Bill to mandate date rape drug testing kits in Ohio bars proposed by state lawmaker

Austin Gano
Wed, 18 Feb 2026 04:59:23 +0000
Campus, Instagram Page, News, Andrew Herf Ohio Bar Owners Association, bar owner mandate Ohio legislation, bipartisan public safety bill Ohio, Columbus bar safety laws 2026, Columbus criminal sexual contact statistics 2024, Crystal Lett, drink-spiking prevention legislation Ohio, FBI National Incident-Based Reporting System Ohio, free drink test strips Ohio bars, gamma hydroxybutyric acid drink spiking, human trafficking prevention Ohio legislation, jean schmidt, ketamine detection kits bars, Louis W. Blessing III, Ohio bar date rape drug test kits bill, Ohio Bar Owners Association, Ohio Division of Liquor Control reporting, Ohio House drink-spiking bill, Ohio lawmakers drink safety initiative, Ohio liquor permit holders requirements, Ohio Senate Small Business and Economic Opportunity Committee, Ohio State University campus sexual assault data, protecting patrons from roofies Ohio, reporting positive drink spiking tests Ohio, Rohypnol testing strips bars, sexual assault prevention Ohio bars, state-funded drink test kits proposal, student wellness center ohio state, William P. DeMora

A series of popular North Campus bars along High Street on Friday. Credit: Daniel Bush | Campus Photo Editor

Ohio bars would be required to make date rape drug test kits available to their customers under a bill advanced by two state lawmakers earlier this month.

This bipartisan legislation, sponsored by Sens. William P. DeMora (D-Columbus) and Louis W. Blessing, III (R-Cincinnati), would require nearly all alcohol-serving state permit holders to provide the kits in an effort to prevent drink-spiking, according to DeMora.?

“It’s happening far too often, and drink-spiking can lead to other things like human trafficking, sexual assault, sexual abuse, and it’s something I’m trying to protect my constituents from having happen to them,” DeMora said.

The executive director of the Ohio Bar Owners Association, Andrew Herf, said he liked the idea of the bill, but pointed out potential drawbacks, such as the price of drug detecting strips. Herf also said the idea of state funds being used to purchase the tests, could be a possibility.

“We are interested in working on it, and we’re supportive of the general concept, but we don’t want it to become a multi-million dollar mandate for bar owners,” Herf said.

According to the bill, the kits must test for Rohypnol — commonly known as ‘roofies’ — gamma hydroxybutyric acid, known as ‘liquid ecstasy’— ketamine and other drugs with similar effects.

Free test strips must be available to patrons or at a reasonable price, according to the bill. DeMora said bar owners may charge patrons a small amount to recoup purchase costs.

Bar owners would also be required to post a sign notifying customers of the available strips, according to the bill.

Similar bipartisan legislation in the Ohio House of Representatives was sponsored by Reps. Crystal Lett (D-Hilliard) and Jean Schmidt (R-Loveland), a week after the Senate bill was introduced, according to the bill’s website.

The House bill proposed that positive test results could be voluntarily reported to the division of liquor control for data collection. The version would exclude select liquor permit holders, such as certain wineries. DeMora said a plan for a positive test protocol is in the works for his bill, but he wanted to get the bill out to kickstart the initiative.

Columbus had almost 600 criminal sexual contact cases in 2024, according to the FBI’s National Incident-Based Reporting System. Of those, 22 cases were reported on Ohio State University’s campus.

Herf also said the bar owners association considered partnering with Ohio State to pass out testing strips during orientation and through the Student Wellness Center.

Ben Johnson, university spokesperson, said in an email Ohio State has no position on the bill.

The bill has yet to be heard by the Ohio Senate Small Business and Economic Opportunity Committee and could be subject to amendments.