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STATE OF OKLAHOMA
2nd Session of the 59th Legislature (2024)
HOUSE BILL 3779 By: Duel
AS INTRODUCED
An Act relating to the Oklahoma Open Records Act;
amending 51 O.S. 2021 , Sections 24A.2, 24A.3, as last
amended by Section 11, Chapter 271, O.S.L. 2023,
24A.5, as amended by Section 5, Chapter 332, O.S.L.
2023, and 24A.17, (51 O.S. Supp. 2023, Section s 24A.3
and 24A.5), which relate to public records;
clarifying the role of Open Records Act in discovery
processes; reducing the list of things defined as
non-records; increasing the types of confidential
records; proscribing a deadline to notify of intent
to file suit for denied record access; and providing
an effective date.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEO PLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 51 O.S. 2021, Section 24A.2, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 24A.2 As the Oklahoma Constitution recognizes and
guarantees, all political power is inherent in the people. Thus, it
is the public policy of the State of Oklahoma that the people are
vested with the inherent right t o know and be fully informed about
their government. The Oklahoma Open Records Act shall not create,
directly or indirectly, any rights of privacy o r any remedies for
violation of any rights of privacy; nor shall the Oklahoma Open
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Records Act, except as sp ecifically set forth in the Oklahoma Open
Records Act, establish any procedures for protecting any pers on from
release of information contained in p ublic records. The purpose of
this act is to ensure and facilitate the public 's right of access to
and review of government records so they may efficiently and
intelligently exercise their inherent political po wer. The privacy
interests of individuals ar e adequately protected in the specific
exceptions to the Oklahoma Open Records Act or in the statutes which
authorize, create or require the records. Except where specific
state or federal statutes create a con fidential privilege, persons
who submit information to public bodies have no right to keep this
information from public access nor reasonable expectation that this
information will be kept from public access; provided, the person,
agency or political subdi vision shall at all times bear the burden
of establishing such records are protected by such a confidential
privilege. Except as may be required by other statutes, public
bodies do not need to follow any procedures for providing access to
public records except those specifically required by the Oklah oma
Open Records Act. The Oklahoma Open Records Act shall not be used
as a substitute for discovery in any civil, crimi nal, or
administrative action.
SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 51 O.S. 2021, Section 24A.3, as
last amended by Section 1 1, Chapter 271, O.S.L. 2023 (51 O.S. Supp.
2023, Section 24A.3), is amended to read as follows :
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Section 24A.3 As used in the Oklah oma Open Records Act:
1. "Record" means all documents including, but not limited to,
any book, paper, photograph, microfilm, data files created by or
used with computer software, computer tap e, disk, record, sound
recording, film recording, video record o r other material regardless
of physical form or characteristic, created by, received by, under
the authority of, or coming in to the custody, control o r possession
of public officials, public b odies or their representatives in
connection with the transactio n of public business, the expenditure
of public funds or the administering of public property . Record
does not mean:
a. computer software, or
b. nongovernment personal effects,;
c. unless public disclosure is required by other laws or
regulations, vehicle movement records of the Oklahoma
Transportation Authority obtained in connection with
the Authority's electronic toll collec tion system,
d. personal financial information, credit reports or
other financial data obtained by or submitted to a
public body for the purpose of evaluating credit
worthiness, obtaining a license, permit or for the
purpose of becoming qualified to contra ct with a
public body,
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e. any digital audio/video recordings of the toll
collection and safeguarding activities of the Oklahoma
Transportation Authority,
f. any personal information provided by a guest at any
facility owned or operated by the Oklahoma Tour ism and
Recreation Department to obtain any service at the
facility or by a purchaser of a product sold by or
through the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation
Department,
g. a Department of Defense Form 214 (DD Form 214) filed
with a county clerk including any DD Form 214 filed
before July 1, 2002,
h. except as provided for in Section 2-110 of Title 47 of
the Oklahoma Statutes :
(1) any record in connection with a Motor Ve hicle
Report issued by the Department of Public Safety,
as prescribed in Section 6 -117 of Title 47 of the
Oklahoma Statutes, or
(2) personal information within driver records, as
defined by the Driver's Privacy Protection A ct,
18 United States Code, Sectio ns 2721 through
2725, which are stored and maintained by the
Department of Public Safety,
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i. any portion of any document or information provided to
an agency or entity of the state or a political
subdivision to obtain li censure under the laws of this
state or a political subdivision that contains an
applicant's personal address, personal phone nu mber,
personal electronic mail address or other contact
information. Provided, however, lists of persons
licensed, the existenc e of a license of a person, or a
business or commercial address, or other business or
commercial information disclosable under s tate law
submitted with an application for licensure shall be
public record, or
j. an investigative file obtained during an inv estigation
conducted by the State Department of Health under this
act;
2. "Public body" shall include, but not be limited to, an y
office, department, board, bureau, commission, agency, trusteesh ip,
authority, council, committee, trust or any entity creat ed by a
trust, county, city, village, town, township, district, school
district, fair board, cour t, executive office, advisory gro up, task
force, study group or any subdivision thereof, supported in whole or
in part by public funds or entrusted with the ex penditure of public
funds or administering or operating public property, and all
committees, or subcommittees thereof . Except for the records
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required by Section 24A.4 of this title, public body does not mean
judges, justices, the Council on Judicial Complaints, the
Legislature or legislators. Public body shall not include an
organization that is exempt from federal inc ome tax under Section
501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amend ed, and
whose sole beneficiary is a college or university, or an affiliated
entity of the college or university, that is a member of The
Oklahoma State System of Higher Education . Such organization shall
not receive direct ap propriations from the Oklahoma Legislature.
