Skip to main content
Back To Top Top Back To Top
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.

Chapter 5923 | Organized Militia

 
 
 
Section
Section 5923.01 | State militia membership - limitation of troops.
 

(A) The Ohio organized militia consists of all persons who are members of one of the following:

(1) The Ohio national guard;

(2) The Ohio naval militia;

(3) The Ohio military reserve ;

(4) The Ohio cyber reserve.

(B) The Ohio national guard, including both the Ohio air national guard and the Ohio army national guard, the Ohio naval militia, the Ohio military reserve, and the Ohio cyber reserve are known collectively as the Ohio organized militia.

(C) The Ohio naval militia and the Ohio military reserve are known collectively as the state defense forces.

(D) The unorganized militia consists of all citizens of the state to whom all of the following apply:

(1) They are not members of the Ohio organized militia ;

(2) They are more than seventeen years of age and not more than sixty-seven years of age;

(3) They are not exempt from service under section 5923.02 of the Revised Code.

(E) No troops shall be maintained in time of peace other than as authorized and prescribed under the "Act of August 10, 1956," 70A Stat. 596, 32 U.S.C.A. 101 to 716. This limitation does not affect the right of the state to the use of its organized militia within its borders in time of peace as prescribed by the laws of this state. This section does not prevent the organization and maintenance of police.

Section 5923.02 | Persons exempt from military service.
 

The following persons, if subject to duty in the Ohio organized or unorganized militia, may be exempted by the adjutant general from duty on request:

(A) The vice-president of the United States;

(B) The officers, judicial and executive, of the departments of the state and of the United States, and the members of the general assembly, without regard to age;

(C) Members of the armed forces of the United States or their reserve components;

(D) Customhouse clerks;

(E) Employees of the United States postal service;

(F) Workers employed in armories, arsenals, or naval shipyards of the United States;

(G) Pilots on the navigable waters of the United States;

(H) Mariners licensed by the United States ;

(I) Any person who claims exemption from service because of religious belief or other moral conviction held as a matter of conscience ;

(J) Any person who is unable to serve because of a disability, as that term is defined in section 4112.01 of the Revised Code.

Section 5923.03 | Membership of Ohio national guard, Ohio military reserve, Ohio naval militia, Ohio cyber reserve.
 

(A) The Ohio national guard consists of the members of the Ohio organized militia who are enlisted, commissioned, or warranted in the Ohio national guard, all as prescribed by publications of the department of the army or air force and the national guard bureau for the national guard as prescribed by Chapter 5919. of the Revised Code.

(B) The Ohio military reserve consists of the members of the Ohio organized militia who are enlisted, commissioned, or warranted in the Ohio military reserve as prescribed by Chapter 5920. of Revised Code.

(C) The Ohio naval militia consists of the members of the Ohio organized militia who are enlisted, commissioned, or warranted in the Ohio naval militia as prescribed by Chapter 5921. of the Revised Code.

(D) The Ohio cyber reserve consists of the members of the Ohio organized militia who are civilian volunteers under Chapter 5922. of the Revised Code.

Section 5923.04 | Appointment of officers in Ohio military reserve.
 

All commissioned officers of the Ohio military reserve shall be appointed by the governor as commander in chief.

Section 5923.05 | Paid military leave for permanent public employees.
 

(A)(1) Permanent public employees who are members of the Ohio organized militia or members of other reserve components of the armed forces of the United States, including the Ohio national guard, are entitled to a leave of absence from their respective positions without loss of pay for the time they are performing service in the uniformed services, for periods of up to one month, for each federal fiscal year in which they are performing service in the uniformed services.

(2) As used in this section:

(a) "Federal fiscal year" means the year beginning on the first day of October and ending on the thirtieth day of September.

(b) "Month" means twenty-two eight-hour work days or one hundred seventy-six hours, or for a public safety employee, seventeen twenty-four-hour days or four hundred eight hours, within one federal fiscal year.

(c) "Permanent public employee" means any person holding a position in public employment that requires working a regular schedule of twenty-six consecutive biweekly pay periods, or any other regular schedule of comparable consecutive pay periods, which is not limited to a specific season or duration. "Permanent public employee" does not include student help; intermittent, seasonal, or external interim employees; or individuals covered by personal services contracts.

(d) "State agency" means any department, bureau, board, commission, office, or other organized body established by the constitution or laws of this state for the exercise of any function of state government, the general assembly, all legislative agencies, the supreme court, the court of claims, and the state-supported institutions of higher education.

