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The Legislative Service Commission staff updates the Revised Code on an ongoing basis, as it completes its act review of enacted legislation. Updates may be slower during some times of the year, depending on the volume of enacted legislation.
 
 
 
Section
Section 4709.01 | Barber definitions.
 

As used in this chapter:

(A)(1) Except as provided in division (A)(2) of this section, the practice of barbering means any one or more of the following when performed upon the head, neck, or face for cosmetic purposes and when performed upon the public for pay, free, or otherwise:

(a) Shaving the face, shaving around the vicinity of the ears and neckline, or trimming facial hair;

(b) Cutting or styling hair;

(c) Facials, skin care, or scalp massages;

(d) Shampooing, bleaching, coloring, straightening, or permanent waving hair;

(e) Cutting, fitting, or forming head caps for wigs or hair pieces.

(2) The practice of barbering does not include the practice of natural hair styling.

(B) Sanitary means free of infectious agents, disease, or infestation by insects or vermin and free of soil, dust, or foreign material.

(C) Barber means any person who engages in or attempts to engage in the practice of barbering.

(D) Barber school means any establishment that engages in or attempts to engage in the teaching of the practice of barbering.

(E) Barber teacher means any person who engages in or attempts to engage in the teaching of the practice of barbering.

(F) Assistant barber teacher means any person who assists a barber teacher in the teaching of the practice of barbering.

(G) Barber pole means a cylinder or pole with alternating stripes of any combination including red and white, and red, white, and blue, which run diagonally along the length of the cylinder or pole.

(H) The practice of natural hair styling means work done for a fee or other form of compensation, by any person, utilizing techniques performed by hand that result in tension on hair roots such as twisting, wrapping, weaving, extending, locking, or braiding of the hair, and which work does not include the application of dyes, reactive chemicals, or other preparations to alter the color or to straighten, curl, or alter the structure of the hair.

(I) Braiding means intertwining the hair in a systematic motion to create patterns in a three-dimensional form, inverting the hair against the scalp along part of a straight or curved row of intertwined hair, or twisting the hair in a systematic motion, and includes extending the hair with natural or synthetic hair fibers.

Section 4709.02 | Prohibited practices.
 

Except as provided in this chapter, no person shall do any of the following:

(A) Engage in or attempt to engage in the practice of barbering, hold themselves out as a practicing barber, or advertise in a manner that indicates they are a barber, without a barber license issued pursuant to this chapter;

(B) Operate or attempt to operate a barber shop without a barber shop license issued pursuant to this chapter;

(C) Engage in or attempt to engage in the teaching of or assist in the teaching of the practice of barbering without a barber teacher or assistant barber teacher license issued pursuant to this chapter;

(D) Advertise barbering services unless the establishment and personnel employed therein are licensed pursuant to this chapter;

(E) Use or display a barber pole for the purpose of offering barber services to the consuming public without a barber shop license issued pursuant to this chapter;

(F) Operate or attempt to operate a barber school without a barber school license issued pursuant to this chapter;

(G) Teach or attempt to teach any phase of barbering for pay, free, or otherwise without approval from the state cosmetology and barber board;

(H) Being a barber, knowingly continue the practice of barbering, or being a student, knowingly continue as a student in any barber school, while such person has an infectious, contagious, or communicable disease;

(I) Obtain or attempt to obtain a license by fraudulent misrepresentation for money, other than the required fee, or any other thing of value;

(J) Practice or attempt to practice barbering by fraudulent misrepresentation;

(K) Employ another person to perform or himself perform the practice of barbering in a licensed barber shop unless that person is licensed as a barber under this chapter;

(L) Use any room or place for barbering which is also used for residential or other business purposes, unless it is separated by a substantial ceiling-high partition. This does not exclude hair care products used and sold in barber shops or the sale of clothing and related accessories as authorized by division (F) of section 4709.09 of the Revised Code.

(M) Violate any rule adopted by the board or department of health for barber shops or barber schools.

Section 4709.03 | Exemptions.
 

The following persons are exempt from this chapter while in the proper discharge of their professional duties:

(A) Persons licensed by this state to practice medicine and surgery;

(B) Commissioned medical or surgical officers of the United States army, navy, or marine hospital service;

(C) Nurses registered under Chapter 4723. of the Revised Code;

(D) Cosmetologists and hair designers licensed under Chapter 4713. of the Revised Code, insofar as their usual and ordinary vocation and profession is concerned as described in section 4713.01 of the Revised Code;

(E) Funeral directors, embalmers, and apprentices licensed or registered under Chapter 4717. of the Revised Code.

