(A) As used in this section:

(1) "Authorized party" means any of the following:

(a) The person who is the subject of the record of discharge;

(b) A county veterans service officer who is certified by the department of veterans services;

(c) An attorney-in-fact, agent, or other representative of the person who is the subject of the record of discharge, if authorized to inspect or copy the record of discharge by that person in a power of attorney or other document;

(d) A person authorized, for good cause shown, by a court of record to inspect or copy the record of discharge;

(e) If the person who is the subject of the record of discharge is deceased, the executor or administrator, or an heir, legatee, or devisee, of the person's estate or a funeral director who is to perform the funeral for the deceased person.

(2) "Separation code" or "separation program number" means the coded number or numbers used to specify the reasons for a person's separation from active duty, as contained in one of the following:

(a) Regarding a separation code, as contained in line 23 or 26 of a veteran's discharge paper, United States department of defense form DD-214;

(b) Regarding a separation program number, as contained in line 9(c) or line 11(c) of a veteran's discharge paper, under prior versions of United States department of defense form DD-214.

(3) "Service-related document" means any United States department of defense form DD-215 or DD-220, or any National Guard Bureau form NGB-22 or NGB-22A.

(B)

(1) Upon request of any discharged member of the armed forces of the United States and presentation of the member's discharge, the county recorder shall record the discharge in a book to be furnished by the board of county commissioners for that purpose. There shall be no fee for the recording. The record of discharge, or a certified copy of the record, shall be received in evidence in all cases where the original discharge would be received.

(2)

(a) A discharge recorded under division (B)(1) or (D) of this section is not a public record under section 149.43 of the Revised Code for a period of seventy-five years after the date of the recording. During that period, the county recorder's office shall make the record of discharge available only to an authorized party or to a person other than an authorized party as provided by division (B)(2)(b) of this section. Except as provided in section 317.27 of the Revised Code, the authorized party shall pay the reasonable costs of copying the record of discharge.

(b) A person other than an authorized party may request to view or receive a copy of a discharge record recorded under division (B)(1) or (D) of this section. Upon such a person's request, the county recorder's office shall provide a copy of the discharged record to the person that shall be redacted to contain only the name, rank, date of birth, date of discharge, and type of discharge of the person who is the subject of the discharge record. Except as provided in section 317.27 of the Revised Code, a person other than an authorized party shall pay the reasonable costs of copying the record of discharge.

(3) A county veterans service officer, who is an authorized party, may request to receive, from a county recorder's office, a record of discharge if the veterans service officer has a need for access to the record of discharge for the purpose of supporting a veteran's claim for benefits, and the county recorder's office shall make the record available to the county veterans service officer.

(C) Upon application by a person whose discharge has been recorded pursuant to this section, the county recorder shall, without fee, expunge the person's record of discharge, expunge the person's separation program number or separation code from the person's record of discharge and from any of the person's other service-related documents that have been recorded, or expunge the person's social security number from the person's record of discharge and from any of the person's other service-related documents that have been recorded. The application shall be in the following form:

"APPLICATION FOR EXPUNGEMENT

OF DISCHARGE RECORD OR OTHER INFORMATION

I, ................ (Name of Applicant), the undersigned, hereby request the County Recorder of the County of ............ (Name of County), state of Ohio, to expunge my .......... (Insert Record of Discharge, Separation Program Number or Separation Code from my Record of Discharge and other service-related documents, or Social Security Number from my Record of Discharge and other service-related documents).

Dated this .......... day of .........., .....

Sworn to and subscribed before me by ............ (Name of Applicant) on .........., .....

(D) Upon the request of any person who served during World War I or World War II as a member of any armed force of the government of Poland or Czechoslovakia and participated while so serving in armed conflict with an enemy of the United States and who has been a citizen of the United States for at least ten years, and the presentation of the person's discharge, the county recorder shall record the person's discharge in a book to be furnished by the board of county commissioners for that purpose. No fee shall be charged for the recording. The record, or a certified copy of it, shall be received in evidence in all cases where the original would be received.

Amended by 129th General AssemblyFile No.138, HB 490, §1, eff. 9/28/2012.

Effective Date: 09-27-2002; 2008 SB248 04-07-2009