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28	28	STATE OF OKLAHOMA
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30	30	1st Session of the 59th Legislature (2023)
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32	32	HOUSE BILL 2073 By: Caldwell (Chad)
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38	38	AS INTRODUCED
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40	40	An Act relating to higher education; enacting the
41	41	Student and Administration Equality Act ; defining
42	42	terms; directing institutions to maintain
43	43	administrative file; requiring inclusion of certain
44	44	content in the code of student conduct; requiring
45	45	written notice of righ ts; granting opportunity to
46	46	appeal decisions in cert ain situations; requiring
47	47	reasonable access to administrative file; prohibiting
48	48	commingling of administrative or adjudicative roles;
49	49	stipulating no right to an attorney for academic
50	50	dishonesty; stipulating no right to be represented at
51	51	public expense; directing that the code of student
52	52	conduct shall include certain rights to accusers in
53	53	disciplinary proceedings; providing appeals
54	54	proceedings; clarifying reasonable interim measures
55	55	that the university may reasonably carry out ;
56	56	creating a right of actio n; creating a statute of
57	57	limitations; providing for codification; and
58	58	providing an effective date .
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64	64	BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
65	65	SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
66	66	in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3260 of Title 70, unless there
67	67	is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
68	68	This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Student and
69	69	Administration Equality Act".
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96	96	SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
97	97	in the Oklahoma Statute s as Section 3261 of Title 70, unless there
98	98	is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
99	99	As used in this act:
100	100	1. "Disciplinary proceeding" means an investigatory interview
101	101	or hearing or any other proceeding conducted by the public
102	102	institution of higher education relating to the alleged violation
103	103	that the student or student organization reasonably believes may
104	104	result in disciplinary action against the student or student
105	105	organization;
106	106	2. "Fully participate" means the opportunity to be present,
107	107	make opening and closing statements, examine and cross-examine
108	108	witnesses, and provide the accuser or accused student or student
109	109	organization with support, guidance, and advice. This act does not
110	110	require a public institution of higher education to use formal rules
111	111	of evidence in disciplinary proceedings. The institution, however,
112	112	shall make good-faith efforts to include re levant evidence and
113	113	exclude evidence that is neither relevant nor probative ; and
114	114	3. "Public institutions of higher education" or "institutions"
115	115	means any institution supported wholly or in part by direct
116	116	legislative appropriations and offering courses of education of any
117	117	kind beyond or in addition to the twelfth grade, or its equivalent,
118	118	as such grade is generally understood and accepted i n the public
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145	145	school system of Oklahoma, whethe r called a university, college,
146	146	junior college, school , or academy.
147	147	SECTION 3. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
148	148	in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3262 of Title 70, unless there
149	149	is created a duplication in numbering, read s as follows:
150	150	A. The public institution of higher education shall maintain an
151	151	administrative file of all disciplinary proceedings. The file shall
152	152	include all documents and evidence in the institution 's possession
153	153	or control relevant to the alleged violation an d the institution's
154	154	investigation, including but not limited to exculpatory evidence,
155	155	statements by the accuser and accused student, third -party witness
156	156	statements, electronically stored information, wri tten
157	157	communications, social media posts, demonstrativ e evidence,
158	158	documents submitted by any participant, and the institution 's choice
159	159	of a video recording, audio recording, or transcript of any
160	160	disciplinary hearing ultimately held in the matter. The file shall
161	161	not include privileged documents or internal me morandums that the
162	162	institution does not intend to introduce as evidence at any hearing
163	163	on the matter.
164	164	B. The code of student conduct at each public institution of
165	165	higher education shall include the foll owing disciplinary righ ts and
166	166	proceedings for a student enrolled at a public institution of higher
167	167	education who is accused of violating the nonacademic disciplinary
168	168	or conduct rules that carry a potential penalty of a suspension of
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195	195	ten (10) or more days or expulsion and a stude nt organization
196	196	officially recognized by a public institution of hi gher education
197	197	that is accused of a violation that is punishable by suspension or
198	198	removal of the student organization from the institution :
199	199	1. The right to be repres ented at the student 's or the student
200	200	organization's expense by an attorney or, if the stud ent or student
201	201	organization prefers, by a nonattorney advocate, who in either case
202	202	may fully participate during the disciplinary proceeding or other
203	203	proceeding adopted and used by the public institution of higher
204	204	education except as provided under subsection C of this section.