Section 4709.05 | Organization of board.
 

In addition to any other duty imposed on the state cosmetology and barber board under this chapter or Chapter 4713. of the Revised Code, the board shall do all of the following:

(A) Hold regular meetings, at the times and places as it determines for the purpose of conducting the examinations required under this chapter, and hold additional meetings for the transaction of necessary business;

(B) Maintain a record of its proceedings and a register of persons licensed as barbers. The register shall include each licensee's name, place of business, residence, and licensure date and number, and a record of all licenses issued, refused, renewed, suspended, or revoked. The records are open to public inspection at all reasonable times.

(C) Ensure that the practice of barbering is conducted only in a licensed barber shop, except when the practice of barbering is performed on a person whose physical or mental disability prevents that person from going to a licensed barber shop;

(D) Conduct or have conducted the examination for applicants to practice as licensed barbers at least four times per year at the times and places the board determines;

(E) Adopt rules, in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, to administer and enforce this chapter and which cover all of the following:

(1) Sanitary standards for the operation of barber shops and barber schools that conform to guidelines established by the department of health;

(2) The content of the examination required of an applicant for a barber license. The examination shall include a practical demonstration and a written test, shall relate only to the practice of barbering, and shall require the applicant to demonstrate that the applicant has a thorough knowledge of and competence in the proper techniques in the safe use of chemicals used in the practice of barbering.

(3) Continuing education requirements for persons licensed pursuant to this chapter. The board may impose continuing education requirements upon a licensee for a violation of this chapter or the rules adopted pursuant thereto or if the board determines that the requirements are necessary to preserve the health, safety, or welfare of the public.

(4) Requirements for the licensure of barber schools, barber teachers, and assistant barber teachers;

(5) Requirements for students of barber schools;

(6) Any other area the board determines appropriate to administer or enforce this chapter.

(F) Prior to adopting any rule under this chapter, indicate at a formal hearing the reasons why the rule is necessary as a protection of the persons who use barber services or as an improvement of the professional standing of barbers in this state;

(G) Furnish each owner or manager of a barber shop and barber school with a copy of all sanitary rules adopted pursuant to division (E) of this section;

(H) Conduct such investigations and inspections of persons and establishments licensed or unlicensed pursuant to this chapter and for that purpose, any member of the board or any of its authorized agents may enter and inspect any place of business of a licensee or a person suspected of violating this chapter or the rules adopted pursuant thereto, during normal business hours;

(I) Upon the written request of an applicant and the payment of the appropriate fee, provide to the applicant licensure information concerning the applicant;

(J) Do all things necessary for the proper administration and enforcement of this chapter.

Section 4709.07 | License application and examination.
 

(A) Each person who desires to obtain an initial license to practice barbering shall apply to the state cosmetology and barber board, on forms provided by the board. The application form shall include the name of the person applying for the license and evidence that the applicant meets all of the requirements of division (B) of this section. The application shall be accompanied by the examination application fee.

(B) In order to take the required barber examination and to qualify for licensure as a barber, an applicant must demonstrate that the applicant meets all of the following:

(1) Is at least eighteen years of age;

(2) Has an eighth grade education or an equivalent education as determined by the department of education and workforce, or equivalent organization in the state where the applicant resides;

(3) Has graduated with at least one thousand eight hundred hours of training from a board-approved barber school or has graduated with at least one thousand hours of training from a board-approved barber school in this state and has a current cosmetology or hair designer license issued pursuant to Chapter 4713. of the Revised Code. No hours of instruction earned by an applicant five or more years prior to the examination apply to the hours of study required by this division.

(C) Any applicant who meets all of the requirements of divisions (A) and (B) of this section may take the barber examination at the time and place specified by the board. If the applicant fails to attain at least a seventy-five per cent pass rate on each part of the examination, the applicant is ineligible for licensure; however, the applicant may reapply for examination within ninety days after the date of the release of the examination scores by paying the required reexamination fee. An applicant is only required to take that part or parts of the examination on which the applicant did not receive a score of seventy-five per cent or higher. If the applicant fails to reapply for examination within ninety days or fails the second examination, in order to reapply for examination for licensure the applicant shall complete an additional course of study of not less than two hundred hours, in a board-approved barber school. The board shall provide to an applicant, upon request, a report which explains the reasons for the applicant's failure to pass the examination.

