Oklahoma 2025 Regular Session

Oklahoma Senate Bill SB553 Compare Versions

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31-STATE OF OKLAHOMA
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33-1st Session of the 60th Legislature (2025)
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3528 ENGROSSED SENATE
36-BILL NO. 553 By: Pugh, Thompson, and Nice of
37-the Senate
29+BILL NO. 553 By: Pugh and Thompson of the
30+Senate
3831
3932 and
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4134 Sterling of the House
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4540 An Act relating to schools; amending 70 O.S. 2021,
4641 Section 3-104, as last amended by Section 2, Chapter
4742 445, O.S.L. 2024 (70 O.S. Supp. 2024, Section 3 -104),
4843 which relates to the powers and duties of the State
4944 Board of Education; adding reason for which a
5045 certificate cannot be issued or can be revoked;
5146 amending 70 O.S. 2021, Section 3 -104.1, which relates
5247 to a prohibition on certification of individuals
5348 convicted of certain offenses; adding reason for
5449 which a certificate cannot be issued; amending 70
5550 O.S. 2021, Section 5-142, which relates to criminal
5651 history record checks for school employment;
5752 requiring certain letter to include certain
5853 information; amending 70 O.S. 2021, Section 6 -101.22,
5954 which relates to reasons for dismissal of career
6055 teachers; adding reason for dismissal; amending 70
6156 O.S. 2021, Section 6 -194, as last amended by Section
6257 2, Chapter 15, O.S.L. 2023 (70 O.S. Supp. 2024,
6358 Section 6-194), which relates to professional
6459 development programs; directing certain program to
6560 include information about certain reporting
6661 requirements; amending 70 O.S. 2021, Section
6762 1210.163, as amended by Section 46, Chapter 59,
6863 O.S.L. 2024 (70 O.S. Supp. 2024, Section 1210.163),
6964 which relates to requirements to report suspected
7065 abuse or neglect; requiring school employees to
7166 annually sign certain attestation; updating statutory
7267 language; updating statutory references; providing an
7368 effective date; and declaring an emerg ency.
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103101 BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
104102 SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 3 -104, as
105103 last amended by Section 2, Chapter 445, O.S.L. 2024 (70 O.S. Supp.
106104 2024, Section 3-104), is amended to read as follows:
107105 Section 3-104. A. The supervision of the public school system
108106 of Oklahoma shall be vested in the State Board of Education and,
109107 subject to limitations otherwise provided by law, the State Board of
110108 Education shall:
111109 1. Adopt policies and make rul es for the operation of the
112110 public school system of the state;
113111 2. Appoint, prescribe the duties, and fix the compensation of a
114112 secretary, an attorney, and all other personnel necessary for the
115113 proper performance of the functions of the State Board of Educ ation.
116114 The secretary shall not be a member of the Board;
117115 3. Submit to the Governor a departmental budget based upon
118116 major functions of the State Department of Education as prepared by
119117 the Superintendent of Public Instruction and supported by detailed
120118 data on needs and proposed operations as partially determined by the
121119 budgetary needs of local school districts filed with the State Board
122120 of Education for the ensuing fiscal year. Appropriations therefor
123121 shall be made in lump -sum form for each major item in the budget as
124122 follows:
125123 a. State Aid to schools,
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153150 b. the supervision of all other functions of general and
154151 special education including general control, free
155152 textbooks, school lunch, Indian education, and all
156153 other functions of the Board and an amount suffici ent
157154 to adequately staff and administer these services, and
158155 c. the Board shall determine the details by which the
159156 budget and the appropriations are administered.
