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STATE OF OKLAHOMA
1st Session of the 59th Legislature (2023)
SENATE BILL 687 By: Boren
AS INTRODUCED
An Act relating to landlord and tenant; amen ding 12
O.S. 2021, Section 1823, which relates to referral to
mediation; authorizing district court to refer
eviction cases to mediation; updating statutory
reference; prohibiting landlord recovery of rental
dwelling under certain cir cumstances; establishing
procedures for certain complaints; autho rizing
recovery of property in certain circumstances;
establishing liability f or certain violations;
requiring maintenance of list of certain code
violations by certain municipalities; specifying
information to be included on certain list; requiring
publication of list on web site; providing for
codification; and providing an effective date .
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 12 O.S. 2021, Sec tion 1823, is
amended to read as follo ws:
Section 1823. Any district court, by agreement of the parties,
may refer any civil case, including any domestic relations case, any
eviction case, or any portion thereof for medi ation. A referral to
mediation may be made at any time while a civil cas e is pending.
The order of referral to mediation s hall be entered on a standard
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form consistent with the form provided in subsection D of Section 5
1825 of this act title.
SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 137 of Title 41, unless there is
created a duplication in numb ering, reads as follows:
A. If a landlord retaliates against a tenant because the tenant
exercised the tenant ’s rights granted by law or because of the
tenant’s complaint to an appropriate agency as to ability of a
dwelling, and if the tenant is not in default as to t he payment of
rent, the landlord may not recover possession of a dwelling in any
action or proceeding, cause the tenant to quit involuntarily,
increase the rent, or decrease any services offered by the landlord
within one hundred and eighty (180) days of any of the circumstances
described in paragraphs 1 through 5 of this subsection . In each
instance, the one hundred and eight y (180) day period shall run from
the latest applicable date :
1. After the date upon which the tenant , in good faith, has
given notice of a suspected bed bug infestation, has made a
complaint, orally or in writing in either a physical or electr onic
format, to the landlord regardi ng tenantability, or has requested
orally or in writing the landlord make a repair to an item f or which
the landlord is responsible ;
2. After the date upon which the tenant , in good faith, has
filed a written complaint either physically or in an electronic
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format, or an oral complaint which is reg istered or otherwise
recorded in writing, with an appropriate agency, of which the
landlord has notice, for the purpose of obtaining correction of a
condition relating to tenantability;
3. After the date of an in spection or issuance of a citation
resulting from a complaint described in paragraph 2 of this
subsection of which the landlord did not have notice ;
4. After the filing of appropriate documents commencing a
judicial or arbitration proceeding involving the issue of
tenantability; or
5. After entry of judgment or the signing of an arbitration
award, if any, when in the judicial proceeding or arbitration th e
issue of tenantability is determined adversely to the landlord.
B. A tenant may not invoke the provisions of subsection A of
this section more than once in any twelve-month period.
C. Notwithstanding subsecti on A of this section, a landlord may
recover possession of a dwelling and perform any of the other acts
described in subsection A of this section within the period
prescribed therein, if the notice of termination, rent i ncrease, or
other act, and any pleading or statement of issues in an
arbitration, if any, states the ground upon which the landlord, in
good faith, seeks to recover possession, increase rent, or perform
any other acts described in subsection A of this section.
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D. Any landlord or agent of a landlord who v iolates the
provisions of this section shall be liable to the tenant in a civil
action for:
1. Actual damages sustain ed by the tenant;
2. Punitive damages in an amoun t not less than One Hundred
Dollars ($100.00) nor more than Two Thousand Dollars ($2,000.00) for
each retaliatory act where the land lord or landlord’s agent has been
guilty of fraud, oppression, or malice wi th respect to such act; and
3. Court costs and reasonable attorney fees.
SECTION 3. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 138 of Title 41, unless there is
created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
Any municipality with more than one hundred thousand (100,000)
residents according to the latest decennial census shall maintain a
list of code violations for rental properties within the
municipality limits. The list shall include the name of th e
property owner, the date of the code vi olation, the specific
municipal code violated, and any fine or penalty issued to the
property owner. The list shall be maintained on the municipality’s
website and made available to the public.
SECTION 4. This act shall become effective November 1, 2023.
59-1-1022 TEK 1/18/2023 12:39:20 PM