(e) "Service in the uniformed services" means the performance of duty, on a voluntary or involuntary basis, in a uniformed service, under competent authority, and includes active duty, active duty for training, initial active duty for training, inactive duty for training, full-time national guard duty, and performance of duty or training by a member of the Ohio organized militia pursuant to Chapter 5923. of the Revised Code. "Service in the uniformed services" includes also the period of time for which a person is absent from a position of public or private employment for the purpose of an examination to determine the fitness of the person to perform any duty described in this division.

(f) "Uniformed services" means the armed forces, the Ohio organized militia when engaged in active duty for training, inactive duty training, or full-time national guard duty, the commissioned corps of the public health service, and any other category of persons designated by the president of the United States in time of war or emergency.

(g) "Public safety employee" means a permanent public employee who is employed as a fire fighter or emergency medical technician.

(B) Except as otherwise provided in division (D) of this section, any permanent public employee who is employed by a political subdivision, who is entitled to the leave provided under division (A) of this section, and who is called or ordered to the uniformed services for longer than a month, for each federal fiscal year in which the employee performed service in the uniformed services, because of an executive order issued by the president of the United States, because of an act of congress, or because of an order to perform duty issued by the governor pursuant to section 5919.29 of the Revised Code is entitled, during the period designated in the order or act, to a leave of absence and to be paid, during each monthly pay period of that leave of absence, the lesser of the following:

(1) The difference between the permanent public employee's gross monthly wage or salary as a permanent public employee and the sum of the permanent public employee's gross uniformed pay and allowances received that month;

(2) Five hundred dollars.

(C) Except as otherwise provided in division (D) of this section, any permanent public employee who is employed by a state agency, who is entitled to the leave provided under division (A) of this section, and who is called or ordered to the uniformed services for longer than a month, for each federal fiscal year in which the employee performed service in the uniformed services, because of an executive order issued by the president of the United States, because of an act of congress, or because of an order to perform duty issued by the governor pursuant to section 5919.29 or 5923.21 of the Revised Code is entitled, during the period designated in the order or act, to a leave of absence and to be paid, during each monthly pay period of that leave of absence, the difference between the permanent public employee's gross monthly wage or salary as a permanent public employee and the sum of the permanent public employee's gross uniformed pay and allowances received that month.

(D) No permanent public employee shall receive payments under division (B) or (C) of this section if the sum of the permanent public employee's gross uniformed pay and allowances received in a pay period exceeds the employee's gross wage or salary as a permanent public employee for that period or if the permanent public employee is receiving pay under division (A) of this section.

(E) Any political subdivision of the state, as defined in section 2744.01 of the Revised Code, may elect to pay any of its permanent public employees who are entitled to the leave provided under division (A) of this section and who are called or ordered to the uniformed services for longer than one month, for each federal fiscal year in which the employee performed service in the uniformed services, because of an executive order issued by the president or an act of congress, such payments, in addition to those payments required by division (B) of this section, as may be authorized by the legislative authority of the political subdivision.

(F) Each permanent public employee who is entitled to leave provided under division (A) of this section shall submit to the permanent public employee's appointing authority the published order authorizing the call or order to the uniformed services or a written statement from the appropriate military commander authorizing that service, prior to being credited with that leave.

(G) Any permanent public employee of a political subdivision whose employment is governed by a collective bargaining agreement with provision for the performance of service in the uniformed services shall abide by the terms of that collective bargaining agreement with respect to the performance of that service, except that no collective bargaining agreement may afford fewer rights and benefits than are conferred under this section.

Section 5923.051 | State employees called to active duty continuation or reactivation of health benefit coverage.
 

Notwithstanding sections 1751.54, 3923.381, and 3923.382 of the Revised Code, the state and any agency, authority, commission, or board of the state, at the request of any person who is employed by the state or any of those entities who is called or ordered to duty as described in division (C) of section 5923.05 of the Revised Code, or at the request of the spouse or dependent of such a person, shall continue or reactivate the health, medical, hospital, dental, vision, and surgical benefits coverage of the person, whether provided by an insurance company, health insuring corporation, or other health plan or entity, for the duration of the time the person is on duty as described in that division. The person, or the spouse or dependent of the person, who requests the continuation or reactivation of the coverage and the employing state or state entity are each liable for payment of the same costs for the coverage as if the person were not on a leave of absence.

Section 5923.09 | Compensation for attendance at drill.
 

Each enlisted member and each commissioned or warrant officer of the Ohio military reserve or Ohio naval militia, if funds are appropriated for this purpose by the general assembly, may be paid at rates to be prescribed by the adjutant general but not exceeding one-thirtieth of the monthly base pay of the member's or officer's grade, as is provided for enlisted members or commissioned or warrant officers of the armed forces of the United States under the department of defense pay manual, for each authorized regular drill attended, to be paid monthly.