160157 Annually, the Board shall make preparations to
161158 consolidate all of the functions of the Departm ent in
162159 such a way that the budget can be based on two items,
163160 administration and aid to schools. A maximum amount
164161 for administration shall be designated as a part of
165162 the total appropriation;
166163 4. On the first day of December preceding each regular session
167164 of the Legislature, prepare and deliver electronically to the
168165 Governor and the Legislature a report for the year ending June 30
169166 immediately preceding the regular session of the Legislature. The
170167 report shall contain:
171168 a. detailed statistics and other informa tion concerning
172169 enrollment, attendance, expenditures including State
173170 Aid, and other pertinent data for all public schools
174171 in this state,
175172 b. reports from each and every division within the State
176173 Department of Education as submitted by the
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204200 Superintendent of Public Instruction and any other
205201 division, department, institution, or other agency
206202 under the supervision of the Board,
207203 c. recommendations for the improvement of the public
208204 school system of the state,
209205 d. a statement of the receipts and expenditures of the
210206 State Board of Education for the past year, and
211207 e. a statement of plans and recommendations for the
212208 management and improvement of public schools and such
213209 other information relating to the educational
214210 interests of the state as may be deemed necessary and
215211 desirable;
216212 5. Provide for the formulation and adoption of curricula,
217213 courses of study, and other instructional aids necessary for the
218214 adequate instruction of pupils in the public schools;
219215 6. Have authority in matters pertaining to the licensure and
220216 certification of persons for instructional, supervisory, and
221217 administrative positions and services in the public schools of the
222218 state subject to the provisions of Section 6 -184 of this title, and
223219 shall formulate rules governing the issuance and revocation of
224220 certificates for superintendents of schools, principals,
225221 supervisors, librarians, clerical employees, school nurses, school
226222 bus drivers, visiting teachers, classroom teachers, and for other
227223 personnel performing instructional, administrative, and supervisory
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255250 services, but not including members of boards of education and other
256251 employees who do not work directly with pupils, and may charge and
257252 collect reasonable fees for the issuance of such certificates:
258253 a. the State Department of Education shall not issue a
259254 certificate to and shall revoke the certificate of any
260255 person who has been convicted, whether upon a verdict
261256 or plea of guilty or upon a plea of nolo contendere,
262257 or received a suspended sentence or any probationary
263258 term for a crime or an attempt to commit a cr ime
264259 provided for in Section 843.5 of Title 21 of the
265260 Oklahoma Statutes if the offense involved sexual abuse
266261 or sexual exploitation as those terms are defined in
267262 Section 1-1-105 of Title 10A of the Oklahoma Statutes,
268263 Section 741, 843.1, if the offense inclu ded sexual
269264 abuse or sexual exploitation, 865 et seq., 885, 888,
270265 891, 1021, 1021.2, 1021.3, 1040.13a, 1087, 1088,
271266 1111.1, 1114, or 1123 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma
272267 Statutes or who enters this state and who has been
273268 convicted, received a suspended sentence, or received
274269 a deferred judgment for a crime or attempted crime
275270 which, if committed or attempted in this state, would
276271 be a crime or an attempt to commit a crime provided
277272 for in any of the laws, and
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305299 b. the State Department of Education shall not issue a
306300 certificate to and shall revoke the certificate of any
307301 person who has been convicted, whether upon a verdict
308302 or plea of guilty or upon a plea of nolo contendere,
309303 or received a suspended sentence or any probationary
310304 term for knowingly and willfully failing to r eport
311305 suspected abuse or neglect of a child in violation of
312306 Section 1-2-101 of Title 10A of the Oklahoma Statutes,
313307 and
314308 c. all funds collected by the State Department of
315309 Education for the issuance of certificates to
316310 instructional, supervisory, and administr ative
317311 personnel in the public schools of the state shall be
318312 deposited in the “Teachers’ Certification Fund” in the
319313 State Treasury and may be expended by the State Board
320314 of Education to finance the activities of the State
321315 Department of Education necessary t o administer the
322316 program, for consultative services, publication costs,
323317 actual and necessary travel expenses as provided in
324318 the State Travel Reimbursement Act incurred by persons
325319 performing research work, and other expenses found
326320 necessary by the State Boa rd of Education for the
327321 improvement of the preparation and certification of
328322 teachers in this state. Provided, any unobligated
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356349 balance in the Teachers ’ Certification Fund in excess
357350 of Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) on June 30 of any
358351 fiscal year shall be transferred to the General
359352 Revenue Fund of this state. Until July 1, 1997, the
360353 State Board of Education shall have authority for
361354 approval of teacher education programs. The State
362355 Board of Education shall also have authority for the
363356 administration of tea cher residency and professional
364357 development, subject to the provisions of the Oklahoma
365358 Teacher Preparation Act;
366359 7. Promulgate rules governing the classification, inspection,
367360 supervision, and accrediting of all public nursery, kindergarten,
368361 elementary and secondary schools, and on -site educational services
369362 provided by public school districts or state -accredited private
370363 schools in partial hospitalization programs, day treatment programs,
371364 and day hospital programs as defined in this section, Section 3-
372365 104.7 of this title, and Section 603.4 175.20 of Title 10 of the
373366 Oklahoma Statutes for persons between the ages of three (3) and
374367 twenty-one (21) years of age in the state. However, no school shall
375368 be denied accreditation solely on the basis of average daily
376369 attendance.
377370 Any school district which maintains an elementary school and
378371 faces the necessity of relocating its school facilities because of
379372 construction of a lake, either by state or federal authority, which
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407399 will inundate the school facilities, shall be entitl ed to receive
408400 probationary accreditation from the State Board of Education for a
409401 period of five (5) years after June 12, 1975, and any school
410402 district, otherwise qualified, shall be entitled to receive
411403 probationary accreditation from the State Board of Edu cation for a
412404 period of two (2) consecutive years to attain the minimum average
413405 daily attendance. The Head Start and public nurseries or
414406 kindergartens operated from community action agency funds shall not
415407 be subjected to the accrediting rules of the State Board of
416408 Education. Neither will the State Board of Education make rules
417409 affecting the operation of the public nurseries and kindergartens
418410 operated from federal funds secured through community action
419411 agencies even though they may be operating in the publi c schools of
420412 the state. However, any of the Head Start or public nurseries or
421413 kindergartens operated under federal regulations may make
422414 application for accrediting from the State Board of Education but
423415 will be accredited only if application for the approv al of the
424416 programs is made. The status of no school district shall be changed
425417 which will reduce it to a lower classification until due notice has
426418 been given to the proper authorities thereof and an opportunity
427419 given to correct the conditions which otherwi se would be the cause
428420 of such reduction.
