Ohio’s Keep Them Safe Act set to take effect Sept. 17
Ohio Senate Bill 273, the Keep Them Safe Act, is scheduled to take general effect Sept. 17, 2026, after completing House and Senate passage and being listed as enrolled by the Ohio Legislature.
The legislation has two effective dates. Its appropriations provisions took effect June 18, 2026. The Legislature lists Sept. 17, 2026, as the general effective date for the remainder of the law.
The scheduled September date is the next identified statewide deadline tied to the measure. The law changes specified firearms and law-enforcement statutes in the Ohio Revised Code, creating a forthcoming compliance date for state and local officials, agencies and affected residents.
What the bill record identifies
The official legislative record identifies the measure as Senate Bill 273 in the 136th General Assembly and gives its title as the Keep Them Safe Act. It records the bill’s progress through House and Senate stages and lists the measure as enrolled.
The record says SB 273 amends sections 4501.11 and 5503.02 of the Ohio Revised Code and enacts section 2923.26. In all, the legislative page identifies three code sections as being amended or enacted through the bill.
SB 273 also includes an appropriation. That feature accounts for the earlier June 18 effective date for the appropriations provisions, while the Legislature assigns the Sept. 17 general effective date to the rest of the measure.
The split schedule distinguishes provisions already in effect from provisions that remain scheduled to begin in September. It also means the June 18 date should not be read as the general effective date for every part of SB 273.
What is known — and what the record does not explain
The approved legislative record confirms the bill’s title, its enrolled status, the three Ohio Revised Code sections identified by the measure, the inclusion of an appropriation and the two effective dates. It establishes that the bill is statewide Ohio legislation rather than a local measure.
But the available record does not provide a concise explanation of every operative requirement created by the statutory changes. The code-section numbers and the bill title alone do not establish the full scope of duties, restrictions or procedures under the law.
As a result, the record supports describing SB 273 as legislation affecting specified firearms and law-enforcement statutes, but it does not support a detailed account of how each provision will operate in practice. No conclusion about specific obligations should be drawn here beyond the statutory sections and dates listed by the Legislature.
September is the next general deadline
For officials, agencies and residents affected by the measure, Sept. 17, 2026, is the listed date when the law’s remaining provisions are scheduled to take general effect. The appropriations provisions have been effective since June 18, 2026.
The next known step in the public record is therefore implementation of the general provisions on the September date. The legislative status page does not provide a separate implementation timetable or a section-by-section public summary within the approved source material.
The Ohio Legislature notes that online legislative versions are not the official version. Readers seeking the precise statutory language or a full account of particular requirements should rely on the applicable official legislative and Ohio Revised Code materials.
Sources
- Senate Bill 273 — Enact the Keep Them Safe Act, Ohio Legislature