Req. No. 9247 Page 1 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
STATE OF OKLAHOMA
2nd Session of the 59th Legislature (202 4)
HOUSE BILL 3123 By: Williams
AS INTRODUCED
An Act relating to student discipline; amending 70
O.S. 2021, Sections 24-100.3 and 24-100.4, as amended
by Section 6, Chapter 15, O.S. L. 2023 (70 O.S. Supp.
2023, Section 24-100.4), which relate to the School
Safety and Bullying Prevention Act ; adding defined
terms; deleting student disciplinary limitations on
State Board of Education ; allowing teacher or bus
driver to exclude students for certain conduct;
requiring excluded student to be supervised by the
principal or designee ; providing for discip linary
action; requiring certain notice of disciplinary
action; establishing process for student to be
readmitted to the classroom or bus; aut horizing
transfer of student to alternative setting; directing
school board of education to increase attention and
resources to certain programs; providing additional
disciplinary measures for older students; prescribing
process for reporting certain student disciplinary
actions in online student information system;
mandating Board establish minimum requirements for
school discipline policies; creating a n online
reporting portal in the student information system;
prohibiting establishment of a s tatewide uniform
discipline policy; providing an effective date; and
declaring an emergency.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 24 -100.3, is
amended to read as follows :
Req. No. 9247 Page 2 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
Section 24-100.3 A. As used in the School Safety and Bull ying
Prevention Act:
1. "At school" means on school grounds, in school vehicles, at
school-sponsored activities, or at school -sanctioned events;
2. "Bullying" means any pattern of harassment, i ntimidation,
threatening behavior, physical acts, verbal or e lectronic
communication directed toward a student or group of students that
results in or is reasonabl y perceived as being done with the intent
to cause negative educational or physical results f or the targeted
individual or group and is communicated in su ch a way as to disrupt
or interfere with the school 's educational mission or the education
of any student;
2. "At school" means on school grounds, in school vehicles, at
school-sponsored activities, or at school-sanctioned events;
3. "Bus" means any vehicle used to transport students to and
from school or school district events , whether intramural or
extramural;
4. "Bus driver" means any person employed on a full-time or
part-time basis by the school district to operate a bus;
5. "Disorderly conduct" means any pattern of behavior or
isolated action committed to disrupt the normal proceedings or
processes at school or to limit the ability of a teacher to provide
instruction or other school servi ces to public school stud ents;
Req. No. 9247 Page 3 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
6. "Disruptive behavior" means a series of actions considered
to be disorderly conduct, threatening behavior, or interference in
the teaching or learning processes of others ;
7. "Electronic communication " means the communication of any
written, verbal, pictorial information or video content by means of
an electronic device, including, but not limited to, a telephone, a
mobile or cellular telephone or other wireless telecommunication
device, or a computer;
8. "Learning process" means the actions or ste ps required for
an individual to acquire, comprehend, and commit to memory s pecific
knowledge being taugh t by a teacher in the classroom;
9. "Orderly educational process " means a teacher's lesson plan
for the day, class period, or specified time for parti cular
instruction;
10. "Teaching process" means the actions or steps required for a
teacher to perform in order for students to acquire, comprehend, and
commit to memory specific knowledge; and
4. 11. "Threatening behavior " means any pattern of behavior or
isolated action, whether or not it is directed at another person,
that a reasonable person would beli eve indicates potential for
future harm to students, school personnel, or school property.
B. Nothing in this act shall be construed to impose a speci fic
liability on any school district.
