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28	28	STATE OF OKLAHOMA
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30	30	1st Session of the 60th Legislature (2025)
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32	32	HOUSE BILL 1289 By: Caldwell (Chad)
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38	38	AS INTRODUCED
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40	40	An Act relating to higher education; creating the
41	41	Academic Loyalty Oath Ban; providing legislative
42	42	intent; defining terms; prohi biting certain
43	43	ideological oaths; prohibiting certain required
44	44	communication; creating a right of action; waiving
45	45	sovereign immunity; providing for attorney fees and
46	46	costs; providing for termination of employment for
47	47	certain acts; providing for codificatio n; providing
48	48	an effective date; and declaring an emergency .
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54	54	BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
55	55	SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
56	56	in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 9501 of Title 7 0, unless there
57	57	is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
58	58	This act shall be known as the "Academic Loyalty Oath Ban ".
59	59	SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
60	60	in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 9502 of Title 70, unless there
61	61	is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows :
62	62	The purpose of this act is to prohibit certain ideological oaths
63	63	that undermine academic freedom and open inquiry, and that impede
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90	90	the discovery, preservation, and transmission of knowledge at
91	91	Oklahoma public institutions of higher education.
92	92	SECTION 3. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
93	93	in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 9503 of Title 70, unless there
94	94	is created a duplication in numbering, read s as follows:
95	95	As used in this act:
96	96	1. "Applicant" means a person who applies to an institution of
97	97	higher education for employment, admission, or as a potential
98	98	contractor;
99	99	2. "Contractor" means a person engaged by an institution of
100	100	higher education for t he purpose of providing goods or services to
101	101	that institution, but who is not an employee of the institution;
102	102	3. "Discriminatory ideology " means an ideology that promotes
103	103	the differential treatment of any individual or groups of
104	104	individuals based on immut able characteristics of race, color,
105	105	ethnicity, or national origin;
106	106	4. "Employee" means an individual employed by an institution of
107	107	higher education;
108	108	5. "Institutional Review Board " means an administrative body
109	109	established in compliance with federal law and regulations to
110	110	protect the rights and welfare of human research subjects recruited
111	111	to participate in research activities conducted under the auspices
112	112	of the institution with which it is affiliated;
113	113	6. "Individual" means a natural person;
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140	140	7. "Institution of higher education " means state educational
141	141	institutions within the Oklah oma State System of Higher Education;
142	142	8. "Person" means an individual or a corporation, partnership,
143	143	limited liability company, business trust, trust, association, or
144	144	other organization, or other legal entity, or a protected series or
145	145	registered series of a domestic limited liability company;
146	146	9. "Preferential consideration " means any act that positively
147	147	impacts a person's admission to, employment with, engagement as a
148	148	contractor by, or promotion within an institution of higher
149	149	education, including:
150	150	a. applications for admissions, aid, assistance, and
151	151	benefits for which the person is eligible, and
152	152	b. employment terms, benefits, seniority status,
153	153	promotion, transfer, and appointmen ts, for which the
154	154	person is eligible; and
155	155	10. "Student" means an individual enrolled as a student at an
156	156	institution of higher education.
157	157	SECTION 4. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
158	158	in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 950 4 of Title 70, unless there
159	159	is created a duplication in numbering, reads as fo llows:
160	160	A. Neither an institution of higher education nor an
161	161	institutional review board associated with an institution of higher
162	162	education may:
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189	189	1. Compel, require, induce, or so licit any applicant, employee,
190	190	student, or contractor to endorse any discriminatory ideology;
191	191	2. Compel, require, induce, or solicit any applicant, employee,
192	192	student or contractor to provide a communication, written or oral,
193	193	relating to:
194	194	a. the applicant's, employee's, student's, or
195	195	contractor's race, color, ethnicity, or national
196	196	origin, except to record necessary demographic
197	197	information of the person,
198	198	b. the applicant's, employee's, student's, or
199	199	contractor's views on, experience with, or past or
200	200	planned contributions to an elected official,
201	201	candidate for an elected office, political party or
202	202	ideology, or efforts involving diversity, equity, and
203	203	inclusion, marginalized groups, anti -racism, social
204	204	justice, intersectionality, or related concepts, or
205	205	c. the applicant's, employee's, student's, or
206	206	contractor's views on or experience wit h race, color,
207	207	ethnicity, national origin, or other immutable
208	208	characteristics of students and co -workers;
209	209	3. Provide preferential consideration to any applicant,
210	210	employee, student, or contractor on the basis of that person 's
211	211	provision of an unsolicited statement related to an elected
212	212	official, candidate for elected office, political party or ideology,
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239	239	or efforts involving diversity, equity, and inclusion, marginalized
240	240	groups, anti-racism, social justice, intersectionality , or related
241	241	concepts, or discriminatory ideology.
