House Bill 463, introduced in the 136th Ohio General Assembly by Representatives Klopfenstein and Lorenz with several cosponsors, would amend multiple sections of the Ohio Revised Code to expand online driver education and allow approved electronic devices and applications to assist supervised behind-the-wheel instruction.

The bill would amend sections 4507.05, 4507.071, 4507.21 and 4508.02 and would add section 4508.041 to the Ohio Revised Code. It directs the director of public safety to adopt rules governing online driver education, to establish standards for approving electronic devices and applications that verify driving hours, and to set a form of certificate of completion used by registrars and deputy registrars.

Under the bill's provisions, driver education providers licensed to offer online courses must meet minimum content and technical standards set by the director of public safety. Approved online courses could be treated as the equivalent of the current 24 hours of in-person classroom instruction. Beginning drivers would still be required to complete eight hours of behind-the-wheel instruction, but the bill allows a "qualified adult" to provide up to four of those eight hours if the adult is assisted by an approved electronic device or application and is in the vehicle during active instruction.

The proposal also sets out how applicants may document supervised practice hours. For applicants under twenty-one, the bill retains an affidavit option attesting to at least fifty hours of actual driving experience (with at least ten at night) and adds an option to present a certificate generated by an approved electronic device or application that verifies at least forty hours of driving experience (with at least ten at night). For certain adult applicants and abbreviated adult training, the bill similarly allows electronic-device-generated certificates that verify twenty to forty hours of driving experience as applicable.

Other changes in the draft text include adjustments to temporary instruction permit rules (including language that a temporary instruction permit may be issued to a person "at least fifteen years six months of age") and a statement that a temporary instruction permit to drive a noncommercial motor vehicle shall be valid for one year and six months. The draft text of section 4507.071 contains an ambiguous string, "six monthsone year," in the line describing how long an applicant must hold a temporary instruction permit before qualifying for a probationary license; the text does not clearly state whether the required holding period is six months or one year.

The bill directs the director of public safety to inspect facilities, examine instructor applicants, and adopt rules to implement online course standards, attendance limits for online instruction, the form and approval process for electronic devices and applications, and procedures for issuing numbered certificates to online training enterprises. The department may charge fees to regulate online driver education and to supply certificates, in amounts sufficient to cover actual expenses the department incurs.

Section 4508.041, which the bill would enact, explicitly allows a qualified adult to provide up to four behind-the-wheel hours assisted by an approved electronic device or application, provided the adult is in the vehicle during active instruction and the device complies with the department's curriculum and is approved by the director.

The bill would also repeal the existing sections 4507.05, 4507.071, 4507.21, and 4508.02 of the Revised Code and replace them with the revised provisions in the introduced language.

The introduced text does not include an enacted effective date, an appropriation, or a record of any legislative votes; as introduced, it is a bill draft filed for consideration by the General Assembly.