Req. No. 9247 Page 4 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Secti on 24-100.4, as
amended by Section 6, Chapter 15, O.S.L. 2023 (70 O.S. Supp. 2023,
Section 24-100.4), is amended to read as follows:
Section 24-100.4 A. Each school district board of education
shall adopt a policy fo r the discipline of all children attending
public school in that district, and for the investigation of
reported incidents of bullying. The policy shall provide options
for the discipline of the students and shall define standards of
conduct to which stud ents are expected to conform. The policy
shall:
1. Specifically address bullying by students at school and by
electronic communication, if the communication is specifically
directed at students or school personnel and concerns bullying at
school;
2. Contain a procedure for reporting an act of bullying to a
school official or law enforcement agency, including a provision
that permits a person to report an act anonymously. No formal
disciplinary action shall be taken solely on the basis of an
anonymous report;
3. Contain a requirement that any school employee that has
reliable information that would lead a reasonable person to suspect
that a person is a target of bullying shall immediately report it to
the principal or a designee of the principal;
Req. No. 9247 Page 5 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
4. Contain a statement of how the policy is to be publicized
including a requirement that:
a. an annual written notice of the policy be provided to
parents, guardians, staff, volunteers and students,
with age-appropriate language for students,
b. notice of the policy be posted at various locations
within each school site, including but not limited to
cafeterias, school bulletin boards, and administration
offices,
c. the policy be posted on the Internet website for the
school district and each school site that has an
Internet website, and
d. the policy be included in all student and employee
handbooks;
5. Require that appropriate school district personnel involved
in investigating reports of bullying make a determination regarding
whether the conduct is actually o ccurring;
6. Contain a procedure for providing timely notification to the
parents or guardians of a victim of documented and verified bullying
and to the parents or guardians of the perpetrator of the documented
and verified bullying;
7. Identify by job title the school official responsible for
enforcing the policy;
Req. No. 9247 Page 6 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
8. Contain procedures for reporting to law enforcement all
documented and verified acts of bullying which may constitute
criminal activity or reasonably have the potential to endanger
school safety;
9. Require training for administrators and school employees as
developed and provided by the State Department of Education in
preventing, identifying, responding to and reporting incidents of
bullying. The training shall be completed the f irst year an
administrator or school employee is employed by a school district,
and then once every fifth academic year;
10. Provide for an educational program as designed and
developed by the State Depart ment of Education and in consultation
with the Office of Juvenile Affairs for students a nd parents in
preventing, identifying, responding to and reporting incidents of
bullying;
11. Establish a procedure for referral of a person who commits
an act of bullying to a delinquency prevention and diversion pro gram
administered by the Office of Juv enile Affairs;
12. Address prevention by providing:
a. consequences and remedial action for a person who
commits an act of bullying,
b. consequences and remedial actio n for a student found
to have falsely accused a nother as a means of
retaliation, reprisa l or as a means of bullying, and
Req. No. 9247 Page 7 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
c. a strategy for providing counseling or referral to
appropriate services, including guidance, academic
intervention, and other protec tion for students, both
targets and perpetrato rs, and family members affected
by bullying, as necessary;
13. Establish a procedure for:
a. the investigation, determination and documentation of
all incidents of bullying reported to school
officials,
b. identifying the principal or a designee of the
principal as the person responsible for inve stigating
incidents of bullying,
c. reporting the number of incidents of bullying, and
d. determining the severity of the incidents and their
potential to result in fut ure violence;
14. Establish a procedure whereby, upon completing an
investigation of bullying, a school may recommend that available
community mental health care, substance ab use or other counseling
options be provided to the student, if appropriate; and
15. Establish a procedure whereby a sc hool may request the
disclosure of any informatio n concerning students who have received
mental health, substance abuse, or other care pu rsuant to paragraph
14 of this subsection that indicates an explicit threat to t he
safety of students or school personn el, provided the disclosure of
Req. No. 9247 Page 8 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
the information does not violate the requirements and provisions of
the Family Educational Rights and Priv acy Act of 1974, the Health
Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 , Section 2503
of Title 12 of the Oklah oma Statutes, Section 1376 of Title 59 of
the Oklahoma Statutes, or any other state or federal laws regarding
the disclosure of confident ial information.
B. In developing the policy, the district board of education
shall make an effort to involve the tea chers, parents,
administrators, school staff, scho ol volunteers, community
representatives, local law enforcement agencies and students . The
students, teachers, and parents or guardian of every child residing
within a school district shall be notified by the district board of
education of its adoption of the policy and shall receive a copy
upon request. The school district policy shall be implemented in a
manner that is ongoing throughout the school year and is integr ated
with other violence prevention ef forts.
C. The teacher of a child attending a publ ic school shall have
the same right as a parent or guardian to control and discipline
such child according to district policies during the time the child
is in attendance or in transit to or from the schoo l or any other
school function authorized by the sc hool district or classroom
presided over by the teacher.
D. Except concerning students on individualized education plans
(IEP) pursuant to the Individuals with Disabil ities Education Act
Req. No. 9247 Page 9 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
(IDEA), P.L. No. 101-476, the State Board of Education shall not
have authority to prescribe student disciplinary policies for school
districts or to proscr ibe corporal punishment in the public schools.
