Ohio Fundraising Laws: Registration, Disclosures, and Penalties

Ohio fundraising laws require most charitable organizations to register with the Attorney General before asking anyone in the state for a donation, and they impose stricter rules on any professional solicitor hired to run a campaign. The governing statute is Ohio Revised Code Chapter 1716, the Charitable Solicitations Act. Get the registration wrong and you’re looking at a first-degree misdemeanor; get the fundraising itself wrong and the charges can climb to a third-degree felony.

Who Has to Register

Any charitable organization that plans to solicit contributions in Ohio must file a registration statement with the Attorney General before the first ask.¹ The filing captures the information the state needs to hold someone accountable: Employer Identification Number, names and addresses of officers and trustees, financial statements showing money in and money out, and a description of the charitable purpose. Everything goes through the Attorney General’s online Charitable Registration System. There is no paper option.²

Fees and Annual Reports

The registration fee scales with the prior fiscal year’s contributions:

Under $5,000: no fee
$5,000 to $25,000: $50
$25,000 to $50,000: $100
$50,000 or more: $200

After the first filing, an annual report is due on the 15th day of the fifth month after the organization’s fiscal year ends. For a calendar-year charity that’s May 15. If you’ve secured an IRS extension for your Form 990, the Attorney General honors the same extension for the state report.³ Miss the deadline and the state adds a $200 late fee.²

Who’s Exempt

ORC 1716.03 excuses several categories of organizations from registering, but the conditions attached to each exemption matter more than the label.⁴

Churches, temples, synagogues, and charities operated or controlled by a religious organization are fully exempt.
Educational institutions are exempt only when solicitation is confined to alumni, faculty, trustees, students, and their families. A university running a broad public campaign would not qualify.
Any non-individual entity that limits fundraising to its existing members, current or former employees, or current or former trustees is exempt.
Public primary and secondary schools soliciting within their local district, and booster clubs organized for the benefit of public school students, are exempt.
Small organizations with gross revenue under $25,000 in the prior fiscal year (excluding government grants and grants from 501(c)(3) organizations) are exempt, provided they do not pay anyone primarily to solicit contributions. If an exempt small organization crosses the $25,000 line during a fiscal year, it has 30 days to file.
Certain charitable trusts are exempt: those that have existed in Ohio for at least two years, hold a current IRS 501(c)(3) determination letter, are registered with the Attorney General as a charitable trust, and have filed annual reports under ORC 109.31.

Even if you qualify for an exemption, keep clean financial records. The small-organization exemption especially hinges on staying under that $25,000 line, and the burden of proving you qualify falls on the organization if the Attorney General asks.

What Donors Have to Be Told

Registration status aside, Ohio requires certain disclosures at the moment of every ask. Under ORC 1716.10, each solicitation must include the name of the charitable organization and the city where it has its principal place of business.⁵ If the organization doesn’t hold a current IRS 501(c)(3) determination letter, the solicitation must also disclose the specific charitable purpose the funds will advance.

This applies to direct solicitations of every kind: in person, by phone, by mail. Donors need to know who is asking and why before they open a wallet.

Extra Rules When You Hire a Professional Solicitor

Ohio draws a sharp line between charities that fundraise on their own and those that contract with outside firms. Hiring a professional solicitor shifts a heavy regulatory burden onto that firm, and the charity still shares responsibility for compliance.

Registration and Bond

Professional solicitors register separately with the Attorney General and pay a $200 fee. Each solicitor must also post a $25,000 surety bond before registration is approved. The bond runs to the state and to any person with a claim against the solicitor for violations of Chapter 1716. A single entity can register once and cover all its officers, employees, and agents under one $200 fee, but the bond requirement stands either way.⁶

Contracts and Solicitation Notices

Every contract between a solicitor and a charity must be in writing and spell out what the charity actually gets from the campaign. ORC 1716.08 requires the contract to state the charity’s benefit as either a fixed percentage of gross revenue or a reasonable estimate of that percentage.⁷ When the solicitor’s pay is tied to the number or dollar amount of donations collected, the charity’s share must be stated as a fixed percentage. No estimates.