The following persons shall not be eligible to serve as a voting
member of the governing board of the organization:
a. a member, officer, or employee of the Oklaho ma State
Regents for Higher Education,
b. a member of the board of regents or other governing
board of the college or university that is the sole
beneficiary of the organization, or
c. an officer or employee of the college or university
that is the sole beneficiary of the organization;
3. "Public office" means the physical location where public
bodies conduct business or keep reco rds;
4. "Public official" means any official or employee of any
public body as defined herein; and
5. "Law enforcement agency " means any public body charged with
enforcing state or local criminal laws and initiating criminal
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prosecutions including, but n ot limited to, police departments,
county sheriffs, the Department of Public Sa fety, the Oklahoma State
Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control, the Alcoholic
Beverage Laws Enforcement Commission, a nd the Oklahoma State Bureau
of Investigation.
SECTION 3. AMENDATORY 51 O.S. 2021, Section 24A.5, as
amended by Section 5, Chapter 332, O.S.L. 2023 (51 O.S. Supp. 2 023,
Section 24A.5), is amended to r ead as follows:
Section 24A.5 All records of public bodies and public officials
shall be open to any person for inspection, copying, o r mechanical
reproduction during regular business hours; provid ed:
1. The Oklahoma Open Records Act, Sections 24A.1 through 24A.30
of this title, does not apply to records specifically required by
law to be kept confidential including:
a. records protected by a state evidentiary privilege
such as the attorney -client privilege, the work
product immunity from discovery and the identity of
informer privileges,
b. records of what transpired during meetings of a public
body lawfully closed to the public such as executive
sessions authorized under the Oklahoma Open Meeti ng
Act,
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c. personal information within driver records as defined
by the Driver's Privacy Protection Act, 18 United
States Code, Sections 2721 through 2725,
d. information in the files of the Board of Medicolegal
Investigations obtained pursuant to Sectio ns 940 and
941 of Title 63 of the Oklahoma Statutes that may be
hearsay, preliminary unsubstantiated investigation-
related findings, or confidential medical information,
e. any test forms, question banks and answer keys
developed for state licensure exami nations, but
specifically excluding test preparation materials or
study guides, or
f. last names, addresses, social security numbers or tax
identification numbers, and proof of identification
submitted to the Oklahoma Lottery Commission by
persons claiming a lottery prize;
g. unless public disclosure is required by oth er laws or
regulations, vehicle movement records of the Oklahoma
Transportation Authority obtained in connection with
the Authority's electronic toll collection system,
h. personal financial informat ion, credit reports, or
other financial data obtained by or submitted to a
public body for the purpose of evaluating credit
worthiness, obtaining a license, permit , or for the
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purpose of becoming qualified to contract with a
public body,
i. any digital audio/video recordings of the toll
collection and safeguardi ng activities of the Oklah oma
Transportation Authority,
j. any personal information provided by a guest at any
facility owned or operated by the Oklahoma Tourism and
Recreation Department to obtain any service at the
facility or by a purchaser of a product sold by or
through the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation
Department,
k. a Department of Defense Form 214 (DD Form 214) filed
with a county clerk including any DD Form 214 filed
before July 1, 2002,
l. except as provided for in Section 2-110 of Title 47 of
the Oklahoma Statutes:
(1) any record in connection with a Motor Vehicle Report
issued by the Department of Public Safety, as
prescribed in Section 6-117 of Title 47 of the
Oklahoma Statutes, or
(2) personal information within driver records, as defined
by the Driver's Privacy Protection Act, 18 United
States Code, Sections 2721 through 2725, which are
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stored and maintained by the Department of Public
Safety,
m. any portion of any document or informatio n provided to
an agency or entity of the state or a poli tical
subdivision to obtain licensure under the laws of this
state or a political subdivision that contains an
applicant's personal address, personal phone number,
personal electronic mail address , any government-
issued identification numbers, or other contact
information; provided, however, lists of persons
licensed, the existence of a license of a person, or a
business or commercial add ress, or other business or
commercial information disclosable un der state law
submitted with an application for licensure shall be
public record, unless the business or commercial
address is the same as the applicant 's personal
address, except when the app licant permits in writing
the disclosure of the address , or
n. an investigative file obtained during an investigation
conducted by the State Department of Health into
violations of the Long-Term Care Administrator Act
under title 63 of the Okla homa Statutes;
2. All Social Security numbers i ncluded in a record may be
confidential regardless of the person's status as a public employee
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or private individual and may be redacted or delete d prior to
release of the record by the public body;
3. Any reasonably segregable portion of a record contain ing
exempt material shall be provided after deletion of the exempt
portions; provided however, the Department of Public Safety shall
not be required to assemble for the requesting perso n specific
information, in any format, from driving records relating to any
person whose name and date of birth or whose driver license number
is not furnished by the requesting person.