(D) The board shall issue a license to practice barbering to any applicant who, to the satisfaction of the board, meets the requirements of divisions (A) and (B) of this section, who passes the required examination, and pays the initial licensure fee. Every licensed barber shall display the certificate of licensure in a conspicuous place adjacent to or near the licensed barber's work chair.

(E) The board shall issue a license to practice barbering in accordance with Chapter 4796. of the Revised Code to an applicant if either of the following applies:

(1) The applicant holds a license to practice barbering in another state.

(2) The applicant has satisfactory work experience, a government certification, or a private certification as described in that chapter as a barber in a state that does not issue that license.

Last updated December 29, 2023 at 5:14 AM

Section 4709.08 | Reciprocity.
 

Any person who holds a current license or registration to practice as a barber in any other country whose requirements for licensure or registration of barbers are substantially equivalent to the requirements of this chapter and rules adopted under it and that extends similar reciprocity to persons licensed as barbers in this state may apply to the state cosmetology and barber board for a barber license. The board shall, without examination, unless the board determines to require an examination, issue a license to practice as a licensed barber in this state if the person meets the requirements of this section, is at least eighteen years of age, and pays the required fees. The board may waive any of the requirements of this section.

Last updated December 29, 2023 at 7:41 AM

Section 4709.09 | Application for barber shop license - related businesses.
 

(A) Each person who desires to obtain a barber shop license shall apply to the state cosmetology and barber board, on forms provided by the board. The board shall issue a barber shop license to a person if the board determines that the person meets all of the requirements of division (B) of this section and pays the required license and inspection fees.

(B) In order for a person to qualify for a license to operate a barber shop, the barber shop shall meet all of the following requirements:

(1) Be in the charge and under the immediate supervision of a licensed barber;

(2) Be equipped to provide running hot and cold water and proper drainage;

(3) Sanitize and maintain in a sanitary condition, all instruments and supplies;

(4) Keep towels and linens clean and sanitary and in a dry, dust-proof container;

(5) Display the shop license and a copy of the board's sanitary rules in a conspicuous place in the working area.

(C) Any licensed barber who leases space in a licensed barber shop and engages in the practice of barbering independent and free from supervision of the owner or manager of the barber shop is considered to be engaged in the operation of a separate and distinct barber shop and shall obtain a license to operate a barber shop pursuant to this section.

(D) A shop license is not transferable from one owner to another and if an owner or operator of a barber shop permanently ceases offering barber services at the shop, the owner or operator shall return the barber shop license to the board within ten days of the cessation of services.

(E)(1) Manicurists licensed under Chapter 4713. of the Revised Code may practice manicuring in a barber shop.

(2) Tanning facilities issued a permit under section 4713.48 of the Revised Code may be operated in a barber shop.

(F) Clothing and related accessories may be sold at retail in a barber shop so long as these sales maintain the integrity of the facility as a barber shop.

Section 4709.10 | Barber schools.
 

(A) Each person who desires to obtain a license to operate a barber school shall apply to the state cosmetology and barber board, on forms provided by the board. The board shall issue a barber school license to a person if the board determines that the person meets and will comply with all of the requirements of division (B) of this section and pays the required licensure and inspection fees.

(B) In order for a person to qualify for a license to operate a barber school, the barber school to be operated by the person must meet all of the following requirements:

(1) Have a training facility sufficient to meet the required educational curriculum established by the board, including enough space to accommodate all the facilities and equipment required by rule by the board;

(2) Provide sufficient licensed teaching personnel to meet the minimum pupil-teacher ratio established by rule of the board;

(3) Have established and provide to the board proof that it has met all of the board requirements to operate a barber school, as adopted by rule of the board;

(4) File with the board a program of its curriculum, accounting for not less than one thousand eight hundred hours of instruction in the courses of theory and practical demonstration required by rule of the board;

(5) File with the board a surety bond in the amount of ten thousand dollars issued by a bonding company licensed to do business in this state. The bond shall be in the form prescribed by the board and conditioned upon the barber school's continued instruction in the theory and practice of barbering. The bond shall continue in effect until notice of its termination is provided to the board. In no event, however, shall the bond be terminated while the barber school is in operation. Any student who is injured or damaged by reason of a barber school's failure to continue instruction in the theory and practice of barbering may maintain an action on the bond against the barber school or the surety, or both, for the recovery of any money or tuition paid in advance for instruction in the theory and practice of barbering which was not received. The aggregate liability of the surety to all students shall not exceed the sum of the bond.

