OH HB219

Permits school district boards of education to adopt policies allowing students to be excused from school during regular hours to attend religious instruction courses conducted off school property by private entities.

Requires parental written consent, maintenance of attendance records by the sponsoring entity, and places transportation responsibility and liability on the sponsoring entity, parent, guardian, or student.

Prohibits use of public funds and public school personnel in providing religious instruction, and requires students to assume responsibility for any missed schoolwork.

Allows high school students to earn up to two units of high school credit for completing released time religious instruction courses, evaluated using secular criteria similar to those used for nonpublic school course transfers.

Specifies that students attending released time courses are not considered absent from school and cannot be released from core curriculum subject courses to attend religious instruction.