The Oklahoma State Bureau of In vestigation shall not be required
to assemble for the requesting person any criminal history records
relating to persons whose names, dates of birth, and other
identifying information required by the Oklahoma State Bureau of
Investigation pursuant to admin istrative rule are not furnished by
the requesting person;
4. Any request for a record which contains individ ual records
of persons, and the cost of copying, reproducing or certifying each
individual record is otherwise prescribed by state law, the cost m ay
be assessed for each individual reco rd, or portion thereof requested
as prescribed by state law. Otherwise , a public body may charge a
fee only for recovery of the reasonable, direct costs of record
copying, or mechanical reproduction. Notwithstanding any state or
local provision to the co ntrary, in no instance shall the record
copying fee exceed twenty -five cents ($0.25) per page for records
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having the dimensions of eight and one-half (8 1/2) by fourteen (14)
inches or smaller, or a maximum of One Dol lar ($1.00) per copied
page for a certified copy. However, if the request:
a. is solely for commercial purpos e, or
b. would clearly cause excessive disruption of the
essential functions of the public body,
then the public body may charge a reasonable fee to recover the
direct cost of record se arch and copying; however, publication in a
newspaper or broadcast by n ews media for news purposes shall not
constitute a resale or use of a record for trade or commercial
purpose and charges for providing copies of e lectronic data to the
news media for a news purpose shall not exceed the direct cost of
making the copy. The fee charged by the Department of Public Safety
for a copy in a computerized format of a record of the Department
shall not exceed the direct cost of making the copy unless the fee
for the record is otherwise set by law.
Any public body establishing fees un der this act shall post a
written schedule of the fees at its principal office and with the
county clerk.
In no case shall a search fee be charged when the release of
records is in the public interest, including, but not limited to,
release to the news med ia, scholars, authors and taxpayers seeking
to determine whether those entrusted with the affairs of the
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government are honestly, faithfully, and competently performing
their duties as public servants.
The fees shall not be used for the purpose of discoura ging
requests for information or as obstacles to disclosure of requested
information;
5. The land description tract index of all recorded instrum ents
concerning real property required to be kept by the county clerk of
any county shall be available for ins pection or copying in
accordance with the provisions of the Oklahoma Open Records Act;
provided, however, the index shall not be copied or mechani cally
reproduced for the purpose of sal e of the information;
6. A public body must provide prompt, reasonable access to its
records but may establish reasonable procedures which protect the
integrity and organization of its records and to prevent excessiv e
disruptions of its essential function s. A delay in providing access
to records shall be limited solely to t he time required for
preparing the requested documents and the avoidance of excessive
disruptions of the public body's essential functions. In no event
may production of a current requ est for records be unreasonably
delayed until after completion of a pri or records request that will
take substantially longer than the current request. Any public body
which makes the requested records available on t he Internet shall
meet the obligation o f providing prompt, reasonable access to its
records as required by thi s paragraph; and
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7. A public body shall designate certain persons who are
authorized to release records of the public body for inspection,
copying, or mechanical reproduction. At leas t one person shall be
available at all times to release records during the regular
business hours of the public body.
SECTION 4. AMENDATORY 51 O.S. 2021, Section 24A.17, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 24A.17 A. Any public official who willfully violates
any provision of the Oklahoma Open Records Act, upon conviction,
shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be punished by a fine
not exceeding Five Hun dred Dollars ($500.00) or by imprisonment in
the county jail for a period not exceeding one (1) year, or by both
such fine and imprisonment.
B. Any person who requests and is denied access to records of a
public body or public official:
1. May bring a civil suit for de clarative or injunctive relief,
or both, but such civil suit shall be limited to records requested
and denied prior to filing of the civil suit; and
2. If successful, shall be entitled to reasonable attorney
fees.
C. Prior to bringing a civil suit under subsection B, any
person seeking declaratory or injunctive relief, or both, must
notify the public body or public official of his or her intent to
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bring a civil suit to obtai n relief in writing ten (10) business
days prior to filing for such relief.
C D. If the public body or public official succ essfully defends
a civil suit and the court finds that the suit was clearly
frivolous, the public body or public official shall be e ntitled to
reasonable attorney fees.
D E. A public body or public official shall no t be civilly
liable for damages for provid ing access to records as allowed under
the Oklahoma Open Records Act.
SECTION 5. This act shall become effective November 1, 2024.
59-2-8708 SW 01/10/24