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STATE OF OKLAHOMA
1st Session of the 59th Legislature (2023)
HOUSE BILL 1458 By: Patzkowsky
AS INTRODUCED
An Act relating to agriculture; amending 2 O.S. 2021,
Section 16-26, which relates to emergency drought
conditions and burning prohibitions; changing the
required conditions for an extreme fire danger;
changing requirements for county commissioners to
declare a burn ban; and declaring an emergency.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 2 O.S. 2021, Section 16 -26, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 16-26. A. 1. It is unlawful for any person to set
fire to any forest, grass, range, crop, or other wildlands, or to
build a campfire or bonfire, or to burn trash or other material that
may cause a forest, grass, range, crop or other wildlands f ire in
any county, counties or area within a county where, because of
emergency drought conditions, there is gubernatorially proclaimed
extraordinary danger from fire, unless the setting of any backfire
during the drought emergency is necessary to afford p rotection as
determined by a representative of the Division of Forestry, or
unless it can be established that the setting of the backfire was
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necessary for the pu rpose of saving life or property. The burden of
proving the necessity shall rest on the perso n claiming a defense.
2. The Division of Forestry shall advise the Governor when the
lands described in paragraph 1 of this subsection in any county,
counties or area within a county of this state because of emergency
drought conditions are in extraordina ry danger from fire. The
Governor may by proclamation declare a drought emergency to exist
and describe the general boundaries of the area affected.
3. Any proclamation promulgated by the Governor under authority
of this subsection shall be effective imm ediately upon the
Governor's signed approval of the emergency proclamation and shall
supersede any resolution passed by a board of county commissioners
pursuant to subsection B of this section. Notice of the
proclamation shall occur through posting on the Oklahoma Department
of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry 's website and informing local
news media. Evidence of publication or posting as herein provided
shall be maintained by the Forestry Division.
4. When conditions warrant, due notice of the terminatio n of
the emergency shall be promptly made by proclamation, which shall be
published or posted in like manner as when officially declared.
5. Any person who viola tes this subsection is guilty of a
misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than One Thous and
Dollars ($1,000.00), by imprisonment for not more than one (1) year,
or both.
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B. 1. It is unlawful for any person to set fire to any forest,
grass, range, crop or other wildlands, or to build a campfire or
bonfire, or to burn trash or other material that may cause a forest,
grass, range, crop or other wildlands fire in any county of this
state in which the board of county commissioners of the county has
passed a resolution declaring a period of extreme fire danger. As
used in this subsection, "extreme fire danger" means:
a. all three out of four of the following conditions are
present:
(1) severe, extreme, or exceptional drought
conditions exist as determined by the Na tional
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
pursuant to its criteria,
(2) no more than one-half (1/2) inch of precipitation
is forecast for the next three (3) days, and
(3) either of the following:
(a) fire occurrence is significantly greater
than normal for the season and/or initial
attack on a significant number of wildland
fires has been unsuccessful due to extreme
fire behavior, or
(b) where data is available, more than twenty
percent (20%) of the wildfires in the county
have been caused by escaped debris or
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controlled burning, or a portion of the
county has a Keetch-Bryam Drought Index
(KBDI) rating of 600 or higher, and
b.
(4) temperatures for any day over the next three (3)
days are forecasted at or over one hundred (100)
degrees Fahrenheit.
2. A majority of the board of county commissioners may call an
emergency meeting at any time to pass or revoke a resolution
declaring a period of extreme fire danger in accordance w ith this
section.
3. A board of county commissioners shall have may pass a
resolution declaring a period of extreme fi re danger in the county
either with the documented concurrence of a majority of the chiefs,
or their designees, of the municipal and cert ified rural fire
departments located in the county that a period of extrem e fire
danger exists prior to passage of a resolution declaring a period of
extreme fire danger in the county or when the Keetch-Bryam Drought
Index (KBDI) is 600 or higher, which indicates extreme fire danger.
The resolution shall be effective for a peri od not to exceed
fourteen (14) days from the date of passage by the board of county
commissioners, unless the burn ban is removed earlier by the same
method by which it was approved. If ex treme fire danger conditions
persist, subsequent resolutions may be passed by the board of county
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commissioners in the same manner as provided in this p aragraph. The
board of county commissioners, in the resolution, may grant
exceptions to the fire prohib ition based on appropriate
precautionary measures.
4. Agricultural producers burning cropland, rang eland, forests
or pastures as a preferred method of managing their property shall
be exempt from any resolution passed by a board of county
commissioners that declares a period of extreme fire danger so long
as the agricultural producers have complied with the following
procedures:
a. submit a written presc ribed burn plan to the local
fire department and, if within a protection area, the
local office or local representative of the Forestry
Division of the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture,
Food, and Forestry nearest the land to be burned that
shall include the following information:
(1) the name and telephone number of the agricultural
producer conducting the burn,
(2) the address and legal description of the area to
be burned,
(3) the objective and purpose of the burn,
(4) a list of fire departments and she riff's offices
that are required to be notified pursuant to
subparagraph c of this paragraph,
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(5) a list of adjoining landowners required to be
notified pursuant to Sectio n 16-28.2 of this
title,
(6) a description of any firebreaks used to define
the boundary of the prescribed burn,
(7) a statement of prescribed weather conditions,
(8) a description of any s moke-management
considerations, and
(9) an ignition plan for the bu rn,
b. keep a copy of the written prescribed burn plan
provided for in subparagraph a of this paragraph on
site when conducting the prescribed burn,
c. notify the county sheriff and the dis patch center of
the local fire department prior to conducting the
prescribed burn, and
d. comply with the notification procedures outlined in
Section 16-28.2 of this title.
5. The prescribed burn plan provided for in paragraph 4 of this
subsection shall be deemed approved seventy -two (72) hours after
submission to the lo cal fire department; provided, th at the local
fire department may amend the submitted burn plan within seventy -two
(72) hours after submission.
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6. The prescribed burn plan provided for in paragraph 4 of this
subsection shall not include campfires, househo ld trash, debris or
pile burning.
7. Nothing in paragraph 4 of this subsection shall supersede
requirements set by a proclamation promulgated by the Governor under
authority of this sectio n, interfere with the authority of the
Oklahoma Department of Agric ulture, Food, and Forestry to enf orce
burning laws or change the burner 's liability as prescribed by law.
8. Any resolution passed by a board of county commissioners
under authority of thi s subsection shall be effective immediately
upon passage of the res olution. Notice of the resolutio n shall be
submitted to the Forestry Division of the Oklahoma Department of
Agriculture, Food, and Forestry, all local news media, local law
enforcement officials, and the state headquarters of the Department
of Public Safety, the Oklahoma Tourism and Recr eation Department and
the Department of Wildlife Con servation on the day of passage of the
resolution. Evidence of publication or posting as provided in th is
paragraph shall be maintained by the county.
9. The provisions of this subsection may be enforce d by any law
enforcement officer of this state.
10. Any person convicted of violating the provisions of this
subsection shall be guilty of a misdemeanor an d shall be subject to
a fine of not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), to
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imprisonment for not more than one (1) year, or to both such fine
and imprisonment.
11. The selling of fireworks shall not be considered an act in
violation of this subsectio n.
SECTION 2. It being immediately necessary for t he preservation
of the public peace, health or safety, an emergency is hereby
declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and
be in full force from and after its passage and approval.
59-1-7088 JL 01/16/23