Ohio Code 6109.35 – Nonliability of water suppliers
(A) As used in this section:
Terms Used In Ohio Code 6109.35
- Another: when used to designate the owner of property which is the subject of an offense, includes not only natural persons but also every other owner of property. See Ohio Code 1.02
- Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Person: means the state, any political subdivision, agency, institution, or instrumentality thereof, any federal agency, and any person as defined in section 1. See Ohio Code 6109.01
- Property: means real and personal property. See Ohio Code 1.59
- Public water system: includes any collection, treatment, storage, and distribution facilities under control of the operator of the system and used primarily in connection with the system, any collection or pretreatment storage facilities not under such control that are used primarily in connection with the system, and any water supply system serving an agricultural labor camp as defined in section 3733. See Ohio Code 6109.01
- Safe Drinking Water Act: means the "Safe Drinking Water Act" 88 Stat. See Ohio Code 6109.01
- state: means the state of Ohio. See Ohio Code 1.59
- United States: includes all the states. See Ohio Code 1.59
(1) “Water supplier” means an entity that is subject to this chapter and rules adopted under it and that supplies drinking water through pipes, through tubing, or in a similar manner to consumers within this state.
(2) “Acquiring water supplier” means a water supplier that satisfies both of the following:
(a) The water supplier acquires ownership of an existing water supplier.
(b) The water supplier and the acquired existing water supplier do not have any mutual directors, officers, controlling shareholders, or other persons with an ownership interest prior to the acquisition.
(3) “Drinking water standards” means safe drinking water standards established by the environmental protection agency under this chapter or established by the United States environmental protection agency under the Safe Drinking Water Act.
(B) An acquiring water supplier that acquires ownership of an existing public water system is not liable in damages in a civil action for injury, death, or loss to person or property that occurred prior to the acquisition and that was allegedly caused by the previous water supplier’s failure to comply with drinking water standards if the acquiring water supplier does both of the following:
(1) Enters into a written agreement with the environmental protection agency to bring the water system into compliance with drinking water standards within a specified period of time;
(2) Brings the water system into compliance with drinking water standards within the time period agreed to under division (B)(1) of this section.
(C) A water supplier that operates a public water system is not liable in damages in a civil action to any person for injury, death, or loss to person or property that allegedly arises from the person’s consumption of water supplied by the water supplier if all of the following apply:
(1) During the period of time that the water supplier supplies water to the person, the water supplied by the water supplier meets all applicable drinking water standards.
(2) The water supplier has not been found to be in significant noncompliance with drinking water standards.
(3) The injury, death, or loss to person or property is alleged to be caused by a substance for which drinking water standards have been established.
(D)(1) This section does not create a new cause of action or substantive legal right against a water supplier.
(2) This section does not affect any immunities from civil liability or defenses established by another section of the Revised Code or available at common law to which a water supplier may be entitled under circumstances not covered by this section.
(3) This section does not create immunity from civil liability for violations of section 6109.31 of the Revised Code.