Section 5923.10 | Lost, damaged, or destroyed equipment or property - payment of shortage.
 

(A) If any enlisted member in the Ohio organized militia willfully, maliciously, purposely, or through carelessness or neglect, permits any of the arms, equipment, or other property issued to the enlisted member belonging to the state or the United States, to become lost, damaged, or destroyed, the commanding officer of the enlisted member's company, troop, battery, detachment, or other organization shall charge the value of the lost, damaged, or destroyed arms, equipment, or other property against any pay due the enlisted member under rules prescribed by the department of defense or the adjutant general.

(B) All property of the United States issued to a unit or member of the Ohio national guard shall be accounted and recouped for as provided by the regulations prescribed by the army or the air force and the national guard bureau, as appropriate and as supplemented by the adjutant general.

(C) Notwithstanding any contrary provisions of Chapter 2716. of the Revised Code, all allowances and pay provided for officers and enlisted members of the Ohio organized militia shall be subject to the payment of any shortage of or injury to state or United States property or funds for which those officers or enlisted members are responsible or accountable.

Section 5923.12 | Pay and allowances for state active duty; pay for Ohio cyber reserve; protections afforded members.
 

When ordered to state active duty by the governor, for which duty federal basic pay and allowances are not authorized, members of the organized militia of Ohio shall receive the same pay and allowances for each day's service as is provided for commissioned officers, warrant officers, noncommissioned officers, and enlisted personnel of like grade and longevity in the armed forces of the United States, together with the necessary transportation, housing, and subsistence allowances as prescribed by the United States department of defense pay manual, or an amount not less than seventy-five dollars per day as base pay for each day's duty performed, whichever is greater.

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, Ohio cyber reserve members shall receive a rate of pay determined and provided by rule by the adjutant general, in the name of the governor. The rule shall establish a rate of pay commensurate with those specified in pay schedules established by the director of administrative services for information technology employees of the state who have comparable training, experience, and professional qualifications.

When ordered by the governor to perform training or duty under this section or section 5919.29 of the Revised Code, members of the Ohio national guard shall have the protections afforded to persons on federal active duty by "The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act," 117 Stat. 2835, 50 U.S.C.A. App. 501.

The death benefit payable by the adjutant general under section 5919.33 of the Revised Code to any active duty member of the Ohio national guard shall also be payable to any member of the Ohio naval militia, Ohio cyber reserve, and the Ohio military reserve ordered to state active duty by proclamation of the governor and who subsequently dies while performing said duty, if a beneficiary or beneficiaries has been designated in writing on a form prescribed by the adjutant general.

Last updated August 8, 2023 at 10:50 AM

Section 5923.13 | Regulations, bonds, and reports.
 

The adjutant general shall make such regulations, require such bonds and reports, and furnish such blank forms as he deems necessary to carry out sections 5923.09 and 5923.12 of the Revised Code.

Section 5923.14 | Method of payments.
 

Payments under sections 5923.09 and 5923.12 of the Revised Code shall be made on such forms as directed by and upon the voucher of the adjutant general out of moneys in the treasury appropriated for that purpose. The necessary commissary and quartermaster stores, medical supplies, and transportation for the troops in service, and while attending annual field training and the transportation and subsistence of organizations and units of the organized militia representing the state officially on occasions of ceremony within or without the state, shall be contracted for by the proper departmental officers and paid for in like manner.

Section 5923.16 | Military stores.
 

The adjutant general shall direct the assistant quartermaster general in the procurement, accounting, and maintenance of all military stores purchased by the state. He shall direct the issue of such stores to the organizations and units of the Ohio national guard or the Ohio military reserve, and the return of such stores from the organizations and units, and provide for the collection and recovery of arms and equipment in the possession of any person not authorized to retain them.

Section 5923.17 | Purchase and custody of equipage - care of stores - credit for lost property.
 

The adjutant general, after the appropriations are made for that purpose, may purchase and keep ready for use, or issue to the Ohio national guard or the Ohio military reserve, as the best interests of the service require, such amount and kind of camp and garrison equipage as are necessary. He shall see that all military stores, both the property of the state and of the United States, are properly cared for and kept in good order ready for use, and that property issued is properly accounted for by each organization and unit. Each organization and unit shall be entitled to credit for property actually lost, as determined by survey as provided for in section 5923.18 of the Revised Code.