242	242	B. Nothing in this section shall be construed to:
243	243	1. Restrict academic research or coursework;
244	244	2. Prevent an institution of higher education from requiring
245	245	applicants:
246	246	a. to disclose or discuss the content of their research
247	247	or artistic creations,
248	248	b. to certify compliance with state and federal anti -
249	249	discrimination law, or
250	250	c. to discuss pedagogical approaches or experience with
251	251	students with learning disabilities;
252	252	3. Prevent an applicant or candidate from providing, of his or
253	253	her own initiative and pursuant to no specific requirement or
254	254	request from the institution of higher education, any information
255	255	described in this section.
256	256	C. Each institution of higher educa tion's legal representation
257	257	shall annually transmit a report on compliance with this law in
258	258	writing to the Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives and
259	259	President Pro Tempore of the Oklahoma State Senate.
260	260	SECTION 5. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
261	261	in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 9505 of Title 70, unless there
262	262	is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
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289	289	A. An applicant, employee, student, or contractor :
290	290	1. Who was compelled, required, induced, or solicited to
291	291	endorse an elected official, candidate for an elected office,
292	292	political party or ideology, or efforts involving diversity, equity,
293	293	and inclusion, marginalized groups, anti -racism, social justice,
294	294	intersectionality, or related concepts, or a discriminatory ideology
295	295	or to provide a communication as described in paragraph 2 of
296	296	subsection A of Section 4 of this act ; or
297	297	2. Who was adversely affected by an institution 's preferential
298	298	consideration of another for such person 's unsolicited statement
299	299	relating to an elected official, candidate for an elected office,
300	300	political party or ideology, or efforts involving diversity, equity,
301	301	and inclusion, marginalized groups, anti -racism, social justice,
302	302	intersectionality, or related concepts, or a discriminatory
303	303	ideology;
304	304	in violation of Section 4 of this act, may pursue an action for
305	305	injunctive or declaratory relief against the institution that
306	306	violated Section 4 of this act.
307	307	B. An injunction imposed under this section in favor of an
308	308	applicant, employee, contr actor, or student against an institution
309	309	of higher education because of a violation of Section 4 of this act
310	310	may include an order requiring the institution to:
311	311	1. Admit the applicant for enrollment as a student;
312	312	2. Re-enroll a student who was suspended o r expelled;
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339	339	3. Hire a person for the position for which the person 's
340	340	employment application was rejected;
341	341	4. Re-hire in the same or equal position an employee who was
342	342	terminated from his or her position;
343	343	5. Promote an employee who was denied a promotion ; or
344	344	6. Provide tenure to an employee who was denied tenure.
345	345	C. Sovereign or governmental immunity, as applicable, is waived
346	346	for an action provided for by this section.
347	347	D. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, a person may
348	348	commence an action unde r this section and relief may be granted
349	349	regardless of whether the person soug ht or exhausted available
350	350	administrative or legal remedies before commencing the action.
351	351	SECTION 6. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
352	352	in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 9506 of Title 70, unless there
353	353	is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
354	354	The prevailing party in an action brought under Section 5 of
355	355	this act may be awarded reasonable attorney 's fees and costs in
356	356	accordance with Section 696.4 of Title 12 of the Oklahoma Statutes.
357	357	SECTION 7. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
358	358	in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 9507 of Title 70, unless there
359	359	is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
360	360	A. An institution of higher education employee, whether
361	361	tenured, employed at will, or working pursuant to a contract :
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388	388	1. Who is found to have compelled, required, or induced an
389	389	applicant, employee, student, or contractor to endorse an elected
390	390	official, candidate for an elected office, political party or
391	391	ideology, or efforts involvin g diversity, equity, and inclusion,
392	392	marginalized groups, anti -racism, social justice, intersectionality,
393	393	or related concepts, or a discriminatory ideology or provide a
394	394	communication as described in paragraph 2 of subsection A of Section
395	395	4 of this act; or
396	396	2. Who provided preferential consideration to an applicant,
397	397	employee, student, or contractor on the basis of that person 's
398	398	unsolicited provision of comment upon an elected official, candidate
399	399	for an elected office, political party or ideology, or efforts
400	400	involving diversity, equity, and inclusion, marginalized groups,
401	401	anti-racism, social justice, intersectionality, or related concepts,
402	402	or a discriminatory ideology ,
403	403	shall be disciplined by the institution of higher education.
404	404	B. Upon a first finding that the employee has engaged in the
405	405	prohibited conduct, the employee shall be placed on unpaid leave for
406	406	the next academic year, and shall be ineligible for employment at
407	407	any other public institution of higher education during the period
408	408	of such unpaid leave. Upon a second or subsequent finding that the
409	409	employee has engaged in the prohibited conduct, the employee shall
410	410	be terminated from employment and shall be ineligible for employmen t
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437	437	at any institution of higher education for no less than five (5)
438	438	years after the date of the second or subsequent finding.
439	439	SECTION 8. This act shall become effective July 1, 2025.
440	440	SECTION 9. It being immediately necessar y for the preservation
441	441	of the public peace, health or safety, an emergency is hereby
442	442	declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and
443	443	be in full force from and after its passage and approval.
444	444
445	445	60-1-10572 AQH 01/08/25

Oklahoma 2025 Regular Session

Oklahoma House Bill HB1289 Compare Versions