429421 Private and parochial schools may be accredited and classified
430422 in like manner as public schools or, if an accrediting association
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458449 is approved by the State Board of Education, by procedures
459450 established by the State B oard of Education to accept accreditation
460451 by such accrediting association, if application is made to the State
461452 Board of Education for such accrediting;
462453 8. Be the legal agent of this state to accept, in its
463454 discretion, the provisions of any Act of Congress appropriating or
464455 apportioning funds which are now, or may hereafter be, provided for
465456 use in connection with any phase of the system of public education
466457 in Oklahoma. It shall prescribe such rules as it finds necessary to
467458 provide for the proper distributio n of such funds in accordance with
468459 the state and federal laws;
469460 9. Be and is specifically hereby designated as the agency of
470461 this state to cooperate and deal with any officer, board, or
471462 authority of the United States Government under any law of the
472463 United States which may require or recommend cooperation with any
473464 state board having charge of the administration of public schools
474465 unless otherwise provided by law;
475466 10. Be and is hereby designated as the “State Educational
476467 Agency” state educational agency referred to in Public Law 396 of
477468 the 79th Congress of the United States, as amended, which law states
478469 that the act may be cited known as the “National Richard B. Russell
479470 National School Lunch Act” Act, and the State Board of Education is
480471 hereby authorized and d irected to accept the terms and provisions of
481472 the act and to enter into such agreements, not in conflict with the
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509499 Constitution of Oklahoma or the Constitution and Statutes of the
510500 United States, as may be necessary or appropriate to secure for this
511501 state the benefits of the school lunch program established and
512502 referred to in the act;
513503 11. Have authority to secure and administer the benefits of the
514504 Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, Public Law 396 of the
515505 79th Congress of the United States, as amended, in this state and is
516506 hereby authorized to employ or appoint and fix the compensation of
517507 such additional officers or employees and to incur such expenses as
518508 may be necessary for the accomplishment of the above purpose, and
519509 administer the distribution of any state funds appropriated by the
520510 Legislature required as federal matching to reimburse on children ’s
521511 meals;
522512 12. Accept and provide for the administration of any land,
523513 money, buildings, gifts, donation donations, or other things of
524514 value which may be o ffered or bequeathed to the schools under the
525515 supervision or control of the Board;
526516 13. Have authority to require persons having administrative
527517 control of all school districts in Oklahoma to make such regular and
528518 special reports regarding the activities of the schools in the
529519 districts as the Board may deem needful for the proper exercise of
530520 its duties and functions. Such authority shall include the right of
531521 the State Board of Education to withhold all state funds under its
532522 control, to withhold official rec ognition including accrediting,
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560549 until such required reports have been filed and accepted in the
561550 office of the Board and to revoke the certificates of persons
562551 failing or refusing to make such reports;
563552 14. Have general supervision of the school lunch progra m. The
564553 State Board of Education may sponsor workshops for personnel and
565554 participants in the school lunch program and may develop, print, and
566555 distribute free of charge or sell any materials, books, and
567556 bulletins to be used in the school lunch programs. Th ere is hereby
568557 created in the State Treasury a revolving fund for the Board, to be
569558 designated the “School Lunch Workshop Revolving Fund ”. The fund
570559 shall consist of all fees derived from or on behalf of any
571560 participant in any such workshop sponsored by the State Board of
572561 Education, or from the sale of any materials, books, and bulletins,
573562 and funds shall be disbursed for expenses of such workshops and for
574563 developing, printing, and distributing of the materials, books, and
575564 bulletins relating to the school lunc h program. The fund shall be
576565 administered in accordance with Section 155 of Title 62 of the
577566 Oklahoma Statutes;
578567 15. Prescribe all forms for school district and county officers
579568 to report to the State Board of Education where required. The State
580569 Board of Education shall also prescribe a list of appropriation
581570 accounts by which the funds of school districts shall be budgeted,
582571 accounted for, and expended; and it shall be the duty of the State
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610598 Auditor and Inspector in prescribing all budgeting, accounting, and
611599 reporting forms for school funds to conform to such lists;
612600 16. Provide for the establishment of a uniform system of pupil
613601 and personnel accounting, records, and reports;
614602 17. Have authority to provide for the health and safety of
615603 school children and schoo l personnel while under the jurisdiction of
616604 school authorities;
617605 18. Provide for the supervision of the transportation of
618606 pupils;
619607 19. Have authority, upon request of the local school board, to
620608 act in behalf of the public schools of the state in the purcha se of
621609 transportation equipment;
622610 20. Have authority and is hereby required to perform all duties
623611 necessary to the administration of the public school system in
624612 Oklahoma as specified in the Oklahoma School Code; and, in addition
625613 thereto, those duties not sp ecifically mentioned herein if not
626614 delegated by law to any other agency or official;
627615 21. Administer the State Public Common School Building
628616 Equalization Fund established by Section 32 of Article X of the
629617 Oklahoma Constitution. Any monies as may be approp riated or
