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53	53	STATE OF OKLAHOMA
54	54
55	55	1st Session of the 60th Legislature (2025)
56	56
57	57	SENATE BILL 185 By: Haste
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65	65	AS INTRODUCED
66	66
67	67	An Act relating to higher education; creating the
68	68	Oklahoma Department of Transportation Educational
69	69	Assistance Act; providing short titl e; defining
70	70	terms; creating the Oklahoma Department of
71	71	Transportation Educational Assistance Program to
72	72	provide tuition and fee assistance to certain
73	73	eligible students; providing for amount of
74	74	assistance, subject to availability of funding;
75	75	providing limitation on amount of assistance;
76	76	directing assistance to be provided based on ce rtain
77	77	factors; prohibiting assistance for courses taken in
78	78	excess of certain requirements; prohibiting
79	79	assistance for certain courses; providing for
80	80	eligibility retention; requir ing submission of
81	81	application prescribed by certain agency; allowing
82	82	continued assistance to be denied under certain
83	83	circumstances; providing for promulgation of rules ;
84	84	establishing requirements for assistance repayment;
85	85	requiring deposit of repayments in certain fund;
86	86	directing the Transportation Commission to establish
87	87	certain schedule; allowing repayment waiver under
88	88	certain circumstances; providing for submission of
89	89	waiver request; allowing the Department of
90	90	Transportation to accept certain gifts and gr ants;
91	91	directing funds to be transferred to certain fund;
92	92	providing for promulgation of rules; creating the
93	93	Oklahoma Department of Transportation Educational
94	94	Assistance Revolving Fund; specifying sources of
95	95	fund; providing for expenditures; providing purpos e
96	96	of fund; providing for codification; providing an
97	97	effective date; and declar ing an emergency.
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159	159	BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
160	160	SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
161	161	in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3234 of Title 70, unless there
162	162	is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
163	163	A. This act shall be known and may be cited as the “Oklahoma
164	164	Department of Transportation Educational Assistance Act ”.
165	165	B. As used in this a ct:
166	166	1. “Commission” means the Transportation Commission;
167	167	2. “Department” means the Department of Transportation;
168	168	3. “Eligible degree” means a baccalaureate degree from an
169	169	Oklahoma educational institution in a field of study that satisfies
170	170	the Department’s minimum education requirements for an eligible
171	171	profession;
172	172	4. “Eligible profession” means an engineer, a land surveyor, or
173	173	an accountant;
174	174	5. “Eligible student” means a student who has a high school
175	175	diploma or who has completed General Educational Deve lopment (GED)
176	176	requirements and who:
177	177	a. has completed and filed with the Depart ment, on forms
178	178	prescribed by the Department, an application and a
179	179
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230	230	declaration of intent to become a member of an
231	231	eligible profession and work for the Department for
232	232	five (5) years immediately following the date of the
233	233	student’s receipt of an eligible degree,
234	234	b. has enrolled in an Oklahoma educational institution,
235	235	c. is an Oklahoma resident , and
236	236	d. is age eighteen (18) or older;
237	237	6. “Graduate program” means a program offered by an Oklahoma
238	238	educational institution that leads to the award of a master ’s degree
239	239	or higher;
240	240	7. “Oklahoma educational institution ” means an institution of
241	241	higher education within The Oklahoma State System of Higher
242	242	Education;
243	243	8. “Program” means the Oklahoma Department of Transportation
244	244	Educational Assistance Program; and
245	245	9. “Undergraduate program ” means a program offered by an
246	246	Oklahoma educational institution that leads to the award of a
247	247	baccalaureate degree.
248	248	C. There is hereby created the Oklahoma Departme nt of
249	249	Transportation Educational Assistance Program to provide assistance
250	250	to eligible students who enroll in an Oklahoma educational
251	251	institution and who agree to work for the Department in an eligible
252	252	profession for the five (5) years immediately following the date of
253	253	the student’s receipt of an eligible degree. The Commission shall
254	254
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305	305	promulgate rules prescribing the criteria for the selection of
306	306	applicants pursuant to this act. Subject to the availability of
307	307	funding, the amount of assistance shall be equiv alent to the amount
308	308	of resident tuition, mandatory fees, and academic service fees for
309	309	courses in which the eligible student is enrolled, not to exceed a
310	310	maximum of eighteen (18) credit hours each semester.
311	311	1. The amount of assistance provided to an eligi ble student
312	312	enrolled in an undergraduate program shall not exceed the number of
313	313	hours required for completion of an undergraduate program in pursuit
314	314	of a baccalaureate degree .
