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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES - FLOOR VERSION
STATE OF OKLAHOMA
1st Session of the 60th Legislature (2025)
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR ENGROSSED
SENATE BILL NO. 535 By: Daniels of the Senate
and
Pae of the House
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
An Act relating to the Oklahoma Open Records Act;
amending 51 O.S. 2021, Sections 24A.3, as last
amended by Section 1, Chapter 358, O.S.L. 2024, and
24A.5, as last amended by Section 2, Chapter 116,
O.S.L. 2024 (51 O.S. Supp. 2024, Sections 24A.3 and
24A.5), which relate to definitions and inspection
and copying of records; modifying definition;
authorizing public body to require advance payment
for certain records requests; requiring return of
portion of advance payment under certa in
circumstances; authorizing use of f orm for records
requests; authorizing public body to request
clarification for certain records requests;
establishing requirements for specificity of records
requests; allowing denial of records requests under
certain circumstances; updating statutory refe rences;
updating statutory language; and providing an
effective date.
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 51 O.S. 2021, Section 24A.3, as
last amended by Section 1, Chapter 358, O.S.L . 2024 (51 O.S. Supp.
2024, Section 24A.3), is amended to read as follows:
Section 24A.3. As used in the Oklahoma 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 tape, disk, record, sound
recording, film recording, video record or other material regardless
of physical form or characteristic, created by, received by, under
the authority of, or coming into the custody, cont rol or possession
of public officials, public bodies or their representatives in
connection with the transaction of public business, the expenditure
of public funds or the administering of public property. Record
shall also mean applications and other doc uments related to
licensure matters that are filed of record in a district c ourt,
including, but not limited to, marriage licenses, process server
licenses, closing out sale licenses, transient merchant licenses,
pool hall licenses, and bail bondsmen regis tration. Record does not
mean:
a. computer software, or
b. nongovernment personal effects;
2. “Public body” shall include, but not be limited to, any
office, department, board, bureau, commission, agency, trusteeship,
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authority, council, committee, trust or any entity created by a
trust, county, city, village, town, township, di strict, school
district, fair board, court, executive office, advisory group, task
force, study group or any subdivision thereof, supported in whole or
in part by public funds or e ntrusted with the expenditure of public
funds or administering or operating public property, and all
committees, or subcommittees thereof. Except for the records
required by Section 24A.4 of this title, public body does not mean
judges, justices, the Coun cil on Judicial Complaints, the
Legislature or legislators. Public body sha ll not include an
organization that is exempt from federal income tax under Section
501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, and
whose sole beneficiary is a coll ege 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 appropriations from the 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 Oklahoma State
Regents for Higher Education,
b. a member of the board of regents or other governing
board of the college or universit y that is the sole
beneficiary of the organization, or
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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 rec ords;
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
prosecutions including, but not limited to,: police departments,;
state and local fire marshals when investigating potential
violations of federal, state, or local criminal laws or when acting
on behalf of a law enforcement agency; county sheriffs,; the
Department of Public Safety ,; the Oklahoma State Bureau of Narcotics
and Dangerous Drugs Control ,; the Alcoholic Beverage Laws
Enforcement Commission ,; and the Oklahoma State Bureau of
Investigation.
SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 51 O.S. 2021, Section 24A.5, as
last amended by Section 2, Chapter 116, O.S.L. 2024 (51 O.S. Supp.