The State Board of Education sha ll not have authority to require
school districts to file student disciplinary action re ports more
often than once each year and shall not use disciplinary action
reports in determining a school district's or school site's
eligibility for program assistanc e including competitive grants
1. A teacher or bus driver may exclude from his or her
classroom or school bus any student who:
a. is guilty of disorderly conduct ,
b. in any manner interferes with an orderly educational
process,
c. behaves in a manner that obstructs the teaching or
learning process of others in the classroom or on the
bus,
d. threatens, abuses, or otherwise intimidates or
attempts to intimidate a school employee or a student ,
e. willfully disobeys a school employee, or
f. uses abusive or profane language directed at a school
employee.
2. Any student excluded pursuant to paragraph 1 of this
subsection shall be placed under the supervision of the principal of
the school or a designee. The excluded student may be admitted to
Req. No. 9247 Page 10 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
the classroom or school bus only when the principal, or a designee,
provides written certification to the teacher or bus driver that the
student may be readmitted and specifies the type of disciplinary
action, if any, that was taken. If the principal finds that
disciplinary action is warranted, he or she shall provide written
and, if possible, telephonic n otice of the action to the parent,
guardian, or custodian of the student. When a student is excluded
from a classroom or a school bus twice in one semester, and after
exhausting all reasonable methods of classroom discipline provided
in the school discipline policy, the student may be readmitte d to
the classroom or the school bus only after the principal and teacher
or bus driver, and, if possible, the par ent, guardian, or custodian
of the student have held a conference to discuss the disruptive
behavior patterns of the student, and the teacher or bus driver and
the principal agree on a course of discipline for the student and
inform the parent, guardian, or custodian of the course of action.
Thereafter, if the student's disruptive behavior persists, upon the
request of the teacher or bus driver, the principal may, to the
extent feasible, transfer the student to anothe r setting, including
but not limited to, isolating students or placing them in
alternative education programs or academies established pursuant to
Section 1210.568 of this title. The district board of education
shall increase attention and resources to its alternative education
program or its cooperative alternative education program to expand
Req. No. 9247 Page 11 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
its capacity for alternative placements, subject to fundi ng, to
correct the behaviors of students so they can return to a regular
classroom without engaging in further disruptive beha vior.
3. When a teacher in grades six through twelve, excluding an
elementary school teacher, determines that the behavior of the
student is disorderly conduct, i s interfering with an orderly
educational process, or obstructs the teaching or learning proc ess
of others in the classroom:
a. the student may be excluded from the teacher's
classroom and, if excluded, shall not re-enter the
teacher's classroom for at lea st the remainder of the
instructional day, and
b. if the student is excluded pursuant to subp aragraph a
of this paragraph:
(1) the principal shall communicate wi th the teacher
within twenty-four (24) hours of the student
being excluded from the teacher 's classroom about
the exclusion,
(2) the teacher shall have twenty-four (24) hours to
create an electronic report of the student being
excluded and record the report in a web-based
platform in the student information system
created by paragraph 4 of subsection G of this
Req. No. 9247 Page 12 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
section, without any consequence to the teacher,
and
(3) if the student is remove d from a classroom a
total of three times in one month for one or more
of the behaviors listed in paragraph 1 of this
subsection, the student shall receive , as
determined by the principal, an in-school
suspension, an out-of-school suspension, or may
be considered for placement in an alternati ve
education program or a cooperative education
program if available.
E. The board of education of each school district i n this state
shall have the option of adopting a dress code for s tudents enrolled
in the school district. The board of education of a school district
shall also have the o ption of adopting a dress code whic h includes
school uniforms.
F. The board of education of each school district in this state
shall have the option of adopting a procedure that requires students
to perform campus-site service for violating the district 's policy.
G. The State Board of E ducation shall:
1. Promulgate rules for periodical ly monitoring school
districts for compliance with this section, establishing minimum
requirements for school district disciplin e policies, and providing
sanctions for noncompliance with this section;
Req. No. 9247 Page 13 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
2. Establish and maintain a central repository for the
collection of information regarding documented and verified
incidents of bullying; and
3. Publish a report annually on the State Department of
Education website regar ding the number of documented and verified
incidents of bullying in the public s chools in the state; and
4. Create a web-based platform in the student information
system for teachers to file reports of student incidents described
in division (2) of subparagraph b of paragraph 3 of subsection D of
this section.
H. Rules promulgated in accordance with this section shall not
establish a uniform discipline policy fo r the entire state.
SECTION 3. This act shall become effective July 1, 2024.
SECTION 4. It being immediately necessary for the preservation
of the public peace, health or safety, an emergency is hereby
declared to exist, b y reason whereof this act shall take effect and
be in full force from and after its passage and approval.
59-2-9247 EK 01/08/24