June 3, 2026 · Small Business and Economic Opportunity Committee · 2,353 words · 5 speakers · 25 segments
I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. May the clerk please call the roll? Chair Patron.
Present.
Vice Chair Ramachuk here.
Thank you, Mayor Craig.
Senators Gavaron. Lang.
We have a quorum and we'll proceed as a full committee. Members, a copy of the minutes from May 13th meeting are on your iPads for review. Are there any objections to the minutes? Seeing none, the minutes are hereby adopted. For our first order of business, we're going to go slightly out of order. I'd like to call Senate Bill 23 for its fifth hearing. I'd like to make a motion to adopt Amendment 2577. The amendment narrows the bill's provisions relating to the termination of a franchise agreement solely for beer only and not wine. The question is, should the amendment be adopted? Is there any discussion? without any objections. The amendment is hereby adopted. This will constitute the fifth hearing for substitute Senate Bill 23. I now call up Senate Bill 348 for its second hearing. And the committee will stand at ease for a moment. Thank you. Thank you. Do you want me to start again? Do you want me to start again or start from where I was? Okay. Drug spiking and drug-facilitated sexual violence are serious public health concerns that leave lasting physical and emotional impacts on survivors. In one study of 969 participants, 44% of men and 56% of women said they had unknowingly consumed spiked food or drinks, with 37% of those reporting that it happened more than once. Increasing access to rapid drink testing tools is a practical step that may help deter harmful behavior and keep Ohioans safer. As a health care organization serving diverse communities including LGBTQ plus Ohioans who face elevated risks of harassment and violence in social settings We recognize the importance of creating safer public environments where people can gather without fear for their safety or well Simply posting notices about drink testing devices can raise awareness about drink spiking and encourage people to watch out for each other, and the visible availability of test strips could discourage would-be offenders from attempting to drug victims. Drink testing strips also provide empowerment for patrons. Customers have a tool they can use immediately if they suspect tampering. rather than relying only on staff or law enforcement. And with quick testing, patrons can make decisions sooner, such as seeking medical care, leaving a potentially unsafe situation, or contacting law enforcement. SB 348 would encourage businesses to think more proactively about safety and could push them to develop broader anti-harassment or anti-assault protocols, which benefits everyone in the community. By establishing a statewide baseline expectation of protections, this bill creates a standardized approach where every venue offers testing, which improves customer confidence. Finally, and importantly, SB 348 promotes the normalization of conversations about consent, nightlife safety, bystander awareness, and assault prevention. While no single intervention can fully prevent drink spiking or sexual violence, this common-sense legislation represents a meaningful harm reduction measure that can complement broader prevention efforts. Equitas Health encourages continued collaboration with public health experts, survivors, hospitality workers, and community organizations to ensure effective implementation in public education public education surrounding drink testing tools and their limitations. With all of this in mind, Equitas Health supports SB 348 because it promotes community safety, bodily autonomy, and sexual violence reduction. We urge this committee to pass the legislation. Thank you, and I'm happy to answer any questions. Thank you for your testimony. Are there any questions for the witness? All right. Seeing none, thank you so much. The chair will now call on Christopher Cade. Please provide testimony whenever you're ready.
Chairman, vice chair, ranking member, and members of the Senate Small Business and Economic Opportunity Committee, thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony today in support of Senate Bill 348. My name is Christopher Gade, and I have the privilege to serve as student body president at The Ohio State University. Earlier this year, with Senator DeMore's support, I authored and passed a resolution through the undergraduate student government, formally endorsing Senate Bill 348, meaning it collectively has the support of all of Ohio State's students. I did this because I believe this legislation represents a practical and important step to improving public safety for students and for all Ohioans. At Ohio State, we are a campus of tens of thousands of students located directly alongside one of the largest nightlife districts in the state. Directly adjacent to campus are 15 bars, with tons more throughout the Short North and the University District. And every weekend, students and community members alike gather in bars, restaurants, at concerts, house parties, and entertainment spaces throughout Columbus. And while those spaces are meant to foster community and enjoyment, they are also places where many people, especially young women, feel the need to constantly monitor their safety. That reality should concern all of us. Senate Bill 348 addresses a very real issue in a very reasonable way. The bill simply requires qualifying liquor permit holders to make drink drug testing devices available to customers and post notices informing patrons that those devices are accessible. That is not an extreme mandate. It is not government overreach. It is a harm reduction strategy rooted in prevention, awareness, and public safety. And one of the reasons I support this legislation so strongly is because at Ohio State, There was a video in our orientation program warning students not simply of the dangers of drinking and alcohol, but the dangers posed to them when drinking. Sorry. And now there is this culture around drinking, drink spiking. Friends watch each other's drinks, people text each other when they get home, and many students, again, particularly women, already move through these nightlife environments with an understanding that they must actively protect themselves from intoxicated individuals. but now also from the possibility of being drugged And that should not be normal And while this issue absolutely impacts college campuses it would be a mistake to frame this legislation as just a student issue Every Ohioan deserves to feel safe when they go out with friends, celebrate milestones and accomplishments, attend events, or support local businesses. And whether someone is 21 or 51, they should not have to wonder what their drink has been tampered with. What I appreciate about Senate Bill 348 is that it balances public safety with fairnesses with fairness to businesses. The bill allows establishments to either provide testing devices for free or at cost, and it explicitly protects permit holders from liability tied to defective or inaccurate tests. That balance matters because the legislation should not be viewed as punitive toward businesses. In fact, I would argue the opposite. Safe nightlife environments are good for businesses. When patrons trust establishments and feel protected within entertainment districts, they are more likely to participate in local economies and support restaurants, bars, and venues. Public safety and economic vitality are not opposing goals. Strong communities require both. I also believe this legislation matters because of what it signals culturally. Too often, we only address these conversations after someone has already been harmed. And Senate Bill 348 shifts the conversation toward prevention. It says that Ohio recognizes the issue, takes it seriously, and is willing to empower individuals with the tools that may help protect them before tragedy occurs. Even the visibility of these testing devices may serve as a deterrent. When establishments openly acknowledge the issue and provide preventative measures, it changes expectations around accountability and safety in nightlife environments. As student president, one of my responsibilities is advocating for policies that improve student well-being. But again, this testimony is not just about students. It is about the kind of communities we want to build across the state of Ohio. And I believe the state should be one where people can enjoy their communities without fear for their personal safety. And while SB 348 does not solve all the problems, it presents a measured, practical step in that direction, and I respectfully urge the committee to support its passage. Thank you again for your time and consideration. I'd be happy to answer your questions.