Section 5923.18 | Unserviceable military stores.
 

When military stores belonging to the state become unserviceable, the adjutant general may convene a board of survey consisting of not less than three commissioned officers of the Ohio national guard or the Ohio military reserve as the adjutant general deems proper, who shall inspect such property, and if it is found unserviceable, condemn it.

Section 5923.19 | Sale or exchange of condemned stores.
 

The adjutant general may sell condemned military stores belonging to the state, the sums realized from the sales to be turned into the state treasury, to be credited to any fund appropriated for the use of the Ohio national guard or the Ohio military reserve as determined at the time by the adjutant general. He may exchange such condemned stores for such other military stores as the interests of the service require, for the use of the Ohio national guard or the Ohio military reserve, as determined by the adjutant general.

Section 5923.20 | Annual appropriations and allowances.
 

Upon the request of the adjutant general, there shall be appropriated and allowed annually such sums as the adjutant general shall determine to be necessary for the care of military property and other incidental expenses of each organization and unit of the Ohio national guard.

The sums provided for in this section shall be paid to the commanding officer of each organization and unit, who shall account for the funds in the manner directed by the commander in chief. No part of such money shall be paid to any organization or unit until all returns and reports required by law and orders have been filed with the adjutant general. The adjutant general may withhold all or any portion of said sum from any organization or unit found to be deficient.

Section 5923.21 | Call to service by governor.
 

(A) The Ohio organized militia may be called by the governor by proclamation to aid the civil authorities to do any of the following:

(1) Execute the laws of this state;

(2) Suppress insurrection;

(3) Repel invasion;

(4) Act in the event of a disaster, as defined in section 5502.21 of the Revised Code, within the state;

(5) Promote the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of this state.

(B) In all cases, the organized militia shall be called to state active duty before the unorganized militia.

(C) The governor's proclamation under division (A) of this section shall specify the statutory basis of the call.

Section 5923.22 | Order of unit, part or individual to aid civil authorities.
 

(A) Whenever the governor determines that the organized militia may lawfully be called to duty under section 5923.21 of the Revised Code, the governor may order any unit of the organized militia, or any part or individual of the organized militia, to state active duty to aid civil authorities.

(B) The orders issued by the adjutant general on behalf of the governor shall specify the individuals, units, or parts of the organized militia ordered to state active duty, the estimated duration of the duty, and the place and time of reporting.

(C) No member of the organized militia ordered to state active duty pursuant to this section shall fail to obey such an order.

Section 5923.23 | Contents of order to aid civil authorities - command and control.
 

(A) When members of the organized militia are called to state active duty by the governor, the orders shall state in general terms the objectives to be accomplished and with which agencies of civil authority the accomplishment of these objectives shall be coordinated. The missions of a commander of any unit or units called to state active duty in aid to civil authority shall be as directed by the appropriate civil authorities. The mode and means of accomplishing those missions shall at all times remain with their commander.

(B) The command and control of units or members of the organized militia shall at all times remain with their commanding officers.

Section 5923.231 | Proclamation of martial law.
 

After issuing an order to duty pursuant to section 5923.21 of the Revised Code, the governor, if in his judgment any breakdown of law and order impends, may by proclamation, declare that the organized militia under the command of the governor shall execute the laws and keep the peace in a designated area. Under these circumstances, any arrest and detention of civilians by military authorities shall be for the purpose of escorting such civilians to civil authorities. The governor shall, by subsequent proclamation, order cessation of the duties entrusted to the militia when, in his judgment, his original proclamation is no longer required.

Section 5923.27 | Privileges and immunities while on state active duty.
 

(A) No member of the organized militia called to state active duty shall be arrested on any warrant, except for treason or felony, while going to, performing, or returning from such duty.

(B) A member of the organized militia called to state active duty to aid the civil authorities in executing the laws of the state, suppressing insurrection, repelling invasion, or promoting the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of this state shall be considered a law enforcement officer, as that term is defined in section 2901.01 of the Revised Code, and shall be afforded the privileges and immunities afforded persons under sections 109.361 and 2305.23 of the Revised Code.

(C) A member of the organized militia called to state active duty in the event of a disaster, as defined in section 5502.21 of the Revised Code, shall have the privileges and immunities afforded persons under sections 109.361 and 5502.30 of the Revised Code.

Section 5923.28 | Conformity of military laws with federal laws and regulations.
 

(A) Except as provided in division (B) of this section, the military laws of this state shall conform to all laws of and regulations promulgated by the United States affecting the same subject and anything to the contrary is void if the subject matter has been acted on by the army, air force, or national guard bureau.