(6) Maintain adequate record keeping to ensure that it has met the requirements for records of student progress as required by board rule;

(7) Establish minimum standards for acceptance of student applicants for admission to the barber school. The barber school may establish entrance requirements which are more stringent than those prescribed by the board, but the requirements must at a minimum require the applicant to meet both of the following:

(a) Be at least seventeen years of age;

(b) Have an eighth grade education, or an equivalent education as determined by the department of education and workforce.

(8) Have a procedure to submit every student applicant's admission application to the board for the board's review and approval prior to the applicant's admission to the barber school;

(9) Operate in a manner which reflects credit upon the barbering profession;

(10) Offer a curriculum of study which covers all aspects of the scientific fundamentals of barbering as specified by rule of the board;

(11) Employ no more than two licensed assistant barber teachers for each licensed barber teacher employed or fewer than two licensed teachers or one licensed teacher and one licensed assistant teacher at each facility.

(C) Each person who desires to obtain a barber teacher or assistant barber teacher license shall apply to the board, on forms provided by the board. Except as provided in division (D) of this section, the board shall only issue a barber teacher license to a person who meets all of the following requirements:

(1) Holds a current barber license issued pursuant to this chapter and has at least eighteen months of work experience in a licensed barber shop or has been employed as an assistant barber teacher under the supervision of a licensed barber teacher for at least one year, unless, for good cause, the board waives this requirement;

(2) Meets such other requirements as adopted by rule by the board;

(3) Passes the required examination; and

(4) Pays the required fees.

Except as provided in division (D) of this section, the board shall only issue an assistant barber teacher license to a person who holds a current barber license issued pursuant to this chapter and pays the required fees.

(D) The board shall issue a barber teacher or assistant barber teacher license in accordance with Chapter 4796. of the Revised Code to an applicant if either of the following applies:

(1) The applicant holds a barber teacher or assistant barber teacher license, as applicable, in another state.

(2) The applicant has satisfactory work experience, a government certification, or a private certification as described in that chapter as a barber teacher or assistant barber teacher, as applicable, in a state that does not issue the applicable license.

(E) Any person who meets the qualifications of an assistant teacher pursuant to division (C) or (D) of this section, may be employed as an assistant teacher, provided that within five days after the commencement of the employment the barber school submits to the board, on forms provided by the board, the applicant's qualifications.

Last updated December 29, 2023 at 5:14 AM

Section 4709.11 | License renewal.
 

Every license issued pursuant to this chapter expires on the thirty-first day of August of each even-numbered year. Each licensee desiring to do so shall, on or before the first day of September of each even-numbered year, renew the licensee's license pursuant to the standard renewal procedure of Chapter 4745. of the Revised Code. Any holder of an expired license shall restore the holder's license before continuing the practice of barbering or the activity for which the holder is licensed under this chapter and pay the appropriate restoration fee. If the person fails to restore the person's license within six years, the person shall pay any required restoration fee and take any examination required for the license under this chapter.

Section 4709.12 | Fees.
 

(A) The state cosmetology and barber board shall charge and collect the following fees:

(1) For the application to take the barber examination, ninety dollars;

(2) For an application to retake any part of the barber examination, forty-five dollars;

(3) For the initial issuance of a license to practice as a barber, thirty dollars;

(4) For the biennial renewal of the license to practice as a barber, one hundred ten dollars;

(5) For the restoration of an expired barber license, one hundred dollars, and seventy-five dollars for each lapsed year, provided that the total fee shall not exceed six hundred ninety dollars;

(6) For the issuance of a duplicate barber or shop license, forty-five dollars;

(7) For the inspection of a new barber shop, change of ownership, or reopening of premises or facilities formerly operated as a barber shop, and issuance of a shop license, one hundred ten dollars;

(8) For the biennial renewal of a barber shop license, seventy-five dollars;

(9) For the restoration of a barber shop license, one hundred ten dollars;

(10) For each inspection of premises for location of a new barber school, or each inspection of premises for relocation of a currently licensed barber school, seven hundred fifty dollars;

(11) For the initial barber school license, one thousand dollars, and one thousand dollars for the renewal of the license;

(12) For the restoration of a barber school license, one thousand dollars;

(13) For the issuance of a student registration, forty dollars;

(14) For the examination and issuance of a biennial teacher license, one hundred eighty-five dollars;

(15) For the renewal of a biennial teacher license, one hundred fifty dollars;

(16) For the restoration of an expired teacher license, two hundred twenty-five dollars, and sixty dollars for each lapsed year, provided that the total fee shall not exceed four hundred fifty dollars;

(17) For the issuance of a barber license by reciprocity pursuant to section 4709.08 of the Revised Code, three hundred dollars;

(18) For providing licensure information concerning an applicant, upon written request of the applicant, forty dollars.

