, every appointed peace officer or trooper is required to comply with the annual continuing professional training requirements set forth herein. Only public appointing authorities qualify for reimbursement under this rule.

(B) Public appointing authorities shall be awarded reimbursement funds based upon the following factors:

(1) The number of appointed peace officers or troopers who successfully complete continuing professional training hours;

(2) The base hourly pay of the appointed peace officers or troopers who successfully complete continuing professional training hours;

(3) The number of continuing professional training hours each appointed peace officer or trooper successfully completes in a calendar year, up to a maximum of forty hours per calendar year;

(4) The amount of funds appropriated to fulfil training reimbursement requests.

(C) Except as otherwise required by the executive director, the reimbursement a public appointing authority receives for each peace officer or trooper shall be calculated as the product of a peace officer or trooper's base hourly rate and the qualifying hours of continuing professional training the peace officer or trooper completed and reported in the manner prescribed by the executive director by December thirty-first of each calendar year.

(D) Subject to the availability of funding, reimbursement shall be made at a rate of one hundred percent of the peace officer or trooper's base hourly pay for the for the hours spent completing the training set forth in rule 109:2-18-02 of the Administrative Code. If sufficient funding is not available in a given year to fully reimburse public appointing authorities, it shall be within the executive director's sound discretion to make pro rata or other partial reimbursements as are reasonable under the circumstances. Reimbursement awards shall not exceed one hundred per cent of a peace officer or trooper's base hourly pay for the hours spent completing the training set forth in rule 109:2-18-02 of the Administrative Code.

(E) If a peace officer or trooper is appointed by more than one agency at the time when continuing professional training hours is completed, only the appointing authority set forth in paragraph (M) of rule 109:2-18-02 of the Administrative Code is eligible to request and receive reimbursement.

(F) If a peace officer or trooper separates from his or her appointing authority, all requests for reimbursement must be submitted by the appointing authority at or before the time notice of separation is reported pursuant to section 109.761 of the Revised Code. Requests for reimbursement received after the report of separation, or more than ten days after the peace officer or trooper's date of separation, shall be denied.

(G) Each public appointing authority that receives funds under this rule shall keep those funds separate from any other funds of the appointing authority. The funds may be used to cover costs associated with developing, delivering, or attending training for appointed peace officers or troopers as well as any costs associated with complying with the annual continuing professional training requirements.

(H) The training cost reimbursement decisions of the executive director are subject to the appeals process of Chapter 119. of the Revised Code.

Last updated March 30, 2026 at 7:37 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 109.803
Amplifies: 109.803, 109.73, 109.75
Five Year Review Date: 10/17/2029
Prior Effective Dates: 1/1/2018

Rule 109:2-18-05 | Agency record keeping and reporting.

• Effective: March 30, 2026
• Promulgated Under: 119.03

(A) All appointing authorities, irrespective of whether an agency receives reimbursement funding, are required to report compliance with rule 109:2-18-02 of the Administrative Code in the manner prescribed by the executive director.

(B) To receive credit or reimbursement for continuing professional training, training records must be updated, in the manner prescribed by the executive director, no later than December thirty-first of the calendar year in which the training occured, or ten days following a peace officer or trooper's separation from his or her appointing authority, whichever date is earlier.

(C) Appointing authorities are required to maintain records sufficient to demonstrate compliance with the minimum requirements set forth in rules 109:2-18-01 to 109:2-18-07 of the Administrative Code. All such records shall be kept on file by the appointing authority in accordance with the appointing authority's records retention schedule, but in no event should the records be retained less than three years. The records shall be made available to the executive director for inspection upon request.

(D) For training conducted by the appointing authority, authentic copies of the lesson plans presented along with authentic copies of the sign-in sheets shall be presumed to be sufficient to demonstrate compliance in accordance with paragraph (C) of this rule. For all other training, the following records shall be presumed to be sufficient to demonstrate such compliance:

(1) Authentic copies of the syllabi or lesson plans submitted with authentic copies of the sign-in sheets;

(2) Authentic copies of the syllabi or lesson plans with authentic certificates of successful completion; or

(3) For a training, seminar, or conference conducted by an agency under paragraph (B) of rule 109:2-18-03 of the Administrative Code, authentic copies of the event's agenda, instructor bios, record of the peace officer or trooper's registration forms, record of agency invoicing records, and record of hours attended.