205	205	The right of the student or the student organization to be
206	206	represented, at the student 's or the student organization's expense,
207	207	by the student's or the student organ ization's choice of either an
208	208	attorney or a nonattorney advocate, also applies until the
209	209	conclusion of any campus appellate process ;
210	210	2. The express presumption of innocence and that the accused
211	211	student or the student organization ma y not be deemed guilty of the
212	212	violation until the accused student or the student organization
213	213	formally acknowledges responsibility or the conclusion of a hearing
214	214	in which the institution has established every element of the
215	215	alleged violation;
216	216	3. The right to a live hearing and the right to:
217	217	a. be present at a hearing,
218	218	b. make an opening and closing statement,
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245	245	c. present relevant evidence, and
246	246	d. cross-examine adverse witnesses through counsel or, at
247	247	the student or student organization 's sole discretion,
248	248	a nonattorney advocate. If the student or student
249	249	organization does not have counsel or a nonattorney
250	250	advocate to conduct the cross-examination, the
251	251	institution shall either appoint one to perform this
252	252	function or provide an alternative method for
253	253	conducting meaningful cross-examination;
254	254	4. Before the disciplinary proceeding is sch eduled, and at
255	255	least two (2) business days before a student or a studen t
256	256	organization may be questioned by a public institution of higher
257	257	education or by an agent of the instituti on of higher education
258	258	about allegations of violations, the university must advise the
259	259	student or student organization of their rights under this act in
260	260	writing;
261	261	5. Any student or student organization that is found to be in
262	262	violation of the institution's nonacademic or conduct rules shall be
263	263	afforded an opportunity to appeal the institution's initial decision
264	264	to an appellate entity that is an institutional employee or body
265	265	that did not make the initial decision. Such an appeal shall be
266	266	filed within ninety (90) days after receiving final notice of the
267	267	institution's decision. The institution may designate the appellate
268	268	entity as the final institutional authority on the matter. Nothing
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295	295	in this act shall preclude a court from granting a prevailing
296	296	plaintiff equitable relief;
297	297	6. Reasonable continuing access to the admin istrative file and
298	298	the ability to make copies of all e vidence or documents in the file
299	299	beginning at least seven (7) business days prior to any disciplinary
300	300	hearing, or sooner if otherwise specified under federal law, except
301	301	that individual portions of the administrative file shall be
302	302	redacted if disclosure of the evidence is required by law; and
303	303	7. The disciplinary proceedings are carr ied out free from
304	304	conflicts of interest by ensuring that the re is no commingling of
305	305	administrative or adjudicative roles. For the purposes of this
306	306	paragraph, an institution shall be considered to be commingling such
307	307	roles if any individual carries out more than one of the following
308	308	roles with respect to the procee ding:
309	309	a. advocate or counselor for a complaining or accused
310	310	student,
311	311	b. investigator,
312	312	c. institutional prosecutor,
313	313	d. adjudicator, or
314	314	e. appellate adjudicator.
315	315	C. A student shall not have the right under this act to be
316	316	represented by a licensed attorney or nonattorney advocate for any
317	317	allegation of academic dishonesty as defined by the public
318	318	institution of higher education.
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345	345	D. This act does not create a right of a stu dent or student
346	346	organization to be represented at public expense.