630618 designated by the Legislature, other than ad valorem taxes, any
631619 other funds identified by the State Department of Education, which
632620 may include, but not be limited to, grants -in-aid from the federal
633621 government for building purposes, the proceeds o f all property that
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661648 shall fall to the state by escheat, penalties for unlawful holding
662649 of real estate by corporations, and capital gains on assets of the
663650 permanent school funds, shall be deposited in the State Public
664651 Common School Building Equalization Fun d. The fund shall be used to
665652 aid school districts and charter schools in acquiring buildings,
666653 subject to the limitations fixed by Section 32 of Article X of the
667654 Oklahoma Constitution. It is hereby declared that redbud school
668655 grants disbursed from the Sta te Public Common School Building
669656 Equalization Fund shall be used for the same purposes as a building
670657 fund, as provided for in Section 1 -118 of this title. It is hereby
671658 declared that the term “school districts” as used in Section 32 of
672659 Article X of the Okl ahoma Constitution shall mean school districts
673660 and eligible charter schools as defined in subsection B of this
674661 section. The State Board of Education shall disburse redbud school
675662 grants annually from the State Public Common School Building
676663 Equalization Fund to public schools and eligible charter schools
677664 pursuant to subsection B of this section. The Board shall
678665 promulgate rules for the implementation of disbursing redbud school
679666 grants pursuant to this section. The State Board of Education shall
680667 prescribe rules for making grants of aid from, and for otherwise
681668 administering, the fund pursuant to the provisions of this
682669 paragraph, and may employ and fix the duties and compensation of
683670 technicians, aides, clerks, stenographers, attorneys, and other
684671 personnel deemed necessary to carry out the provisions of this
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712698 paragraph. The cost of administering the fund shall be paid from
713699 monies appropriated to the State Board of Education for the
714700 operation of the State Department of Education. From monies
715701 apportioned to the f und, the State Department of Education may
716702 reserve not more than one -half of one percent (1/2 of 1%) for
717703 purposes of administering the fund;
718704 22. Recognize that the Director of the Department of
719705 Corrections shall be the administrative authority for the sch ools
720706 which are maintained in the state reformatories and shall appoint
721707 the principals and teachers in such schools. Provided, that rules
722708 of the State Board of Education for the classification, inspection,
723709 and accreditation of public schools shall be appli cable to such
724710 schools; and such schools shall comply with standards set by the
725711 State Board of Education; and
726712 23. Have authority to administer a revolving fund which is
727713 hereby created in the State Treasury, to be designated the
728714 “Statistical Services Revolv ing Fund”. The fund shall consist of
729715 all monies received from the various school districts of the state,
730716 the United States Government, and other sources for the purpose of
731717 furnishing or financing statistical services and for any other
732718 purpose as designate d by the Legislature. The State Board of
733719 Education is hereby authorized to enter into agreements with school
734720 districts, municipalities, the United States Government,
735721 foundations, and other agencies or individuals for services,
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763748 programs, or research projec ts. The Statistical Services Revolving
764749 Fund shall be administered in accordance with Section 155 of Title
765750 62 of the Oklahoma Statutes.
766751 B. 1. The redbud school grants shall be determined by the
767752 State Department of Education as follows:
768753 a. divide the county four-mill levy revenue by four to
769754 determine the nonchargeable county four -mill revenue
770755 for each school district,
771756 b. determine the amount of new revenue generated by the
772757 five-mill building fund levy as authorized by Section
773758 10 of Article X of the Oklahom a Constitution for each
774759 school district as reported in the Oklahoma Cost
775760 Accounting System for the preceding fiscal year,
776761 c. add the amounts calculated in subparagraphs a and b of
777762 this paragraph to determine the nonchargeable millage
778763 for each school distri ct,
779764 d. add the nonchargeable millage in each district
780765 statewide as calculated in subparagraph c of this
781766 paragraph and divide the total by the average daily
782767 membership in public schools statewide based on the
783768 preceding school year ’s average daily membership ,
784769 according to the provisions of Section 18 -107 of this
785770 title. This amount is the statewide nonchargeable
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813797 millage per student, known as the baseline local
814798 funding per student,
815799 e. all eligible charter schools shall be included in
816800 these calculations as uniq ue school districts,
817801 separate from the school district that may sponsor the
818802 eligible charter school, and the total number of
819803 districts shall be used to determine the statewide
820804 average baseline local funding per student,
821805 f. for each school district or eligi ble charter school
822806 which is below the baseline local funding per student,
823807 the Department shall subtract the baseline local
824808 funding per student from the average nonchargeable
825809 millage per student of the school district or eligible
826810 charter school to determine the nonchargeable millage
827811 per student shortfall for each district, and
828812 g. the nonchargeable millage per student shortfall for a
829813 school district or eligible charter school shall be
830814 multiplied by the average daily membership of the
831815 preceding school year of the eligible school district
832816 or eligible charter school. This amount shall be the
833817 redbud school grant amount for the school district or
834818 eligible charter school.