315	315	2. Subject to the assistance for eligible students enrolled in
316	316	undergraduate programs being fully funded, assistance shall be
317	317	provided to an eligible student with a baccalaureate degree enrolled
318	318	in a graduate program. The amount of assistance provided to an
319	319	eligible student enrolled in a graduate program shall not exceed the
320	320	number of hours required for completion of a master’s degree.
321	321	3. Assistance provided pursuant to this act shall be granted
322	322	without any limitation other than the amount of funds available for
323	323	the program and the number of eligible students who apply .
324	324	4. Assistance allowed by this act shall not be allowed for
325	325	courses taken in excess of the requirements for completion of an
326	326	undergraduate program or a graduate program, whichever is applicable
327	327	for the eligible student .
328	328
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379	379	5. Assistance allowed by this act shall not be allowed for
380	380	courses in which the eligible student earns a failing grade.
381	381	D. 1. To retain eligibility for the program, an eligible
382	382	student shall:
383	383	a. maintain good academic standing and satisfactory
384	384	academic progress according to standards of the
385	385	Oklahoma educational institution in which the eligible
386	386	student is enrolled,
387	387	b. maintain the requirements for retention and degree
388	388	completion as established by the Oklahoma educational
389	389	institution in which the eligible student is enrolled,
390	390	and
391	391	c. maintain a minimum grade point average of 2.0 on a 4.0
392	392	scale.
393	393	2. An eligible student seeking assistance pursuant to the
394	394	provisions of this act shall submit an application on a form
395	395	prescribed by the Department prior to the semester for which
396	396	assistance is sought .
397	397	3. An eligible student may be denied continued assistance if he
398	398	or she fails to comply with the provisions of this act.
399	399	E. 1. The Commission shall promulgate rules establishing
400	400	conditions under which a n eligible student who has received
401	401	assistance pursuant to thi s act may be required to repay all or part
402	402	of the assistance because the eligible student has withdrawn from
403	403
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454	454	the Oklahoma educational institution or has failed to meet the
455	455	requirements of paragraph 1 of subsection D of this section .
456	456	2. An eligible student who does not become a member of an
457	457	eligible profession and work for the Depar tment for the five (5)
458	458	years immediately following the date of the student ’s receipt of an
459	459	eligible degree shall repay all assistance received by the eligible
460	460	student.
461	461	3. Repayments shall be deposited into the Oklahoma Department
462	462	of Transportation Educational Assistance Revolving Fund created
463	463	pursuant to Section 2 of this act .
464	464	4. The Commission shall establish a schedule for installment
465	465	repayments under this act.
466	466	5. An eligible student who has received program assistance
467	467	pursuant to the provisions of thi s act and who fails to comply with
468	468	the provisions of this act due to hardship circumstances may request
469	469	a waiver from repayment. A waiver request shall be submitted in
470	470	writing to the Director of the Department of Transportation.
471	471	F. The Department may accept gifts and grants from any public
472	472	or private source for the program and may also use any state funds
473	473	that have been specifically appropriated or apportioned for the
474	474	program created pursuant to this act. All funding received by the
475	475	Department for this p urpose shall be transferred to the Oklahoma
476	476	Department of Transportation Educational Assistance Revolving Fund
477	477	created pursuant to Section 2 of this act .
478	478
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529	529	G. The Commission shall promulgate rules to implement the
530	530	provisions of this act.
531	531	SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
532	532	in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 3235 of Title 70, unless there
533	533	is created a duplication in numbering, reads as fol lows:
534	534	There is hereby created in the State Treasury a revolving fund
535	535	to be designated the “Oklahoma Department of Transportation
536	536	Educational Assistance Revolving Fund ”. The fund shall be a
537	537	continuing fund, not subject to fiscal year limitations, and shall
538	538	consist of monies received by the Department of Transportation
539	539	pursuant to paragraph 3 of subsection E of Section 1 of this act and
540	540	subsection F of Section 1 of this act provided for the purpose of
541	541	funding the Oklahoma Department of Transportation Educati onal
542	542	Assistance Program. All monies accruing to the credit of the fund
543	543	are hereby appropriated and may be budgeted and expended by the
544	544	Department of Transportation for the purpose provided for in this
545	545	section. Expenditures from the fund shall be made upo n warrants
546	546	issued by the State Treasurer against claims filed as prescribed by
547	547	law with the Director of the Office of Management and Enterprise
548	548	Services for approval and payment.
549	549	SECTION 3. This act shall become effective July 1, 2025.
550	550	SECTION 4. It being immediately necessary for the preservation
551	551	of the public peace, health, or safety, an emergency is hereby
552	552
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603	603	declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and
604	604	be in full force from and after its passage and approval.
605	605
606	606	60-1-931 EB 12/30/2024 1:47:15 PM

Oklahoma 2025 Regular Session

Oklahoma Senate Bill SB185 Compare Versions