An Act
ENROLLED HOUSE
BILL NO. 2649 By: Steagall of the House
and
Gollihare of the Senate
An Act relating to community sentencing; amending 22
O.S. 2021, Sections 988.2, as amended by Secti on 1,
Chapter 55, O.S.L. 2022 , 988.3, 988.6, 988. 7 and
988.18 (22 O.S. Supp. 2022, Section 988.2), which
relate to the Oklahoma Community Sentencing Act;
changing scope of certain definition; expanding
purpose of the Oklahoma Community Sentencing Act;
clarifying duties of the community sentencing
planning council; changing type of information to be
collected in each jurisdiction; expanding pool of
offenders that may be eligible for community
punishment; clarifying funding requirement for
certain disciplinary sanctions; amending 57 O.S.
2021, Section 38.1, which relates to community
sentencing; modifying reference to eligible
offenders; and providing an effective date .
SUBJECT: Community sentencing
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 22 O.S. 2021, Section 988.2, as
amended by Section 1, Chapter 55, O.S.L. 2022 (22 O.S. Supp. 2022 ,
Section 988.2), is amended to read as follows:
Section 988.2 A. For purposes of the Oklahoma Community
Sentencing Act:
1. "Local community sentencing system " means the use of public
and private entities to deliver services to the sentencing court for ENR. H. B. NO. 2649 Page 2
punishment of eligible felony offenders under the authority of a
community sentence;
2. "Community sentence" or "community punishment" means a
punishment imposed b y the court as a condition of a deferred or
suspended sentence for an eligible offender;
3. "Continuum of sanctions" means a variety of coercive
measures ranked by degrees of public safety, punitive effect, and
cost benefit which are available to the sen tencing judge as
punishment for criminal con duct;
4. "Community sentencing system planning c ouncil" or "planning
council" means a group of citizens and elected officials sp ecified
by law or appointed by the Chief Judge of the Judicial District
which plans the local community sentencing system and w ith the
assistance of the Community Sentencing Di vision of the Department of
Corrections locates treatment providers and resource s to support the
local community sentencing sys tem;
5. "Incentive" means a court-ordered reduction in the terms or
conditions of a community sentence which is given for except ional
performance or progress by t he offender;
6. "Disciplinary sanction" means a court-ordered punishment in
response to a technical or noncompliance violatio n of a community
sentence which increases in in tensity or duration with each
successive violation;
7. "Division" means the Community Sentencing Division within
the Department of Corrections which is the state administratio n
agency for the Oklahoma Commun ity Sentencing Act, the statewide
community sentencing system, and all local community sentencing
systems;
8. "Eligible offender" means an offender who has been convicted
of or who has entered a plea other than not guilty to a crime and
who upon completion of a risk and needs assessment has been found to
be in a range other than the low range and wh o is not otherwise
prohibited by law, or is a person who has had an assessment
authorized by Section 3-704 of Title 43A of the Oklahoma Statutes
and the assessment recommends community sentencing . Provided,
however, that no person who has been convicted o f or who has entered
a plea other than not guilty to an offense enumerated in paragraph 2
of Section 571 of Title 57 of the Oklahoma Statutes, as an exception ENR. H. B. NO. 2649 Page 3
to the definition of "nonviolent offense", shall be eligible for a
community sentence or communit y punishment unless the district
attorney or an assistant district attorney for the district in which
the offender's conviction was obtained consents thereto . The
district attorney may consent to eligibility for an offender who has
a mental illness or a d evelopmental disability or a co-occurring
mental illness and substance abuse disorder and who scores in the
low range on the risk and needs assessment authoriz ed by Section 3-
704 of Title 43A of the Oklahoma Statutes or another assessment
instrument if the offender is not otherwise prohibited by law. Any
consent by a district attorney shall be made a part of the record of
the case; and
9. "Statewide community sentencing system" means a network of
all counties through their respective local community sente ncing
systems serving the state judicial system and offering support
services to each other through reciprocal and interlocal agreements
and interagency coope ration.
B. For the purposes of the Oklahoma Commu nity Sentencing Act,
if a judicial district does not have a Chief Judge or if a judicial
district has more than one Chief Judge, the duties of the Chief
Judge provided for in the Oklahoma Community Sentenc ing Act shall be
performed by the Presiding Judge o f the Judicial Administrative
District.
SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 22 O.S. 2021, Section 988.3, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 988.3 The purposes of the Oklahoma Community Sente ncing
Act are to:
1. Protect the public;
2. Establish a statewide community sentencing system;
3. Adequately supervise felony offenders punished un der a
court-ordered community sentence;
4. Provide a series of sanctions to the court for eligible
felony offenders sentenced to a community sentence with in the
community sentencing system;
5. Increase the availability of punishment and treatment
programs to eligible felony offenders; ENR. H. B. NO. 2649 Page 4
6. Improve the criminal justice system within this state
through public/private partnerships, reciprocal and interlocal
governmental agreements, and interagency cooperatio n and
collaboration; and
7. Operate effectively wit hin the allocation of state and local
resources for the criminal justice system.
