Section 1905.031. Rules prescribing educational standards and procedural and operational standards for mayors

(A) The supreme court may adopt rules prescribing educational standards and procedural and operational standards for mayors of municipal corporations who conduct a mayor's court and who wish to exercise the jurisdiction granted by section 1905.01 of the Revised Code over a prosecution or criminal cause other than a prosecution or cause within the scope of the standards described in section 1905.03 of the Revised Code. Any educational standards and procedural and operational standards prescribed by rule under authority of this division shall be for the purpose of assisting mayors of municipal corporations who conduct a mayor's court, and shall include, but shall not be limited to, all of the following:

(1) Provisions for basic training in the general principles of law that apply to the hearing and determination of prosecutions and causes that are within the jurisdiction of a mayor's court as specified in section 1905.01 of the Revised Code, other than prosecutions and causes that are within the scope of the standards described in section 1905.03 of the Revised Code, provisions for basic training in the procedural and operational standards prescribed by the court under this division, and provisions for periodic continuing education in those general principles and in those procedural and operational standards;

(2) Provisions for basic training in the laws of this state that apply relative to persons who are convicted of or plead guilty to any violation of a statute or ordinance, particularly as those laws apply relative to a person who is convicted of or pleads guilty to any such violation in a prosecution or cause that is within the jurisdiction of a mayor's court as specified in section 1905.01 of the Revised Code, other than prosecutions and causes that are within the scope of the standards described in section 1905.03 of the Revised Code, and provisions for periodic continuing education in those laws;

(3) Provisions specifying whether periodic continuing education for a mayor who conducts a mayor's court, who wishes to exercise the jurisdiction granted by section 1905.01 of the Revised Code over a prosecution or cause, and who has received basic training in the principles and laws described in divisions (A)(1) and (2) of this section will be required on an annual or biennial basis;

(4) Provisions specifying the number of hours of basic training that a mayor who conducts a mayor's court and who wishes to exercise the jurisdiction granted by section 1905.01 of the Revised Code over a prosecution or cause, other than a prosecution or cause that is within the scope of the standards described in section 1905.03 of the Revised Code, will have to obtain to comply with the educational standards and provisions specifying the number of hours of periodic continuing education that such a mayor will have to obtain within each time period specified under authority of division (A)(3) of this section to comply with the educational standards;

(5) Provisions establishing an exemption, for a reasonable period of time, from the basic training requirements for mayors who initially take office on or after July 1, 1992, and who wish to conduct a mayor's court and exercise the jurisdiction granted by section 1905.01 of the Revised Code over a prosecution or cause other than a prosecution or cause within the scope of the standards described in section 1905.03 of the Revised Code;

(6) Provisions establishing procedural and operational standards for mayor's courts.

(B) If the supreme court adopts rules under authority of division (A) of this section prescribing educational standards and procedural and operational standards for mayors of municipal corporations who conduct a mayor's court and who wish to exercise the jurisdiction granted by section 1905.01 of the Revised Code over a prosecution or criminal cause, other than a prosecution or cause that is within the scope of the standards described in section 1905.03 of the Revised Code, the court may formulate a basic training course and a periodic continuing education course that such a mayor may complete to satisfy the basic training and periodic continuing education required relative to those standards, and may offer or provide for the offering of the basic training course and the periodic continuing education course to mayors of municipal corporations.

If the supreme court offers or provides for the offering of a basic training course and a periodic continuing education course formulated under this division, the court may prescribe a reasonable fee to cover the cost associated with formulating, offering, and teaching the particular course, which fee would have to be paid by each mayor who attends the particular course or the municipal corporation served by the mayor.

If the supreme court offers or provides for the offering of a basic training course and a periodic continuing education course formulated under this division, the court or other entity that offers either course shall issue to each mayor who successfully completes the particular course a certificate attesting to the mayor's satisfactory completion of the particular course.

(C) Notwithstanding section 1905.01 of the Revised Code, if the supreme court adopts rules under authority of division (A) of this section on or before July 1, 1991, if the supreme court formulates a basic training course and a periodic continuing education course under division (B) of this section, and if the supreme court offers or provides for the offering of the basic training course and the periodic continuing education course to mayors within a reasonable period of time after the adoption of the rules, a mayor shall not hear or determine, on or after July 1, 1992, any prosecution or criminal cause involving a violation described in division (A) of this section unless the exemption under the provisions described in division (A)(5) of this section applies to the mayor, or unless, prior to hearing the prosecution or criminal cause, the mayor has successfully completed the basic training course offered or provided for by the supreme court and has been issued a certificate attesting to satisfactory completion of the basic training course and also has successfully completed any periodic continuing education course offered or provided for by the supreme court that is applicable to the mayor under the rules and has been issued a certificate attesting to satisfactory completion of the periodic continuing education course.

This division does not affect and shall not be construed as affecting the authority of a mayor to appoint a mayor's court magistrate under section 1905.05 of the Revised Code. If a mayor is prohibited from hearing or determining a prosecution or criminal cause involving a violation described in division (A) of this section due to the operation of this division, the prohibition against the mayor hearing or determining the prosecution or cause does not affect and shall not be construed as affecting the jurisdiction or authority of a mayor's court magistrate appointed under that section to hear and determine the prosecution or cause in accordance with that section.

Effective Date: 12-02-1996