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53	53	STATE OF OKLAHOMA
54	54
55	55	1st Session of the 59th Legislature (2023)
56	56
57	57	SENATE BILL 940 By: Montgomery
58	58
59	59
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63	63	AS INTRODUCED
64	64
65	65	An Act relating to state government; amending 74 O.S.
66	66	2021, Section 18b, as last amended by Section 1,
67	67	Chapter 296, O.S.L. 20 22 (74 O.S. Supp. 2022, Section
68	68	18b), which relates to the duties o f the attorney
69	69	general; allowing the attorney general to investigate
70	70	certain purchases; and providing an effective date .
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75	75	BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
76	76	SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 74 O.S. 2021, Section 18b, as last
77	77	amended by Section 1, Chapter 296, O.S.L. 20 22 (74 O.S. Supp. 2022,
78	78	Section 18b), is amended to read as follows:
79	79	Section 18b. A. The duties of the Attorney General as the
80	80	chief law officer of the state shall be:
81	81	1. To appear for the state and prosecute and defend all actions
82	82	and proceedings, civil or criminal, in the Supreme Court and Court
83	83	of Criminal Appeals in which the state is interested as a party;
84	84	2. To appear for the sta te and prosecute and defend all actions
85	85	and proceedings in any of the federal c ourts in which the state is
86	86	interested as a party;
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138	138	3. To initiate or appear in any action in which the interests
139	139	of the state or the people of the state are at issue, or to app ear
140	140	at the request of the Governor, the Legislature, or either branch
141	141	thereof, and prosecute and defend in any court or before any
142	142	commission, board or officers any cause or proceeding, civil or
143	143	criminal, in which the state may be a party or interested; an d when
144	144	so appearing in any such cause or proceeding, the Attorney General
145	145	may, if the Attorney General deems it advisable and to the best
146	146	interest of the state, take and assume control of the prosecution or
147	147	defense of the state’s interest therein;
148	148	4. To consult with and advise district attorneys, when
149	149	requested by them, in all matte rs pertaining to the duties of their
150	150	offices, when the district attorneys shall furnish the Attorney
151	151	General with a written opini on supported by citation of authorities
152	152	upon the matter submitted;
153	153	5. To give an opinion in writing upon all questions of law
154	154	submitted to the Attorney General by the Legislature or either
155	155	branch thereof, or by any state officer, board, commission or
156	156	department, provided, that the Attorney General shal l not furnish
157	157	opinions to any but district attorneys, the Legislature or either
158	158	branch thereof, or any other state official, board, commission or
159	159	department, and to them only upon matters in which they are
160	160	officially interested;
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212	212	6. At the request of the G overnor, State Auditor and Inspector,
213	213	State Treasurer, or either branch of the Legislature, to prosecute
214	214	any official bond or any contract in which the state is interested,
215	215	upon a breach thereof, and to prose cute or defend for the state all
216	216	actions, civil or criminal, relating to any matter connected with
217	217	either of their Departments;
218	218	7. Whenever requested by any state officer, board or
219	219	commission, to prepare proper drafts for contracts, forms and other
220	220	writing which may be wanted for the use of the state;
221	221	8. To prepare drafts of bills and resolutions for individual
222	222	members of the Legislature upon their written request stating the
223	223	gist of the bill or resolution desired;
224	224	9. To enforce the proper application of monies appropriated by
225	225	the Legislature and to p rosecute breaches of trust in the
226	226	administration of such funds;
227	227	10. To institute action s to recover state monies illegally
228	228	expended, to recover state property and to prevent the illegal use
229	229	of any state property, upon the request of the Governor or the
230	230	Legislature;
231	231	11. To pay into the State Treas ury, immediately upon its
232	232	receipt, all monies received by the Attorney General belonging to
233	233	the state;
234	234	12. To settle, compromise and dispose of an action in which t he
235	235	Attorney General represents the interests of the state, so long as
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287	287	the consideration neg otiated for such settlement, compromise or
288	288	disposition is payable to the state or one of its agencies which is
289	289	a named party of the action and any monies, any proper ty or other
290	290	item of value is paid first to the S tate Treasury;
291	291	13. To keep and file copies of all opinions, contracts, forms