(E) The executive director may consider sworn testimony, affidavits and/or other reliable and authentic documentation submitted to demonstrate compliance with the minimum requirements set forth in rules 109:2-18-01 to 109:2-18-07 of the Administrative Code. The executive director shall determine, in his or her sound discretion, the validity, probative value and sufficiency of any testimony, affidavits and documentation so offered.

Last updated March 30, 2026 at 7:38 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 109.803
Amplifies: 109.803, 109.73, 109.75
Five Year Review Date: 10/17/2029
Prior Effective Dates: 4/27/2023

Rule 109:2-18-06 | Enforcement.

• Effective: April 27, 2023
• Promulgated Under: 111.15

(A) Pursuant to division (B) of section 109.803 of the Revised Code, any peace officer or trooper who, in any calendar year, fails to complete and report continuing professional training in accordance with the requirements set forth in rules 109:2-18-01 to 109:2-18-05 of the Administrative Code shall cease carrying a firearm and shall cease performing the functions of a peace officer or trooper until such time as evidence of compliance is filed with and approved by the executive director. This rule does not apply to peace officers or troopers for whom an extension of time has been granted by the executive director.

(B) The decisions of the executive director are subject to the appeals process of Chapter 119. of the Revised Code.

Last updated April 27, 2023 at 8:38 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: Sec. 605.01 of Am. Sub. HB45 (134th General Assembly)
Amplifies: 109.803, 109.73, 109.75, Sec. 605.01 of Am. Sub. HB45 (134th General Assembly)
Five Year Review Date: 9/20/2027

Rule 109:2-18-08 | Forms.

• Effective: December 16, 2021
• Promulgated Under: 111.15

All forms referenced in this chapter can be found at https://www.ohioattorneygeneral.gov/law-enforcement/ohio-peace-officer-training-academy/opotc-resources or by contacting the Ohio peace officer training academy at [e-mail].

Last updated March 31, 2026 at 8:53 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 109.74, Sec. 701.70 of Am. Sub. HB 110 (134th General Assembly)
Amplifies: 109.73, 109.803, 109.75, Sec. 701.70 of Am. Sub. HB 110 (134th General Assembly)
Five Year Review Date: 3/31/2026

Rule 109:2-18-20 | Training for Hospital Security Personnel.

• Effective: March 30, 2026
• Promulgated Under: 119.03

The Ohio peace officer training academy shall grant eligible hospital security personnel access to hospital security training, in accordance with this rule and section 109.7411 of the Revised Code.

(A) A hospital system, or hospital that is not part of a hospital system, that employs hospital security personnel and desires to have such personnel receive hospital security training shall do all of the following:

(1) Submit an application to OPOTA for access to hospital security training;

(2) Certify that the individuals identified in the application are currently hospital security personnel;

(3) Comply with all registration, scheduling, identification, and payment procedures as required by OPOTA;

(4) Notify the OPOTA when any individual who was granted access to training is no longer employed as hospital security personnel.

(B) The executive director shall prescribe the method by which a hospital system, or hospital that is not part of a hospital system, shall provide evidence of the qualifications and active employment of hospital security personnel. The method shall include at least all of the following:

(1) Contact information for the hospital security personnel seeking training;

(2) Contact information for the individual responsible for human resources at the employing hospital system, or hospital that is not part of a hospital system;

(3) A certification from the hospital system or hospital that is not part of a hospital system that the individual identified is currently employed as hospital security personnel;

(4) How to notify OPOTA when an individual that had been approved is no longer employed as hospital security personnel, and therefore ineligible to access hospital security training under this rule.

(C) The executive director may adopt policies requiring hospital systems, hospitals that are not part of a hospital system, and hospital security personnel to take reasonable measures to verify the employment status of any hospital security personnel seeking to access training.

(1) The failure of the employing hospital system, or hospital that is not part of a hospital system, to verify the continued employment of hospital security personnel in accordance with the policies may result in an inability to access training for its hospital security personnel.

(2) The executive director shall deny or revoke access if the individual is not currently hospital security personnel.

(3) The executive director may restrict or deny access to hospital security personnel to training that does not meet the requirements of division (B)(4) of section 3727.18 of the Revised Code.

(D) If good cause is shown, the executive director may restrict or deny access to training for an individual who otherwise would be granted access to hospital security training.

Last updated March 30, 2026 at 7:38 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 109.74
Amplifies: 109.7411
Five Year Review Date: 3/28/2031