347	347	E. The code of student conduct at each publi c institution of
348	348	higher education shall in clude the right of the accuser in
349	349	disciplinary proceedings subject to subsection B of this section,
350	350	that arise from a complaint by a student against another student:
351	351	1. To be represented at his or her own expense by a licensed
352	352	attorney or, if the complaining student prefers, a nonattorney
353	353	advocate, who may ful ly participate during the disciplinary
354	354	proceeding or other proceeding adopted by the institution. The
355	355	right of the accuser to be repre sented, at the accuser's expense, by
356	356	the student's or the student org anization's choice of either an
357	357	attorney or a nonattorney advocate, also applies until the
358	358	conclusion of any campus appellate process ; and
359	359	2. To have reasonable continuing access to the administrative
360	360	file and the ability to make copies of all evidence or documents in
361	361	the file beginning at least seven (7) business days prior to any
362	362	disciplinary hearing, or sooner if otherwise specified under federal
363	363	law, except that individual portions of the administrative fil e
364	364	shall be redacted if disclosure of the evide nce is required by law.
365	365	F. Where required by federal law , the right to appeal shall be
366	366	extended to a student accuser. In these cases, the student accuser
367	367	and the accused student shall b e provided simultaneous notification
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394	394	of the institution's proceedings to appeal the result of the
395	395	disciplinary proceeding.
396	396	G. Nothing in this act shall be interpreted to impair an
397	397	institution's ability to take reasonable interim measures necessary
398	398	to ensure the physical safety of members of the campus community
399	399	during a timely investigation and adjudic ation of a student
400	400	disciplinary issue, including but not limited to the ability to make
401	401	adjustments in student housing arrangements, impose conditions of no
402	402	contact between the acc used student and the accuser, temporarily
403	403	suspend a student, or ban a studen t from campus. Such reasonable
404	404	interim measures shall require:
405	405	1. Within twenty-four (24) hours, written notice to the accused
406	406	student of the interim measures that explains the i nstitution's
407	407	reasons for enacting the interim measures;
408	408	2. Within three (3) business days of the written notice, unless
409	409	otherwise waived by the accused student, an interim measure hearing
410	410	to determine whether there is substantial evidence that the accused
411	411	student poses a risk to the physical safety of a member of the
412	412	campus community and that the interim meas ure is appropriate to
413	413	mitigate that risk; and
414	414	3. At the interim measure hearing, the accuser and the accused
415	415	student shall have the right to be repre sented by an attorney or
416	416	nonattorney advocate, who may fully participate in t he interim
417	417	measure hearing. An accused student's waiver of the right to an
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444	444	interim measure hearing shall not constitute an admission of guilt
445	445	or a waiver of any additional rights afforded under this act.
446	446	SECTION 4. NEW LAW A new se ction of law to be codified
447	447	in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3263 of Title 70, unless there
448	448	is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
449	449	A. Any student or student organization whose rights under this
450	450	act have been violated may bring an acti on in any state court of
451	451	competent jurisdiction or may bring an action under this act in
452	452	federal court.
453	453	B. In an action brought under this act, if the state court
454	454	finds a violation of this act, the court shall award the aggri eved
455	455	person or student organiz ation compensatory damages, reasonable
456	456	court costs, and attorney fees, including expert fees, monetary
457	457	damages of not less than the cost of tuition paid by the student or
458	458	on the student's behalf to the public institution of higher
459	459	education for the semester dur ing which the violation of the act
460	460	occurred, plus monetary damages of not less than the amount of any
461	461	scholarship funding lost as a result of the campu s discipline, and
462	462	any other relief in equity or law as deemed appropriate i ncluding,
463	463	but not limited to, a de novo rehearing at the public institution of
464	464	higher education, in accordance with this act.
465	465	SECTION 5. NEW LAW A new sectio n of law to be codified
466	466	in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3264 of Title 70, unless there
467	467	is created a duplicat ion in numbering, reads as fol lows:
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494	494	A person or student organization must bring suit for violation
495	495	of this act not later than one (1) year after the day the cause of
496	496	action accrues. For purposes of calculating the one-year limitation
497	497	period, the cause of acti on shall be deemed accrued on t he date that
498	498	the student or student organization receives final notice of
499	499	discipline from the public institution of higher education .
500	500	SECTION 6. This act shall become effective November 1, 2023.
501	501
502	502	59-1-7055 MJ 01/04/23

Oklahoma 2023 Regular Session

Oklahoma House Bill HB2073 Compare Versions