835819 2. For fiscal year 2022, monies for the redbud school grants
836820 shall be expended from the funds apportioned pursuant to Section 426
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864847 of Title 63 of the Oklahoma Statutes. For fiscal year 2023 and each
865848 subsequent fiscal year, monies for the redbud school grants shall be
866849 appropriated pursuant to Section 426 of Title 63 of the Oklahoma
867850 Statutes, not to exceed three-fourths (3/4) of the tax collected in
868851 the preceding fiscal year pursuant to Section 426 of Title 63 of the
869852 Oklahoma Statutes as determined by the Oklahoma Tax Commission. For
870853 fiscal year 2023 and each subsequent fiscal year, if such
871854 appropriated funds are insufficient to fund the redbud school
872855 grants, then an additional apportionment of funds shall be made from
873856 sales tax collections as provided by subsection D of Section 1353 of
874857 Title 68 of the Oklahoma Statutes. If both funds are insufficie nt,
875858 the Department shall promulgate rules to permit a decrease to the
876859 baseline local funding per student to the highest amount allowed
877860 with the funding available.
878861 3. As used in this section, “eligible charter school ” shall
879862 mean a charter school which is s ponsored pursuant to the provisions
880863 of the Oklahoma Charter Schools Act. Provided, however, eligible
881864 charter school shall not include a statewide virtual charter school
882865 sponsored by the Statewide Charter School Board but shall only
883866 include those which pro vide in-person or blended instruction, as
884867 provided by Section 1 -111 of this title, to not less than two -thirds
885868 (2/3) of students as the primary means of instructional service
886869 delivery.
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914896 4. The Department shall develop a program to acknowledge the
915897 redbud school grant recipients and shall include elected members of
916898 the House of Representatives and Senate who represent the school
917899 districts and eligible charter schools.
918900 5. The Department shall create a dedicated page on its website
919901 listing annual redbud school grant recipients, amount awarded to
920902 each recipient, and other pertinent information about the Redbud
921903 School Funding Act.
922904 6. The Department shall provide the chair of the House
923905 Appropriations and Budget Committee and the chair of the Senate
924906 Appropriations Committee no later than February 1 of each year with
925907 an estimate of the upcoming year ’s redbud school grant allocation as
926908 prescribed by this section.
927909 SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 3 -104.1, is
928910 amended to read as foll ows:
929911 Section 3-104.1. No person shall receive a certificate for an
930912 instructional, supervisory , or administrative position in an
931913 accredited school of this state who has been convicted of a felony,
932914 any crime involving moral turpitude , knowingly and willfull y failing
933915 to report suspected abuse or neglect of a child in violation of
934916 Section 1-2-101 of Title 10A of the Oklahoma Statutes, or a felony
935917 violation of the narcotic laws of the United States or the State of
936918 Oklahoma this state, provided the conviction wa s entered within the
937919 preceding ten-year period.
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965946 SECTION 3. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 5 -142, is
966947 amended to read as follows:
967948 Section 5-142. A. Except as otherwise provided for in
968949 subsection F of this section, for purposes o f employment, a board of
969950 education may request in writing to the State Board of Education
970951 that a national criminal history record check be conducted of any
971952 employee of the school and shall request such information for any
972953 person seeking employment with the school; provided, that a board of
973954 education shall not be required to obtain a new criminal history
974955 record check for an individual who has obtained certification from
975956 the State Department of Education within the previous twelve (12)
976957 months. The Oklahoma S tate Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) shall
977958 obtain fingerprints of the employee or prospective employee and
978959 require that the person pay a search fee not to exceed Fifty Dollars
979960 ($50.00) or the cost of the search, whichever is the lesser amount.
980961 The fee shall be deposited in the OSBI Revolving Fund. School
981962 districts may reimburse employees for the cost of the search. The
982963 State Board of Education shall contact the Oklahoma State Bureau of
983964 Investigation OSBI for any national criminal history record of the
984965 person within fourteen (14) working days of receiving a written
985966 request from the board of education.
986967 B. The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation shall provide the
987968 national criminal history record check requested by the State Board
988969 of Education within fourt een (14) working days from the receipt of
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1016996 the request. The Bureau may contact the Federal Bureau of
1017997 Investigation to obtain the information requested.
1018998 C. The State Board of Education shall provide the information
1019999 received from the Oklahoma State Bureau o f Investigation to the
10201000 board of education within fourteen (14) days from the receipt of the
10211001 information. The State Board of Education shall provide any follow -
10221002 up information received from the OSBI concerning a person for which
10231003 whom a national criminal his tory record check was requested to the
10241004 employing board of education.