Thank you so much for your testimony. I'd like to just say this, if I may. I think that the student body made an excellent choice in making you president. You performed excellent up here in your advocating forum. You're doing absolutely everything that a president should do. So for me, I just want to make sure that you are well aware of that.
Thank you very much, sir. Absolutely.
With that, is there any questions? There's one from Senator Lang.
Mr. Cate, thank you for your testimony, and I'd like to echo the chairman's comments. Congratulations on achieving student body president. then I know that is no easy task. My understanding of this bill is there's no funding on the part of the state, so providing this would fall entirely on the bar owner. So in essence, it would be an unfunded mandate we would be putting on what are, for the most part, small businesses. I know there's some change, but it would be mostly small businesses, and obviously they're not going to eat that cost. They're going to pass it along. it'll be passed along in the form of higher prices to the consumers. I would just like to get your thoughts on should the state pay for those kits and or should we provide a tax credit to help offset the cost that the providers would incur so that they don't have to either pass that cost along or have a negative impact on their EBITDA.
In my opinion, I think the state providing some sort of funding for this mandate would be great, as you said, taking the burden off of small businesses. But I also think that the bill, as it states, provides an opportunity for the businesses to provide them at cost. And so speaking with Senator Damore, he's actually been working with my student government, and we're doing a pilot program in the fall for a welcome week. and we purchased, I think it was somewhere around 30,000 test strips to distribute, and it all came down to I think per test strip So I don think that an enormous burden on a business but then again Thank you Ms Kate Thank you Ms Chairman And nice tie Thank you sir
Senator Reynolds. Thank you, Mr. Chair. And I also concur that you're an excellent choice for a student body president. Congratulations on that role. You're doing a great job. I remember speaking up during sponsor that an idea could be, since the bill, from my understanding, the business owner would have to just make this available and it could be at cost. What are your thoughts about a vending machine that allows this to be in the vending machine so that way if a patron wanted to purchase it for protection, then the vendor is still providing it, but it's something that the individual, the consumer can pay for? Thoughts on that?
I think that is a great idea, and amending the bill to provide a provision as such would be a good idea. My only concern is that there's not a current market for vending machines that are equipped with these. So the time to go to market for this may harm students or bargoers, partygoers in the meantime. And so having an opportunity to say, you can go take this avenue, but also please still have this behind the bar. Available for patrons would be a good idea.
Wonderful. Vice Chair? Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Mr. Cade, for coming in. With regard to these, at my age, I don't know anything about these drink drug testing devices. Are they readily available? Can you, as an individual, go and buy one somewhere, at some retail location somewhere?
I will be honest, I have not seen them at a retail location. I've only seen them online available through Amazon per se, and then bulk orders. Does that answer your question?
Yeah, so follow-up.
Yes.
With regard to bulk orders, how many are we talking about? What are they? Usually 100 or 10 or 1,000?
What I've seen in looking at other vendors who offer them, it roughly ranges from 500, like quantities of 500.
Follow-up. If they were available in lower quantities, you made the comment that they're only 13 cents. So you could make an argument if they're only 13 cents, why can't you buy them if this is important to you rather than putting that burden on someone else, in this case a business owner?
I think many party growers don't necessarily have that foresight. when they're going out to say, hey, let me go into my drawer and grab a drink drug testing device. And we never know when harm may occur. You could get a text message from your friends to say, come up, hang out, let's go to a bar, and suddenly you're in an environment where you're unprepared. Having the bar provide those drink drug testing strips offers that opportunity for harm reduction.
Well, let me also join and acknowledge my support of President Cade, and we congratulate you. We appreciate you coming down from the Ohio State University to present your support today.
Thank you very much, Mr. President.
All right. Thank you. Any other questions? All right. Seeing none, I appreciate your testimony here today. Thank you all. Thank you. All right. Seeing no other witnesses here, I would like to direct the members to take a look at your iPads because there are some written testimonies worth your time reading. If there's, as there's no more work before this committee on this bill, this will constitute the second hearing and no further business before us. This will conclude our time here today. We're adjourned.