The rules, plainly
Seven lines of Ohio’s Public Records Act.
From Ohio Revised Code section 149.43 (the version effective September 7, 2026). Each line links to the statute: read it there before you rely on it. This is general information, not legal advice.
- You do not have to use a form, write it down or give your name.
An office may not make your identity or your reason a condition. It may ask for a written request, your identity or the intended use only after telling you that a written request is not mandatory and that you may decline to say who you are or why.
“Any requirement that the requester disclose the requester’s identity or the intended use of the requested public record constitutes a denial of the request.”
ORC 149.43(B)(4) ORC 149.43(B)(5) - Records are to be ready promptly.
Records responsive to a request “shall be promptly prepared and made available for inspection to the requester at all reasonable times during regular business hours.”
ORC 149.43(B)(1) - Copies at cost, within a reasonable time.
Copies are made available “at cost and within a reasonable period of time.” You may choose paper, the same medium the office keeps the record on, or another medium it can reasonably use, and the office may ask you to pay the cost in advance.
ORC 149.43(B)(1) ORC 149.43(B)(6) - Too broad or unclear? You get a chance to revise it.
An office may deny an ambiguous or overly broad request, but it “shall provide the requester with an opportunity to revise the request” by explaining how its records are kept and accessed.
ORC 149.43(B)(2) - A denial comes with an explanation and the legal authority.
If a request is denied in part or in whole, the office provides “an explanation, including legal authority, setting forth why the request was denied.” If you asked in writing, the explanation also comes in writing.
ORC 149.43(B)(3) - Redactions are shown or explained.
The office “shall notify the requester of any redaction or make the redaction plainly visible.” A redaction counts as a denial of that information unless a law authorizes or requires it.
ORC 149.43(B)(1) - Copies can come by mail or other delivery.
The office sends a copy “by United States mail or by any other means of delivery or transmission within a reasonable period of time,” and may ask you to pay postage or delivery costs in advance.
ORC 149.43(B)(7)(a)
What the law does not say
Ohio law sets no fixed number of days for an answer: the words are “promptly” and “within a reasonable period of time.” That is why Sunfile counts weekdays and lets you choose your own follow-up interval, and never calls a date a deadline.
The law covers records an office keeps. It does not oblige an office to answer questions or to create a new record, and many kinds of records are exempt (the statute lists them). The office decides first; the next steps page lists what the statutes name when you disagree.
Read more from the source
- Ohio Revised Code 149.43, the Public Records Act, at codes.ohio.gov.
- Ohio Sunshine Laws, the Ohio Attorney General’s guide and training pages.