10251005 D. For the purpose of this section:
10261006 1. “Board of education” includes both public and private boards
10271007 of education within or outside this state;
10281008 2. “Employing agency” means a political subdivision or law
10291009 enforcement agency in this state;
10301010 3. “Law enforcement officer ” means a peace or police officer
10311011 who is certified by the Council on Law Enforcement Education and
10321012 Training;
10331013 4. “National criminal history record check ” means a national
10341014 criminal history record check as defined in Section 150.9 of Title
10351015 74 of the Oklahoma Statutes; and
10361016 5. “Prospective employee ” means an individual who has received
10371017 an offer of temporary employment from a school district pending the
10381018 results of the national crimi nal history record check.
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10661045 E. Each public board of education within this state shall
10671046 promulgate a statement regarding the felony record search policy for
10681047 that school district. The policy may permit temporary employment of
10691048 prospective employees for a maxim um of sixty (60) days pending
10701049 receipt of results of national criminal history record check
10711050 requests. The temporary employment of the prospective employee
10721051 shall terminate after sixty (60) days unless the school district
10731052 receives the results of the national criminal history record check.
10741053 The sixty-day temporary employment period shall begin on the first
10751054 day the prospective employee reports for duty at the employing
10761055 school district. Prospective employees shall be notified of the
10771056 requirement, the fee , and the reimbursement policy when first
10781057 interviewed concerning employment. The school district ’s
10791058 reimbursement policy shall provide, at a minimum, that employees
10801059 shall be promptly reimbursed in full for the fee if employed by the
10811060 district at the time the nation al criminal history record check
10821061 request is made unless the person was employed pending receipt of
10831062 results as set forth above.
10841063 F. 1. Any person who has been employed as a full -time teacher
10851064 by a school district in this state and applies for employment as a
10861065 full-time teacher in another a school district in this state may not
10871066 be required to have a national criminal history record check if the
10881067 teacher produces a copy of a national criminal history record check
10891068 completed within the preceding five (5) years and a letter from the
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11171095 school district in which the teacher was employed stating the
11181096 teacher left in good standing and whether the teacher was the
11191097 subject of any allegation of inappropriate behavior with a student .
11201098 2. For any person applying for employment as a substitute
11211099 teacher, a national criminal history record check shall be required
11221100 for the school year; provided, however, a board of education may
11231101 choose whether to require a national criminal history record check
11241102 from a prospective substitute teacher who has been employed by the
11251103 school district in the last year. Any person applying for
11261104 employment as a substitute teacher in more than one school district
11271105 shall only be required to have one national criminal history record
11281106 check, and, upon the request of the substitute teacher, that record
11291107 check shall be sent to all other school districts in which the
11301108 substitute teacher is applying to teach.
11311109 3. Any person employed as a full -time teacher by a school
11321110 district in this state in the five (5) years immediately prec eding
11331111 an application for employment as a substitute teacher may not be
11341112 required to have a national criminal history record check, if the
11351113 teacher produces a copy of a national criminal history record check
11361114 completed within the preceding five (5) years and a letter from the
11371115 school district in which the teacher was last employed stating the
11381116 teacher left in good standing and whether the teacher was the
11391117 subject of any allegation of inappropriate behavior with a student .
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11671144 4. Any person employed as a substitute te acher by a school
11681145 district in this state for a minimum of five (5) years immediately
11691146 preceding an application for employment as a full -time teacher in a
11701147 school district in this state may not be required to have a national
11711148 criminal history record check if t he teacher produces a copy of a
11721149 national criminal history record check completed within the
11731150 preceding five (5) years and a letter from the school district in
11741151 which the teacher was employed as a substitute teacher stating the
11751152 teacher left in good standing and whether the teacher was the
11761153 subject of any allegation of inappropriate behavior with a student .
11771154 5. Any person employed as a full -time teacher by a school
11781155 district in this state for ten (10) or more consecutive years
11791156 immediately preceding an application for employment as a substitute
11801157 teacher in the same school district may not be required to have a
11811158 national criminal history record check for as long as the person
11821159 remains employed for consecutive years by that school district as a
11831160 substitute teacher, if th e teacher left full-time employment in good
11841161 standing. If the teacher applies for employment as a substitute
11851162 teacher in another school district, a national criminal history
11861163 record check shall be required.
11871164 G. 1. Except as otherwise provided by this subsec tion, any
11881165 teacher employed by an Oklahoma school district prior to the
11891166 effective date of this act May 19, 2020, who does not have an
11901167 Oklahoma criminal history record check from the Oklahoma State
11911168
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12181194 Bureau of Investigation as well as a national criminal histo ry
12191195 record check, as defined in Section 150.9 of Title 74 of the
12201196 Oklahoma Statutes, on file with his or her employing district as
12211197 required by this section shall complete the criminal history record
12221198 checks upon the next renewal of his or her Standard Teaching
12231199 Certificate standard teaching certificate as required by Section 6 -
12241200 154.1 of this title or State Board of Education administrative rules
12251201 promulgated thereto.
