Home / Ohio’s rules / Overnight camp permits
Who permits and inspects an overnight camp in Ohio?
The rule says the board of health having jurisdiction. The chapter calls an overnight camp a “resident camp”; its definition, the permit, the inspection and the operator’s duties are quoted below.
What is a resident camp?
“"Resident camp" means a tract of land and any tents, vehicles, buildings or other structures that may be pertinent to its use, any part of which may be occupied by any person for the purpose of supervised outdoor or indoor activities and on which provisions are made for overnight occupancy.”
With two carve-outs: A resident camp does not include the following: (1) Any university, college, or other registered educational facility; or (2) Any use of a tract of land, or property determined by the board of health as not being within the intent of this chapter.
(codes.ohio.gov, effective January 1, 2022)
What does the permit involve?
“No person shall operate or maintain a resident camp without a permit issued by the board of health having jurisdiction.”
“Before a permit is initially issued and annually thereafter, or more often if necessary, the board of health shall cause each resident camp to be inspected relative to compliance with this chapter.”
A record shall be made of each inspection.
(codes.ohio.gov, effective January 1, 2022) Each permit issued shall be effective from the date of issuance until the last day of April each year.
(codes.ohio.gov, effective January 1, 2022) The operator shall post the current permit approval in a conspicuous manner on the resident camp premises.
(codes.ohio.gov, effective January 1, 2022)
Our suggestion: ask an overnight camp to show you its posted permit and to tell you which health district issued it, and ask that health district how to see the inspection record.
What must the operator do?
Designate at least one responsible adult to be on site and available at all times the resident camp is in operation;
(codes.ohio.gov, effective January 1, 2022)Water recreation areas are supervised while in use and maintained when the resident camp is in operation;
(codes.ohio.gov, effective January 1, 2022)All programs are identified that require specialized supervision, including firearms, archery equipment, hazardous substances, and potentially hazardous equipment.
(codes.ohio.gov, effective January 1, 2022)First aid equipment consisting of unused disposable gloves and a sufficient supply of materials to stop bleeding and to clean and cover minor cuts and abrasions shall be provided.
(codes.ohio.gov, effective January 1, 2022)Promptly notify the board of health of any known cases of communicable or infectious disease and, in the event of an outbreak, comply with the orders given by the board of health.
(codes.ohio.gov, effective January 1, 2022)
What do the rules say about bunks?
Triple deck or higher bunks shall be prohibited.
(codes.ohio.gov, effective January 1, 2022) Bunk beds shall be equipped with guardrails attached to the upper bunks to prevent campers from accidentally rolling out of bed.
(codes.ohio.gov, effective January 1, 2022)
What is not in this chapter?
We read the definitions, the board of health’s duties and the operator’s duties, and did not find a staff-to-camper ratio or a staff background-check requirement in them. Other law may apply to a particular camp. Our suggestion is to ask about both. The questions page has the wording.
What does the Ohio Department of Health say?
From the department’s resident camp page: sleep away camp, or as we call it in Ohio, resident camp!
(odh.ohio.gov, read in a browser November 11, 2026)
“Resident Camps in Ohio are regulated under the authority of Chapter 3701-25 of the Ohio Administrative Code (OAC).”
“The Resident Camp rules were created to establish minimum standards, applicable throughout Ohio, for the design, installation, operation, and maintenance of these facilities”
Its line for people who run a camp: If you own or operate a resident camp, or have plans to so, contact the local health department to obtain permission to operate.
(odh.ohio.gov, read in a browser November 11, 2026)
Read in a web browser on November 11, 2026; do not rely on it after December 26, 2026.
A passage quoted from Ohio Department of Health, Resident Camp Program belongs here. It was read in a web browser on November 11, 2026 and is shown only through December 26, 2026. This page checks today’s date with JavaScript before showing it, so without JavaScript it stays hidden. You can read the page itself at that link.
That website refuses automated readers, so our checker cannot re-read the page. It was read in a web browser on November 11, 2026 and the sentences quoted were recorded then. We let that reading stand for 45 days, through December 26, 2026. After that date this page keeps the passage hidden in your browser and shows a notice in its place, and the next build of the site removes it unless the page has been read again. The passage is hidden until the page has checked the date, so with JavaScript off you see a notice and a link, not the passage.
Is there a statewide list of permitted overnight camps?
Not one we could find. The Department of Health passage above is from the one page of its site read for us, and we did not read a list there. Everything else on this page is from codes.ohio.gov. Since the rule has the board of health issue the permit, our suggestion is to ask the health district for the camp’s area whether it holds a current one.
Operators who run overnight camp, in their own words: overnight camps.