Ohio Athletic Commission promises rule overhaul after years-long lapse; committee presses on athlete-agent regulations

Charles Haskell, executive director of the Ohio Athletic Commission, told the Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review that the commission has not updated its administrative rules since 2019 and outlined a plan to bring the rules current this year.

Haskell said the commission "resides in Youngstown" and consists of five voting members, two nonvoting commissioners, an executive director, one full-time employee (currently on disability), and one part-time employee. He said he "take[s] full responsibility for not having the rules updated since 2019" and described technical and staffing barriers that delayed filings, including lack of access to rule-filing software until recently.

Haskell told the committee he expects to submit an initial package of rule updates as soon as the next meeting cycle, saying, "I can have that package to you next week," and estimated that most outstanding rules could be processed within two commission meetings. He said the commission's backlog includes roughly 72 no-change items and that about 24 of those will require Common Sense Initiative review.

Committee members pressed Haskell on the commission's obligations for athlete-agent licensing. Several members said they could not find administrative-code rules implementing the athlete-agent provisions that appear in the Ohio Revised Code. Haskell acknowledged the oversight and said he will prioritize drafting those rules. Senator Rudder asked about the commission's legal counsel; Haskell identified the commission's counsel as Chad Kohler and confirmed counsel is appointed to the commission.

Why it matters: the Ohio Athletic Commission licenses and regulates combative sporting events and athlete agents; the absence of current administrative rules raises risks including legal challenges to ongoing licensing actions, potential fee/fee-collection questions, and gaps in standards for agent conduct and athlete protections.

Members of the committee repeatedly urged the commission to complete the filings quickly and to use JCAR resources for technical assistance. The committee said it will "watch these rules very carefully" and asked Haskell to report back with an update; the committee's next scheduled meeting was announced as Monday, July 14 at 1:30 p.m., and the commission was asked to return with progress.