12261202 2. Except as otherwise provided by this subsection, any other
12271203 person employed by an Oklahoma sch ool district prior to the
12281204 effective date of this act May 19, 2020, who does not have an
12291205 Oklahoma criminal history record check from the Oklahoma State
12301206 Bureau of Investigation as well as a national criminal history
12311207 record check, as defined in Section 150.9 of Title 74 of the
12321208 Oklahoma Statutes, on file with his or her employing district as
12331209 required by this section shall have until July 1, 2022, to complete
12341210 the criminal history record checks.
12351211 3. Any teacher eligible to retire from the Teachers ’ Retirement
12361212 System of Oklahoma who does not have an Oklahoma criminal history
12371213 record check from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation as well
12381214 as a national criminal history record check, as defined in Section
12391215 150.9 of Title 74 of the Oklahoma Statutes, on file with his or her
12401216 employing district as required by this section shall complete the
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12681243 criminal history record checks by the earlier of the following
12691244 dates:
12701245 a. July 1, 2022, or
12711246 b. at the next renewal of his or her Standard Teaching
12721247 Certificate standard teaching cert ificate as required
12731248 by Section 6-154.1 of this title or State Board of
12741249 Education administrative rules promulgated thereto.
12751250 H. The provisions of this section shall not apply to technology
12761251 center employees hired on a part -time or temporary basis for the
12771252 instruction of adult students only.
12781253 I. The provisions of this section shall not apply to law
12791254 enforcement officers who are employed by an employing agency at the
12801255 time of application for employment at a public school district.
12811256 J. Nothing in this section shall be construed to impose
12821257 liability on school districts, except in negligence, for employing
12831258 prospective employees within the sixty -day temporary employment
12841259 window pending the results of the national criminal history record
12851260 check.
12861261 SECTION 4. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 6 -101.22, is
12871262 amended to read as follows:
12881263 Section 6-101.22. A. Subject to the provisions of the Teacher
12891264 Due Process Act of 1990, a career teacher may be dismissed or not
12901265 reemployed for:
12911266 1. Willful neglect of dut y;
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13191293 2. Repeated negligence in performance of duty;
13201294 3. Mental or physical abuse to a child;
13211295 4. Knowing and willful failure to report suspected child abuse
13221296 or neglect;
13231297 5. Incompetency;
13241298 5. 6. Instructional ineffectiveness;
13251299 6. 7. Unsatisfactory teaching p erformance;
13261300 7. 8. Commission of an act of moral turpitude; or
13271301 8. 9. Abandonment of contract.
13281302 B. Subject to the provisions of the Teacher Due Process Act of
13291303 1990, a probationary teacher may be dismissed or not reemployed for
13301304 cause.
13311305 C. During the 2017-2018 school year and thereafter:
13321306 1. A career teacher who has received a district evaluation
13331307 rating of “ineffective” as measured pursuant to the Oklahoma Teacher
13341308 and Leader Effectiveness Evaluation System (TLE) for two (2)
13351309 consecutive school years shall be d ismissed or not reemployed on the
13361310 grounds of instructional ineffectiveness by the school district,
13371311 subject to the provisions of the Teacher Due Process Act of 1990.
13381312 However, the superintendent may recommend and the school district
13391313 board of education may a pprove continued employment of the teacher;
13401314 and
13411315 2. A career teacher who has received a district evaluation
13421316 rating of “needs improvement” or lower as measured pursuant to the
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13701343 TLE for three (3) consecutive school years may be dismissed or not
13711344 reemployed on the grounds of instructional ineffectiveness by the
13721345 school district, subject to the provisions of the Teacher Due
13731346 Process Act of 1990.
13741347 D. During the 2017-2018 school year and thereafter:
13751348 1. A probationary teacher who has received a district
13761349 evaluation rating of “ineffective” as measured pursuant to the TLE
13771350 for two (2) consecutive school years may be dismissed or not
13781351 reemployed by the school district subject to the provisions of the
13791352 Teacher Due Process Act of 1990; and
13801353 2. A probationary teacher who has no t attained career teacher
13811354 status within a four -year period may be dismissed or not reemployed
13821355 by the school district, subject to the provisions of the Teacher Due
13831356 Process Act of 1990.
13841357 E. A teacher shall be dismissed or not reemployed, unless a
13851358 presidential or gubernatorial pardon has been issued, if during the
13861359 term of employment the teacher is convicted in this state, the
13871360 United States, or another state of:
13881361 1. Any sex offense subject to the Sex Offenders Registration
13891362 Act in this state or subject to anothe r state’s or the federal sex
13901363 offender registration provisions; or
13911364 2. Knowingly and willfully failing to report suspected abuse or
13921365 neglect of a child in violation of Section 1 -2-101 of Title 10A of
13931366 the Oklahoma Statutes; or
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14211393 3. Any felony offense.
14221394 F. A teacher may be dismissed, refused employment , or not
14231395 reemployed after a finding that such person has engaged in acts that
14241396 could form the basis of criminal charges sufficient to result in the
14251397 denial or revocation of a certificate for a reason set forth in
14261398 subparagraph a or b of paragraph 6 of Section 3 -104 of this title.