(B) The board, subject to the approval of the controlling board, may establish fees in excess of the amounts provided in this section, provided that the fees do not exceed the amounts permitted by this section by more than fifty per cent.

(C) In addition to any other fee charged and collected under this section, the board shall ask each person renewing a license to practice as a barber whether the person wishes to make a two-dollar voluntary contribution to the Ed Jeffers barber museum. The board shall transmit any contributions to the treasurer of state for deposit into the occupational licensing fund.

Section 4709.13 | Disciplinary actions.
 

(A) The state cosmetology and barber board may refuse to issue or renew or may suspend or revoke or impose conditions upon any license issued pursuant to this chapter for any one or more of the following causes:

(1) Advertising by means of knowingly false or deceptive statements;

(2) Habitual drunkenness or possession of or addiction to the use of any controlled drug prohibited by state or federal law;

(3) Unprofessional conduct;

(4) Continuing to be employed in a barber shop wherein rules of the board or department of health are violated;

(5) Employing any person who does not have a current Ohio license to perform the practice of barbering;

(6) Owning, managing, operating, or controlling any barber school or portion thereof, wherein the practice of barbering is carried on, whether in the same building or not, without displaying a sign at all entrances to the places where the barbering is carried on, indicating that the work therein is done by students exclusively;

(7) Owning, managing, operating, or controlling any barber shop, unless it displays a recognizable sign or barber pole indicating that it is a barber shop, and the sign or pole is clearly visible at the main entrance to the shop;

(8) Violating any sanitary rules approved by the department of health or the board;

(9) Employing another person to perform or personally perform the practice of barbering in a licensed barber shop unless that person is licensed as a barber under this chapter;

(10) Gross incompetence.

(B)(1) The board may refuse to renew or may suspend or revoke or impose conditions upon any license issued pursuant to this chapter for conviction of or plea of guilty to a felony committed after the person has been issued a license under this chapter, shown by a certified copy of the record of the court in which the person was convicted or pleaded guilty.

(2) A conviction or plea of guilty to a felony committed prior to being issued a license under this chapter shall not disqualify a person from being issued an initial license under this chapter.

(C) Prior to taking any action under division (A) or (B) of this section, the board shall provide the person with a statement of the charges against the person and notice of the time and place of a hearing on the charges. The board shall conduct the hearing according to Chapter 119. of the Revised Code. Any person dissatisfied with a decision of the board may appeal the board's decision to the court of common pleas in Franklin county.

(D) The board may adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, specifying additional grounds upon which the board may take action under division (A) of this section.

Last updated October 9, 2021 at 5:46 AM

Section 4709.14 | Injunctive relief.
 

(A) If the state cosmetology and barber board determines that any person is violating or threatening to violate any provision of this chapter or the rules adopted pursuant thereto and such violation or threatened violation is a threat to the health or safety of persons who use barber services, the board may apply to a court of competent jurisdiction in the county in which the violation or threatened violation occurred or will occur for injunctive relief and such other relief to prevent further violations. The attorney general shall, at the board's request, represent the board in any such action.

(B) If the board determines, after a hearing conducted in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, that any person has violated any provision of this chapter or the rules adopted pursuant thereto, the board may, in addition to any other action it may take or any other penalty imposed pursuant to this chapter, impose one or more fines upon the person. In no event, however, shall the fines imposed under this division exceed five hundred dollars for a first offense or one thousand dollars for each subsequent offense.

(C) A person who allegedly has violated a provision of this chapter for which the board proposes to impose a fine may pay the board the amount of the fine and waive the right to an adjudicatory hearing conducted under Chapter 119. of the Revised Code and described in division (B) of this section.

Section 4709.23 | Approval from board for teaching.
 

No phase of barbering shall be taught for pay, free, or otherwise, without approval from the state cosmetology and barber board.

Section 4709.99 | Penalty.
 

Whoever violates this chapter or any rule adopted pursuant thereto shall be fined not less than one hundred nor more than five hundred dollars for a first offense; for each subsequent violation of the same provision, the person shall be fined not less than five hundred nor more than one thousand dollars.