2024, Section 24A.5), is amended to read as follows:
Section 24A.5. All records of public bodies and public
officials shall be open to any person for inspection, copying, or
mechanical reproduction during regular business hours; provided:
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1. The Oklahoma Open Records Act, Sections 24A.1 through 24A.30
24A.34 of this title, does not apply to records specifically
required by law to be kept confidential including:
a. records protected by a state e videntiary 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 Meeting
Act,
c. personal information within driver records as defined
by the Driver’s Privacy Protection Act, 18 United
States Code U.S.C., Sections 2721 through 2725,
d. information in the files of the Board of Med icolegal
Investigations obtained pursuant to Sections 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 a nd answer keys
developed for state licensure examinations, but
specifically excluding test preparation materials or
study guides,
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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 other 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 information, credit reports, o r
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 qualif ied to contract with a
public body,
i. any digital audio/video recordings of the toll
collection and safeguarding activities of the Oklahoma
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,
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k. a United States 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 U.S.C., Sections 2721 through 2725, which are
stored and maintained by the Department of P ublic
Safety,
m. any portion of any document or information provided to
an agency or entity of the state or a political
subdivision to obtain licensure under the laws of this
state or a political subdivision that contains an
applicant’s personal address, p ersonal phone number,
personal email 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 address, or other bu siness or commercial
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information disclosable under 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
applicant permits in writing the disclosure of the
address,
n. an investigative file obtained du ring an investigation
conducted by the State Department of Health into
violations of the Long -Term Care Administrator
Licensing Act under Title 63 of the Oklahoma Statutes,
or
o. documents, evidence, materials, records, reports,
complaints, or other information in the possession or
control of the Attorney General or Insurance
Department pertaining to an evaluation, examination,
investigation, or review made pursuant to the
provisions of the Patient’s Right to Pharmacy Choice
Act, the Pharmacy Audit Integrit y Act, or Sections 357
through 360 of Title 59 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
2. All Social Security numbers included in a record may be
confidential regardless of the person’s status as a public employee
or private individual and may be redacted or deleted prior to
release of the record by the public body;
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3. Any reasonably segregable portion of a record containing
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 person 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 Investigation 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 administ rative rule are not furnished by
the requesting person;
4. Any request for a record which contains individual records
of persons, and the cost of copying, reproducing or certifyin g each
individual record is otherwise prescribed by state law, the cost may
be assessed for each individual record, or portion thereof requested
as prescribed by state law. Otherwise, a public body may charge a
fee only for recovery of the reasonable, dir ect costs of record
copying, or mechanical reproduction. Notwithstanding an y state or
local provision to the contrary, in no instance shall the record
copying fee exceed twenty -five cents ($0.25) per page for records
having the dimensions of eight and one -half (8 1/2) by fourteen (14)
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inches or smaller, or a maximum of One Dollar ($1.00) per copied
page for a certified copy. However, if the request:
a. is solely for commercial purpose, 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 search and copying; however, publication in a
newspaper or broadcast by news media for news purposes shall not
constitute a resale or use of a rec ord for trade or commercial
purpose and charges for providing copies of electronic 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 computeriz ed 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. A public body may require
advance payment of the estimated fees authorized under this section
when the estimated cost exceeds Seventy -five Dollars ($75.00) or if
the requestor has outstanding fees from previous requests. Any
portion of an advance payment that exceeds the costs of responding
to the request shall be returned to the requestor.
Any public body esta blishing fees under this act the Oklahoma
Open Records Act shall post a written schedule of the fees at its
principal office and with the county clerk.
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In no case shall a search fee be charged when the release of
records is in the public interest, includin g, but not limited to,
release to the news media, scholars, authors and taxpayers seeking
to determine whether those entrusted with the affairs of the
government are honestly, faithfully, and competently performing
their duties as public servants.
The fees shall not be used for the purpose of discouraging
requests for information or as obstacles to disclosure of requested
information;
5. The land description tract index of all recorded instruments
concerning real property required to be kept by the county clerk of
any county shall be available for inspection or copying in
accordance with the provisions of the Oklahoma Open Records Act;
provided, however, the index shall not be copied or mechanically
reproduced for the purpose of sale 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 excessive
disruptions of its essential functions. A delay in providing access
to records shall be limited solely to the 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 request for records be unreas onably
delayed until after completion of a prior records request that will
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take substantially longer than the current request. Any public body
which makes the requested records available on the Internet shall
meet the obligation of providing prompt, reaso nable access to its
records as required by this paragraph;
7. A public body may require a requestor to complete a records
request form. If a records request does not describe the requested
records with reasonable specificity, a public body may ask the
requestor to clarify the request. To have reasonable specificity, a
request shall:
a. specify a general time frame within which the
requested records would have been created or
transmitted,
b. seek identifiable records, rather than general
information without any qualifiers or other
specifications, and
c. include search terms that are sufficiently specific to
assist the public body in identifying the requested
records.
If a public body has engaged with the requestor to seek the
information needed to fulfill the request and to identify the
records sought by the requestor, including p roviding the requestor
with general topics or a specific list of records related to the
request, the request may be denied if it is still not reasonably
specific; and
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7. 8. A public body shall designate certain persons who are
authorized to release records of the public body for inspection,
copying, or mechanical reproduction. At least one person shall be
available at all times to release records during the regular
business hours of the public body.
SECTION 3. This act shall become effect ive November 1, 2025.
COMMITTEE REPORT BY: COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY AND PUBLIC SAFETY
OVERSIGHT, dated 04/17/2025 - DO PASS, As Amended.