Section 5501.84
(A) As used in this section:
(1) "Foreign adversary" means a country listed on the registry published by the secretary of state under division (C) of this section.
(2) "Public entity" means the state and all political subdivisions of the state, including all boards, authorities, commissions, agencies, committees, councils, state colleges or universities, and other state entities created by the Ohio Constitution or the Revised Code.
(3) "Unmanned aerial vehicle system" has the same meaning as in section 4561.50 of the Revised Code.
(B)(1) Beginning on and after the effective date of this section, a public entity shall not purchase or otherwise acquire an unmanned aerial vehicle system that is manufactured or assembled by a foreign adversary.
(2) No state funds shall be used in connection with unmanned aerial vehicle systems manufactured or assembled by a foreign adversary that are purchased on or after the effective date of this section, including state funds that are awarded through a contract, grant, or cooperative agreement or that are otherwise made available.
(3) A public entity shall not operate an unmanned aerial vehicle system manufactured or assembled by a foreign adversary that is purchased on or after the effective date of this section.
(C) Division (B) of this section does not apply if either federal law or federal regulations allow for the continued purchase and operation of an unmanned aerial vehicle system or an unmanned aerial vehicle system's component parts that are manufactured or assembled by a foreign adversary.
(D)(1) The secretary of state shall compile and update at least one time every six months a registry of foreign adversaries and other persons that, based on the best information available to the secretary of state, constitute a threat to the agricultural production, critical infrastructure, security, or military defense of this state or the United States.
(2) The registry shall be published on the secretary of state's web site.
(3) The secretary of state shall consult all of the following in compiling the registry:
(a) The list of persons determined by the secretary of commerce of the United States to have engaged in a long-term pattern or serious instances of conduct significantly adverse to the national security of the United States or the security and safety of United States persons and, therefore, to constitute foreign adversaries for the purposes of Executive Order 13873, issued by the president of the United States on May 15, 2019;
(b) The terrorist exclusion list compiled by the secretary of state of the United States in consultation with the attorney general of the United States under 8 U.S.C. 1182;
(c) The list of countries determined by the secretary of state of the United States that have repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism under 50 U.S.C. 4813(c) and 22 U.S.C. 2780(d);
(d) The list of individuals and entities designated by or in accordance with Executive Order 13224, issued by the president of the United States on September 23, 2021, or Executive Order 13268, issued by the president of the United States on July 2, 2002.
(4) The secretary of state shall not include on the registry any person that does not appear on at least one of the federal lists described in division (D)(3) of this section.
Last updated July 16, 2026 at 12:47 PM
Available Versions of this Section
- October 6, 2030 – Enacted by House Bill 251 - 136th General Assembly [ View October 6, 2030 Version ]