SECTION 3. AMENDATORY 22 O.S. 2021, Section 98 8.6, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 988.6 A. Each community sentencing planning council
shall:
1. Plan the local community s entencing system within allocated
funds and other available reso urces according to the provisions of
the law and with the assistance of the Community Sentencing Division
of the Department of Corrections;
2. Promulgate rules for functioning of the planning council
which are consistent with the provisions of this act;
3. Prepare a detailed plan within the provisions of law and
rule each fiscal year with an accompanying budge t for the local
community sentencing system;
4. Identify local resources by type, c ost and location which
are available to serve the court for e ligible felony offenders
sentenced to the community;
5. Identify qualified service providers to deliver servic es to
the court for eligible felony offenders sentenced to the community;
6. Assist in monitoring the sentencing practices of the court
to ensure the local community sentencing system functions within th e
allocation of resources and according to the provi sions of this act;
7. Assist in preparing informati on necessary for qualified
services to support the local community sentencing system plan as
provided in Section 9 88.7 of this title;
8. Identify and advocate the use of interlocal governmental
agreements for qualified services where services are not avai lable ENR. H. B. NO. 2649 Page 5
within the jurisdiction or where services may be delivered in a more
cost-effective manner by another jurisd iction;
9. Form multicounty systems a s may be necessary to conserve
state or local resour ces or to implement an appropriate range of
services to the court;
10. Review and recommend services for cost -effectiveness and
performance-based evaluation;
11. Identify various sources of funding and resources for the
local community sentencing system including a variety of free
services available to th e court;
12. Assist in developi ng public/private partnerships in the
local jurisdiction, reciprocal agreements, a nd interagency
cooperation and collabo ration to provide appropriate services and
support to the system; and
13. Assist in promoting local inv olvement and support for the
provisions of the Oklahoma Community Sentencing Act.
B. Each community sentencing pl anning council may employ a
local director and other personnel to perform the duties of th e
local community sentencing system, subject to the availability of
funds. Such council may contract with a county to provide benefits
and payroll services to such p ersonnel.
SECTION 4. AMENDATORY 22 O.S. 2021, Section 988.7, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 988.7 A. A detailed plan for each local co mmunity
sentencing system seeking state funds shall b e submitted each fiscal
year to the Community Sentencing Division within t he Department of
Corrections pursuant to the rule s promulgated for such purpose. The
designated judge of the planning council sh all review the range of
services proposed in the plan and declare in writing whether t he
proposed services meet the needs of th e court for purposes of
sentencing pursuant to th e authority of the Oklahoma Community
Sentencing Act. The judge shall forward t he plan to the Division
for state review and appropri ate funding. A plan that conform s with
the purposes and goals of the Oklahoma Community Sentencing Act
shall not be modified or disapproved except when the plan requires
more funding than is available t o the local system. Each local ENR. H. B. NO. 2649 Page 6
community sentencing system plan shall include, but no t be limited
to, the following goals:
1. Identification of existing resources, including cash,
professional services, in -kind resources, prop erty, or other sources
of resources;
2. Identification of additional resources needed, identified by
type and amount;
3. Projected number of offenders to be served by each provider
and the projected tot al number of offenders to be served by the
local system;
4. Types and priority groups of offenders to be served for
purposes of budgeting and targeting specific use of selected service
providers;
5. Identification of sentencing practices used for discipl inary
sanctions for noncriminal conduct against part icipating offenders
and applicable costs;
6. Identification of local polic y statements;
7. Methods for allocatin g resources to support the services
included in the plan;
8. Identification and evaluatio n of local record keeping and
needs for audits or re views;
9. Identification of any special administrative structure of
the local system and list of specific service providers
participating in the system, i ncluding detailed qualifications of
staff and program administrators; and
10. Description and evalua tion of the extent of commun ity
participation and support for the local system.
B. A community sentencing system shall be operational when the
plan is accepted by the Community Sentencing Division or is
receiving funding. The Division, upon receipt of a proposed local
system plan for conformance with the purpose and goals of the
Oklahoma Community Sentencing Act , shall have not more than forty -
five (45) days to evaluate the plan and to notify the plannin g
council of any recommended modification. The Division shall notify ENR. H. B. NO. 2649 Page 7
the chair of each local community sentencing system of its allocated
budget by June 15. Based o n the funding allocation, the local
community sentencing system shall submit its budget to the Division
prior to finalizing provider service a greements for the fiscal yea r.
The Division shall not restrict by rul e or practice the plan of any
local system or determine what constitutes treatment or necessary
services if the treatment or services comply with the purposes and
goals of the Oklahoma C ommunity Sentencing Act, unl ess there is a
demonstrated deficiency or poor program evaluation.
