The Executive

State Government Departments

Within the executive branch, 24 administrative departments are largely responsible for carrying out the laws enacted by the Ohio General Assembly. In the order listed in this chapter, they are:
• the Adjutant General’s Department
• the departments of Administrative Services, Aging and Agriculture
• the Office of Budget and Management
• the Department of Commerce
• the Development Services Agency
• the departments of Developmental Disabilities and Education
• the Environmental Protection Agency
• the departments of Health, Higher Education, Insurance, and Job and Family Services
• the departments of Medicaid, Mental Health and Addiction Services, Natural Resources, Public Safety, Rehabilitation and Correction, Taxation, Transportation and Veterans Services
• the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation
• the Department of Youth Services

The governor appoints all department heads with the exception of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, who is appointed by the State Board of Education to oversee the Department of Education.
While there is no established pattern for the structure of a department, most operate through a number of divisions or bureaus appropriate to the assigned duties; divisions may be subdivided into offices, boards, programs and other designations. Usually division heads are appointed by, and responsible to, the director of the department; in a few cases, the governor has appointment power. The attorney general represents all state departments in the courts.

State agencies adopt rules of procedure for administering state laws and must hold public hearings before their adoption. Major boards and commissions relating to each department are typically included in the descriptions of departments.