292	292	and letters of the office, and to keep an index of all opinions,
293	293	contracts and forms according to subject and section of the law
294	294	construed or applied;
295	295	14. To keep a register or docket of all actions, demands and
296	296	investigations prosecuted, defended or conducted by t he Attorney
297	297	General in behalf of the state. The register or docket shall give
298	298	the style of the case or investigation, w here pending, court number,
299	299	office number, the g ist of the matter, result and the names of the
300	300	assistants who handled the matter;
301	301	15. To keep a complete office file of all cases and
302	302	investigations handled by the Attorney General on behalf of the
303	303	state;
304	304	16. To report to the Legislature or either branch thereof
305	305	whenever requested upon any busine ss relating to the duties of the
306	306	Attorney General’s office;
307	307	17. To institute civil actions against members of any state
308	308	board or commission for failure of such memb ers to perform their
309	309	duties as prescribed by the statutes and the Constitution and to
310	310	prosecute members of any state board or commission for violation of
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362	362	the criminal laws of this state where such violations have occurred
363	363	in connection with the performance of such members’ official duties;
364	364	18. To respond to any request for an opinion of the Att orney
365	365	General’s office, submitted by a member of the Legislature,
366	366	regardless of subject matter, by written opinion determinative of
367	367	the law regarding such subject ma tter;
368	368	19. To convene multicounty grand juries i n such manner and for
369	369	such purposes as prov ided by law; provided, such grand juries are
370	370	composed of citizens from each of the counties on a pro rata basis
371	371	by county;
372	372	20. To investigate any report by the Stat e Auditor and
373	373	Inspector filed with the Attorney General pursuant to Section 223 of
374	374	this title and prosecute all actions, civil or crimin al, relating to
375	375	such reports or any irregularities or derelictions in the management
376	376	of public funds or property which a re violations of the laws of this
377	377	state;
378	378	21. To represent and protect the collective inter ests of all
379	379	utility consumers of this state i n rate-related proceedings before
380	380	the Corporation Commission or in any other state or federal judicial
381	381	or administrative proceeding;
382	382	22. To represent and protect the c ollective interests of
383	383	insurance consumers of this state in rate -related proceedings bef ore
384	384	the Insurance Commissioner or in any other state or federal judicial
385	385	or administrative proceeding;
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437	437	23. To investigate and prosecute any criminal action relating
438	438	to insurance fraud, if in the opinion of the Attorney General a
439	439	criminal prosecution is wa rranted, or to refer such matters to the
440	440	appropriate district attorney;
441	441	24. To monitor and evaluate any action by the f ederal
442	442	government including, but not limited to , executive orders by the
443	443	President of the United States, rules or regulations promulgat ed by
444	444	an agency of the federal government or acts of Congress to determine
445	445	if such actions are in violation of the Tenth Amendment to the
446	446	Constitution of the United Sta tes; and
447	447	25. To maintain data related to h uman trafficking and to assist
448	448	law enforcement, social service agencies, and victim services
449	449	programs in identifying and supporting victims of human trafficking ;
450	450	and
451	451	26. To investigate land ownership and purchases of foreign
452	452	entities around military installations in this state.
453	453	B. Nothing in this se ction shall be construed as requiring the
454	454	Attorney General to appear and defend or prosecute in any court any
455	455	cause or proceeding for or on behalf of the Oklahoma Tax C ommission,
456	456	the Board of Managers of the State Insurance Fund, or the
457	457	Commissioners of the Land Office.
458	458	C. In all appeals from the Corporation Commission to the
459	459	Supreme Court of Oklahoma in which the state is a party, the
460	460	Attorney General shall have the ri ght to designate counsel of the
461	461
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512	512	Corporation Commission as the Attorney General ’s legally appointed
513	513	representative in such appeals, and it shall be the duty of t he
514	514	Corporation Commission counsel to act when so designated and to
515	515	consult and advise with the A ttorney General regarding such appeals
516	516	prior to taking action therein.
517	517	SECTION 2. This act shall become effective November 1, 2023.
518	518
519	519	59-1-486 KR 1/19/2023 11:03:04 AM

Oklahoma 2024 Regular Session

Oklahoma Senate Bill SB940 Compare Versions