Before any campaign begins, the solicitor files a Solicitation Notice with the Attorney General’s Charitable Law Section and waits for approval. The notice includes a copy of the written contract, a signed charity consent form, and a notarized affidavit. The charity itself has to be registered to solicit in Ohio before the notice can go through.⁸ Late filings cost $200 each, and the state treats every missing document as a separate filing for penalty purposes.⁶

Rules for Donation Bins

Clothing drop boxes and other unattended collection receptacles have their own rules. Every side of the receptacle must carry a permanent label in letters at least three inches tall and half an inch wide, in a color that contrasts with the container.⁹ The label must include:

Name, address, and phone number of the charitable organization receiving the goods
If a professional solicitor operates the receptacle, the solicitor’s name, address, and phone number
If a professional solicitor is involved, a statement that the contract disclosing the financial arrangement between the solicitor and the charity is on file with the Attorney General

Professional solicitors using receptacles must also list the location of each one in their Solicitation Notice, and file a financial report after the campaign (or annually for ongoing campaigns) covering the total weight collected and the value received from selling the items.

What’s Prohibited

ORC 1716.14 lists conduct Ohio treats as unlawful in any solicitation or charitable sales promotion, regardless of who is doing the asking:¹⁰

Deceptive acts or practices, meaning any misleading statement about a material fact related to the solicitation
Using a charitable organization’s name, logo, or printed material without written authorization
Implying that someone sponsors or endorses the solicitation without that person’s written consent
Suggesting that state registration amounts to an endorsement or approval by Ohio
Telling donors the charity will receive a greater percentage of campaign revenue than what the filed contract actually provides

These prohibitions apply to the charity, its agents, professional solicitors, and commercial co-venturers alike. The deceptive-acts provision is the one that opens the door to the graduated felony penalties below.

Penalties

The penalty structure has three tiers.

General Violations

Most violations of Chapter 1716, including failing to register, skipping required disclosures, or operating without proper contracts, are first-degree misdemeanors. That carries up to 180 days in jail and a fine of up to $1,000.¹¹¹²¹³ Each individual solicitation made in violation counts as a separate offense, so the numbers compound fast. Anyone convicted also forfeits their surety bond and is banned from registering as a fundraising counsel or professional solicitor in Ohio for five years.

Solicitation Fraud

Any deceptive act in connection with a solicitation triggers the solicitation fraud statute, with penalties graduated by dollar amount:¹¹

Under $1,000: first-degree misdemeanor; fifth-degree felony with a prior theft conviction or charitable solicitation violation
$1,000 to $7,499: fifth-degree felony; fourth-degree felony with a prior conviction
$7,500 to $149,999: fourth-degree felony; third-degree felony with a prior conviction
$150,000 or more: third-degree felony

When someone runs a common scheme to defraud multiple victims, Ohio allows prosecutors to combine the offenses into a single charge using the aggregate dollar value. Small-dollar fraud reaches felony territory quickly that way.

Civil Action by the Attorney General

The Attorney General doesn’t have to wait for a criminal case. Under ORC 1716.16, the office can bring a civil action and ask a court for injunctions, restitution, reasonable attorney’s fees, and a civil penalty of up to $10,000 per violation.¹⁴ To get an injunction, the office needs only to show a violation of the chapter or that the order serves the public interest; no proof of irreparable harm required. The Attorney General can also subpoena documents and testimony and demand audited financial reports from any professional solicitor, fundraising counsel, or charitable organization. Soliciting without complying with the chapter is also declared a nuisance under ORC 1716.14, which opens the door to additional remedies.¹⁰

When Ohio Registration Isn’t the End of It

Ohio registration covers Ohio. If your charity accepts online donations and sends follow-up communications to donors in other states, you may be treated as soliciting in those states too, and most of them have their own registration regimes. A “Donate Now” button that reaches residents nationwide can create obligations well beyond Chapter 1716. Evaluate every state where you actually receive contributions, because the legal duty sits with the charity whether or not a third-party platform processes the money.

1
Ohio Attorney General. Charitable Registration
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Ohio Attorney General. Charity Registration
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Ohio Attorney General. Charitable Registration in Ohio
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Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Code 1716.03 – Organizations Not Required to File Registration Statement
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Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Code 1716.10 – Disclosures at Point of Solicitation
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Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Code 1716.07 – Professional Solicitors
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Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Code 1716.08 – Contracting With Professional Solicitors
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Ohio Attorney General. Requirements for Professional Solicitors
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Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Code 1716.06 – Collection Receptacle Requirements
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Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Code 1716.14 – Prohibited Acts and Practices
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Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Code 1716.99 – Penalty
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Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Code 2929.24 – Definite Jail Terms for Misdemeanors
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Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Code 2929.28 – Financial Sanctions for Misdemeanors
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Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Code 1716.16 – Civil Actions and Penalties