Ohio school tip line law

Does Ohio require a school tip line?

Yes, for school districts. Ohio law requires each local, city, exempted village and joint vocational school district to register with the SaferOH tip line or contract with an anonymous reporting program of its choosing. The duty begins with the first full school year after the section's effective date. The section, ORC 3313.6610, was enacted by House Bill 123 of the 133rd General Assembly, effective March 24, 2021. H.B. 123 is titled the Safety and Violence Education Students (SAVE Students) Act.

Which schools are covered?

ORC 3313.6610 is among the sections a community school's contract says it will comply with. It is also among the sections STEM schools and their governing bodies must comply with. OSSC (Ohio School Safety Center) guidance says private schools, educational service centers and county boards of developmental disabilities do not have to comply with the anonymous reporting requirements.

What must the reporting program do?

The program must operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It must forward tips to, and coordinate with, school threat assessment teams and the law enforcement and public safety agencies in the school's emergency management plan. It must be promoted in each district school so students know about it and how to report. Ohio's regional mobile training officers at the Department of Public Safety have a statutory duty to promote the SaferOH tip line in their regions.

What is the SaferOH tip line?

The Safer Ohio School Tip Line is free to all Ohio schools. It accepts anonymous tips by call, text, webform and mobile app, 24 hours a day. The tip line number is 844-723-3764. OSSC works with the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce to follow up with schools and law enforcement so tips are investigated.

Are tips anonymous and confidential?

Callers can stay anonymous or leave contact information for follow-up. The program must comply with ORC 149.433 (security records) and ORC 3319.321 (student records). Tip data collected by SaferOH or another anonymous reporting program, and data reported to the state under the section, are security records and not public records. ORC 3313.6610 has no provision that protects a tipster's identity as such; its confidentiality terms are compliance with those records laws and FERPA (the federal student records privacy law), plus the security-records rule.

What about false reports?

The anonymous reporting statute sets no penalty for a false or bad-faith tip; it covers registration, program requirements, data reporting and records status only. Ohio's general false-alarm law, not specific to the tip line, makes it a crime to knowingly circulate a false report of a crime or catastrophe that is likely to cause public alarm. The same law makes it a crime to report an offense to law enforcement knowing it did not occur.

What data must districts report?

Each district must submit anonymous-report data to the education department and DPS (Department of Public Safety) at the end of its first full school year of participation, and every year after. District data must include the number and type of disciplinary actions that resulted from anonymous reports. It must also include the number and type of mental wellness referrals that resulted from anonymous reports. A district's contract with an outside provider must require the provider to report annually to DPS and the education department the number of anonymous reports and how they were received, by school. OSSC guidance sets July 1 as the deadline for the annual data submission.

How is it funded?

The FY 2026-27 operating budget appropriates the Ohio School Safety Center line (GRF 769412) at $8,963,284 and $9,367,524; it is not earmarked for the tip line. The budget act has no earmark text for that line, and no text in the act mentions the SaferOH tip line or anonymous reporting.

Any recent bills?

S.B. 463 (136th General Assembly), which would amend the section on the state's model threat assessment plan, including its anonymous-reporting coordination element, was introduced July 13, 2026 and referred to the Senate Finance Committee on September 30, 2026; that is its last action.