C. A local administrator as provided in Section 988.13 of this
title shall assist the local planning council in gathering and
keeping accurate information about the jurisdiction to support the
planning process. For the previous two (2) years, the information
pertaining to the jurisdiction may include, but not be limited to:
1. The number and rate of arrests, n umber of felony
convictions, admissions to probation , number of offenders senten ced
to post-imprisonment supervision, nu mber of offenders sentenced to
county jail, average length of sentence served in county jail,
number of offenders sentenced to the custo dy of the Department of
Corrections, and average len gth of sentence served in th e custody of
the Department of Correctio ns;
2. Current jail capacity, and jail popula tion data by offender -
type including, but not limited to, misdemeanor, felony, trusty,
post-trial detainee, pretrial detainee, disciplinary sa nction or
juvenile;
3. A listing of services and programs availab le in the
community, including costs, space avai lability, the number of
offenders participating, the average length of participation and
performance-based data;
4. Range of community punish ments previously used by the courts
for offenders within the juri sdiction, including methods and use of
disciplinary sanctions for noncriminal behavior of offenders
sentenced to community punishment and u se of incentives;
5. A listing of educational, voca tional-technical, health,
mental health, substance abuse treatme nt, medical, and social
services available to offe nders or to be made available within a
twelve-month period;
ENR. H. B. NO. 2649 Page 8
6. Restrictive residential fa cilities or other restrictive
housing options availa ble or to be made available within a twelve-
month period; and
7. Approved local system plans and budgets.
SECTION 5. AMENDATORY 22 O.S. 2021, Section 988.18, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 988.18 A. On and after March 1 , 2000, for each felony
offender considered for any communit y punishment pursuant to the
Oklahoma Community Senten cing Act, the judge shall, prior to
sentencing, order an assessment and evaluation of the defendant as
required by law. The judge may determi ne that no additional
assessment is required if one was comp leted within the last six (6)
months.
B. The risk and needs assessment and evaluation instrume nt
designed to predict risk to recidivate approve d by the Department of
Corrections, shall be require d to determine eligibility for a ny
offender sentenced pursu ant to the Oklahoma Community Sentencing
Act. The completed assessment accompanied by a written supervision
plan shall be presented to and revie wed by the court prior to
determining any punishment for the offense. The purpose o f the
assessment shall be t o identify the extent of the deficiencies and
pro-social needs of the defendant, the potential r isk to commit
additional offenses that threaten p ublic safety, and the
appropriateness of various com munity punishments.
C. Upon order of the court, the defen dant shall be required to
submit to the risk and needs a ssessment which shall be administered
and scored by an appropriately trained person pursua nt to a service
agreement with the local community s entencing system. Any defendant
lacking sufficient skills to comprehend or otherwise participate in
the assessment and evaluation shall have appropriate a ssistance. If
it is determined that the offender cannot be adequately evaluated
using the risk and n eeds assessment, the offender sh all be deemed
ineligible for any community services pursuant to the Oklahoma
Community Sentencing Act, and shall be sentenc ed as prescribed by
law for the offense.
D. The willful failure or refusal of the defendant to be
assessed and evaluated by using th e risk and needs assessme nt shall
preclude the defendant from eligibility for any community
punishment. ENR. H. B. NO. 2649 Page 9
E. The completed risk and needs assessment, shall include a
written supervision plan and identify an appropriate commun ity
punishment, if any, when the offender is considered eligible for
community punishments based upon the complete d risk/need score from
the risk and needs assessment of the offender. Unless otherwise
prohibited by law, only eligible offenders, as defined in Section
988.2 of this title, shall be eligible for a ny state-funded
community punishments.
F. The court is not required to sentence any offender to a
community punishment regardless of an eligible sc ore on the risk and
needs assessment. Any felony offender scoring in the low risk/n eed
levels on the risk and needs assessment may be sentenced to a
suspended sentence with minimal, if any, conditions of th e sentence
to be paid by the offender. If the ri sk and needs assessment has
been conducted, the eval uation report shall accompany th e judgment
and sentence, provided the risk and needs assessment indicates the
offender is in need of this level of supervis ion and treatment.
SECTION 6. AMENDATORY 57 O.S. 2021, Section 38.1, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 38.1 In jurisdictions where the local community
sentencing system is receiving s tate funds, the state shall provide
funding for county jail incarceration for disciplinary sanctions for
eligible felony offenders pursuant to the provisions of the Oklahoma
Community Sentencing Act at a rate of Twenty-four Dollars ($24.00)
per day per person imprisoned for a maximum term as prov ided by law.
SECTION 7. This act shall become effective November 1, 2023.
ENR. H. B. NO. 2649 Page 10
Passed the House of Representatives the 8th day of March, 2023.
Presiding Officer of the House
of Representatives
Passed the Senate the 19th day of April, 2023.
Presiding Officer of the Senate
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
Received by the Office of the Governor this ____________________
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________
Approved by the Governor of the State of Oklahoma this _____ ____
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
___________________________ ______
Governor of the State of Oklahoma
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE
Received by the Office of the Secretary of State this __________
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________