(B) All matters relating to the organization, discipline, and government of the state defense forces, not otherwise provided by the laws of this state or the rules promulgated under those laws, shall be decided by the custom, regulations, and usage of the armed forces of the United States.

Section 5923.29 | Inventory of unexpendable state military property - additions or deductions.
 

The adjutant general shall cause an inventory to be made of all unexpendable military property of each organization of the organized militia which is purchased from state funds or otherwise belongs to the state, and a separate inventory of the property received from the federal government. Said inventories shall be kept on file in the office of the adjutant general and shall be open to public inspection during regular office hours. Additions to or deductions from said inventories shall be made so that each inventory sets forth at all times a correct list of all property owned by or in possession of each organization of the organized militia. Whenever deductions are made from such inventories, the time and manner of disposition of the property shall be entered.

Section 5923.30 | Action against officer unable to account properly for money or property.
 

Whenever it is ascertained by the adjutant general or the auditor of state that any officer of the organized militia is unable to properly account for the property or moneys in his possession he shall give immediate notice thereof to the attorney general for action against such officer and his bondsmen, and the attorney general shall bring such action.

Section 5923.31 | Persuading member of militia to disregard duty prohibited.
 

No person shall advise or endeavor to persuade an officer or soldier of the organized militia not to appear at the place of assembly when such officer or soldier has been lawfully required to do so in conformity with the laws for the suppression of tumults, riots, and mobs, or shall advise or endeavor to persuade such officer or soldier to refuse obedience to an order issued in such case.

Section 5923.32 | Disposing of military property belonging to state prohibited.
 

No person shall sell, dispose of, conceal, detain, or refuse to give up arms or property belonging to this state, or money or other property belonging to an organization or unit organized according to law.

Section 5923.33 | Uniforms and insignia worn unlawfully.
 

No person shall wear any uniform or any device, strap, knot, or insignia of any design or character used as a designation of rank, grade, or office, such as by law or by general regulation promulgated or prescribed for the use of the organized militia of Ohio.

This section does not apply to a member of the army or navy of the United States, the organized militia of Ohio or any other state, members of associations composed of soldiers honorably discharged from the service of the United States or any members of the order of sons of veterans, and the faculty and students of educational institutions where military science is prescribed as a part of the course of instruction.

Section 5923.34 | Government and discipline.
 

The organized militia shall be governed and disciplined by the military laws of the state, the orders of the commander in chief, acts of congress of the United States pertaining to the organized militia enacted pursuant to the constitution of the United States, and the Ohio code of military justice. Such government and discipline shall conform to the system of discipline and administration prescribed for the armed forces of the United States insofar as the same are compatible with the laws of this state.

Section 5923.36 | Limitation of actions.
 

Any civil proceedings brought against any member of the organized militia alleging an act of willful or wanton misconduct, which alleged act was performed when the member was under duty status pursuant to state authority at a time of public danger, shall be commenced within two years of the performance of such alleged act or be forever barred.

Section 5923.37 | No liability for negligence while on state active duty.
 

(A) No member of the organized militia ordered to state active duty shall be liable in negligence for any act performed within the scope of the member's duties. Any action alleging that such a militia member's conduct was outside the scope of the member's employment, was malicious, was in bad faith, or was wanton or reckless shall first be filed against the state in the court of claims under section 2743.02 of the Revised Code.

(B) Any member of the organized militia rendering medical, nursing, or dental care, or assisting in rendering such care, after being ordered to state active duty shall be deemed an officer or employee of the state under section 109.36 of the Revised Code.

(C) Any member of the organized militia ordered to state active duty under section 5923.22 of the Revised Code or ordered to duty under section 5919.29 of the Revised Code who is qualified to perform on federal active duty under Title 10, United States Code, in a particular profession, discipline, or skill as a health care provider shall be exempt from the statutes, regulations, and licensing requirements otherwise in force under the laws of this state, with respect to the member's profession, specialty, or skill at such times as the member is serving in any military status, duly authorized under the laws of this state or of the United States, or both, and is performing the member's profession, specialty, or skill under regulations prescribed by the executive authority of the United States or of this state, and is functioning within the scope of the member's employment.

Section 5923.99 | Penalty.
 

(A) Whoever violates section 5923.31 of the Revised Code shall be fined not more than one thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than six months, or both.

(B) Whoever violates section 5923.32 of the Revised Code shall be fined not more than five hundred dollars or imprisoned not more than three months, or both.

(C) Whoever violates section 5923.33 of the Revised Code shall be fined not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars.