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53	53	STATE OF OKLAHOMA
54	54
55	55	1st Session of the 60th Legislature (2025)
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57	57	SENATE BILL 346 By: Bergstrom
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63	63	AS INTRODUCED
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65	65	An Act relating to school personnel; amending 70 O.S.
66	66	2021, Section 5-142, which relates to criminal
67	67	history record checks for school employees; requiring
68	68	certain letter to include certain attestation;
69	69	updating statutory language; updating statutory
70	70	references; providing an effective date; and
71	71	declaring an emergency .
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77	77	BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
78	78	SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 5 -142, is
79	79	amended to read as follows:
80	80	Section 5-142. A. Except as otherwise provided for in
81	81	subsection F of this section, for purposes of employment, a board of
82	82	education may request in wr iting to the State Board of Education
83	83	that a national criminal history record check be conducted of any
84	84	employee of the school and shall request such information for any
85	85	person seeking employment with the school; provided , that a board of
86	86	education shall not be required to obtain a new criminal history
87	87	record check for an individual who has obtained certification from
88	88	the State Department of Education within the previous twelve (12)
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140	140	months. The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) shall
141	141	obtain fingerprints of the employee or prospective employee and
142	142	require that the person pay a search fee not to exceed Fifty Dollars
143	143	($50.00) or the cost of the search, whichever is the lesser amount.
144	144	The fee shall be deposited in the OSBI Revolving Fund. School
145	145	districts may reimburse employees for the cost of the search. The
146	146	State Board of Education shall contact the Oklahoma State Bureau of
147	147	Investigation for any national criminal history record of the person
148	148	within fourteen (14) working days of receiving a writ ten request
149	149	from the board of education.
150	150	B. The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation shall provide the
151	151	national criminal history record check requested by the State Board
152	152	of Education within fourteen (14) working days from the receipt of
153	153	the request. The Bureau may contact the Federal Bureau of
154	154	Investigation to obtain the inform ation requested.
155	155	C. The State Board of Education shall provide the information
156	156	received from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation to the
157	157	board of education within fourteen (14) days from the receipt of the
158	158	information. The State Board of Education shall provide any follow -
159	159	up information received from the OSBI concerning a person for which
160	160	a national criminal history record check was requested to the
161	161	employing board of educ ation.
162	162	D. For the purpose of this section:
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214	214	1. “Board of education” includes both public and private boards
215	215	of education within or outside this state;
216	216	2. “Employing agency” means a political subdivision or law
217	217	enforcement agency in this state;
218	218	3. “Law enforcement officer” means a peace or police officer
219	219	who is certified by the Council on Law Enforcement Education and
220	220	Training;
221	221	4. “National criminal history record check ” means a national
222	222	criminal history record check as defined in Section 150.9 of Title
223	223	74 of the Oklahoma Statutes; and
224	224	5. “Prospective employee ” means an individual who has received
225	225	an offer of temporary employment from a school district pending the
226	226	results of the national criminal history record check.
227	227	E. Each public board of education w ithin this state shall
228	228	promulgate a statement regarding the felony record search policy for
229	229	that school district. The policy may permit temporary employment of
230	230	prospective employees for a maximum of sixty (60) days pending
231	231	receipt of results of national c riminal history record check
232	232	requests. The temporary employment of the prospe ctive employee
233	233	shall terminate after sixty (60) days unless the school district
234	234	receives the results of the national criminal history record check.
235	235	The sixty-day temporary employment period shall begin on the first
236	236	day the prospective employee reports for duty at the employing
237	237	school district. Prospective employees shall be notified of the
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289	289	requirement, the fee , and the reimbursement policy when first
290	290	interviewed concerning emplo yment. The school district ’s
291	291	reimbursement policy shall provide, at a minimum , that employees
292	292	shall be promptly reimbursed in full for the fee if employed by the
293	293	district at the time the national criminal history record check
294	294	request is made unless the pe rson was employed pending receipt of
295	295	results as set forth above.
296	296	F. 1. Any person who has been employed as a full -time teacher
297	297	by a school district in this state and applies for employment as a
298	298	full-time teacher in another school district in this state m ay not
299	299	be required to have a national criminal history record check if the
300	300	teacher produces a copy of a national criminal history record check
301	301	completed within the preceding five (5) years and a letter from the
302	302	school district in which the teacher was empl oyed stating the
303	303	teacher left in good standing. The letter shall attest to whether
304	304	allegations of inappropriate behavior between the teacher and a
305	305	student or students were raised and whether there was a pending or
306	306	ongoing investigation of inappropriate be havior between the teacher
307	307	and a student or students.
308	308	2. For any person apply ing for employment as a substitute
309	309	teacher, a national criminal history record check shall be required
310	310	for the school year; provided, however, a board of education may
311	311	choose whether to require a national criminal history record check
312	312	from a prospective substitute teacher who has been employed by the
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364	364	school district in the last year. Any person applying for
365	365	employment as a substitute teacher in more than one school district
366	366	shall only be required to have one national criminal history record
367	367	check, and, upon the request of the substitute teacher, that record
368	368	check shall be sent to all other school districts in which the
369	369	substitute teacher is applying to teach.
370	370	3. Any person employ ed as a full-time teacher by a school
371	371	district in this state in the five (5) years immediately preceding
372	372	an application for employment as a substitute teacher may not be
373	373	required to have a national criminal history record check, if the
374	374	teacher produces a c opy of a national criminal history record check
375	375	completed within the preceding five (5) years and a letter from the
376	376	school district in which the teacher was last employed stating the
377	377	teacher left in good standing. The letter shall attest to whether
378	378	allegations of inappropriate behavior between the teacher and a
379	379	student or students were raised and whether there was a pending or
380	380	ongoing investigation of inappropriate behavior between the teacher
381	381	and a student or students.
382	382	4. Any person employed as a substit ute teacher by a school
383	383	district in this state for a minimum of five (5) years immediately
384	384	preceding an application for employment as a full -time teacher in a
385	385	school district in this state may not be required to have a national
386	386	criminal history record chec k if the teacher produces a copy of a
387	387	national criminal history record check completed within the
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439	439	preceding five (5) years and a letter from the school district in
440	440	which the teacher was employed as a substitute teacher stating the
441	441	teacher left in good stan ding.
442	442	5. Any person employed as a full -time teacher by a school
443	443	district in this state for ten (10) or more consecutive years
444	444	immediately preceding an application for employment as a substitute
445	445	teacher in the same school district may not be required to ha ve a
446	446	national criminal history record check for as long as the person
447	447	remains employed for consecutive years by that school district as a
448	448	substitute teacher, if the teacher left full -time employment in good
449	449	standing. If the teacher applies for employment as a substitute
450	450	teacher in another school district, a national criminal histor y
451	451	record check shall be required.
452	452	G. 1. Except as otherwise provided by this subsection, any
453	453	teacher employed by an Oklahoma school district prior to the
454	454	effective date of this act May 19, 2020, who does not have an
455	455	Oklahoma criminal history record check from the Oklahoma State
456	456	Bureau of Investigation as well as a national criminal history
457	457	record check, as defined in Section 150.9 of Title 74 of the
458	458	Oklahoma Statutes, on file wi th his or her employing district as
459	459	required by this section shall complete th e criminal history record
460	460	checks upon the next renewal of his or her Standard Teaching
461	461	Certificate standard teaching certificate as required by Section 6 -
462	462
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513	513	154.1 of this title or S tate Board of Education administrative rules
514	514	promulgated thereto.
515	515	2. Except as otherwise provided by this subsection, any other
516	516	person employed by an Oklahoma school district prior to the
517	517	effective date of this act May 19, 2020, who does not have an
518	518	Oklahoma criminal history record check from the Oklahoma State
519	519	Bureau of Investigat ion as well as a national criminal history
520	520	record check, as defined in Section 150.9 of Title 74 of the
521	521	Oklahoma Statutes, on file with his or her employing district as
522	522	required by this section shall have until July 1, 2022, to complete
523	523	the criminal history record checks.
524	524	3. Any teacher eligible to retire from the Teachers ’ Retirement
525	525	System of Oklahoma who does not have an Oklahoma criminal history
526	526	record check from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation as well
527	527	as a national criminal history record c heck, as defined in Section
528	528	150.9 of Title 74 of the Oklahoma Statutes, on file with his or her
529	529	employing district as required by this section shall complete the
530	530	criminal history record checks by the earlier of the following
531	531	dates:
532	532	a. July 1, 2022, or
533	533	b. at the next renewal of his or her Standard Teaching
534	534	Certificate standard teaching certificate as required
535	535	by Section 6-154.1 of this title or State Board of
536	536	Education administrati ve rules promulgated thereto.
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588	588	H. The provisions of this section shall not app ly to technology
589	589	center employees hired on a part -time or temporary basis for the
590	590	instruction of adult students only.
591	591	I. The provisions of this section shall not apply to law
592	592	enforcement officers who are employed by an employing agency at the
593	593	time of application for employment at a public school district.
594	594	J. Nothing in this section shall be construed to impose
595	595	liability on school districts, except in negligence, for employing
596	596	prospective employees within the sixty -day temporary employment
597	597	window pending the results of the national criminal history record
598	598	check.
599	599	SECTION 2. This act shall become effective July 1, 2025.
600	600	SECTION 3. It being immediate ly necessary for the preservation
601	601	of the public peace, health, or safety, an emergency is hereby
602	602	declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and
603	603	be in full force from and after its passage and approval.
604	604
605	605	60-1-836 EB 1/3/2025 9:56:32 AM

Oklahoma 2025 Regular Session

Oklahoma Senate Bill SB346 Compare Versions