14271399 G. As used in this section, “abandonment of contract ” means the
14281400 failure of a teacher to report at the beginning of the contract term
14291401 or otherwise perform the duties of a contract of employmen t when the
14301402 teacher has accepted other employment or is performing work for
14311403 another employer that prevents the teacher from fulfilling the
14321404 obligations of the contract of employment.
14331405 H. A school district shall notify the State Board of Education
14341406 within ten (10) days of the dismissal or nonreemployment of a
14351407 probationary or career teacher for reasons outlined in subsection F
14361408 of this section.
14371409 SECTION 5. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 6 -194, as
14381410 last amended by Section 2, Chapter 15, O .S.L. 2023 (70 O.S. Supp.
14391411 2024, Section 6-194), is amended to read as follows:
14401412 Section 6-194. A. The district boards of education of this
14411413 state shall establish professional development programs for the
14421414 certified teachers and administrators of the distric t. Programs
14431415 shall be adopted by each board based upon recommendations of a
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14711442 professional development committee appointed by the board of
14721443 education for the district.
14731444 B. Each professional development committee shall include
14741445 classroom teachers, administrator s, school counselors or licensed
14751446 mental health providers, and parents, guardians , or custodians of
14761447 children in the school district and shall consult with a higher
14771448 education faculty. A majority of the members of the professional
14781449 development committee shall be composed of classroom teachers. The
14791450 teacher members shall be selected by a designated administrator of
14801451 the school district from a list of names submitted by the teachers
14811452 in the school district. The members selected shall be subject to
14821453 the approval of a majority vote of the teachers in the district.
14831454 C. In developing program recommendations, each professional
14841455 development committee shall annually utilize a data -driven approach
14851456 to analyze student data and determine district and school
14861457 professional development needs. The professional development
14871458 programs adopted shall be directed toward development of
14881459 competencies and instructional strategies in the core curriculum
14891460 areas for the following goals:
14901461 1. Increasing the academic performance data scores for the
14911462 district and each school site;
14921463 2. Closing achievement gaps among student subgroups;
14931464 3. Increasing student achievement as demonstrated on state -
14941465 mandated tests and the ACT;
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15221492 4. Increasing high school graduation rates; and
15231493 5. Decreasing college remediation rates.
15241494 Each program may also include components on classroom management
15251495 and student discipline strategies, outreach to parents, guardians ,
15261496 or custodians of students, special education, and racial and ethnic
15271497 education, which all personnel defined as teache rs in Section 1-116
15281498 of this title shall be required to complete at a frequency as
15291499 determined by the board of education. The State Board of Education
15301500 shall provide guidelines to assist school districts in developing
15311501 and implementing racial and ethnic educa tion components into
15321502 professional development programs.
15331503 D. A program which includes the following information shall be
15341504 completed the first year a certified teacher is employed by a school
15351505 district, and then once every fifth academic year:
15361506 1. Training on recognition of child abuse and neglect;
15371507 2. Recognition of child sexual abuse;
15381508 3. Proper reporting of suspected abuse including the reporting
15391509 requirements of Section 1 -2-101 of Title 10A of the Oklahoma
15401510 Statutes and Section 1210.163 of this title and asso ciated penalties
15411511 for failure to report ; and
15421512 4. Available resources.
15431513 E. One time per year, beginning in the 2009 -2010 school year,
15441514 training in the area of autism shall be offered and all resident
15451515 teachers of students in early childhood programs through gr ade three
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15731542 shall be required to complete the autism training during the
15741543 resident year and at least one time every three (3) years
15751544 thereafter. All other teachers and education support professionals
15761545 of students in early childhood programs through grade three shall be
15771546 required to complete the autism training at least one time every
15781547 three (3) years. The autism training shall include a minimum
15791548 awareness of the characteristics of autistic children, resources
15801549 available and an introduction to positive behavior sup ports to
15811550 challenging behavior. Each adopted program shall allow school
15821551 counselors to receive at least one -third (1/3) of the hours or
15831552 credit required each year through programs or courses specifically
15841553 designed for school counselors.
15851554 Districts are authoriz ed to utilize any means for professional
15861555 development that is not prohibited by law including, but not limited
15871556 to, professional development provided by the district, any state
15881557 agency, institution of higher education, or any private entity.
15891558 F. One time per year, beginning in the 2020 -2021 school year, a
15901559 dyslexia awareness program shall be offered. Beginning in the 2023 -
15911560 2024 school year, the program shall include information and training
15921561 in dysgraphia. At a minimum, the program shall include:
15931562 1. Training in awareness of dyslexia characteristics in
15941563 students;
15951564 2. Training in effective classroom instruction to meet the
15961565 needs of students with dyslexia; and
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16241592 3. Available dyslexia resources for teachers, students and
16251593 parents.
16261594 G. Except as otherwise provided for in this subsection, each
16271595 certified teacher in this state shall be required by the district
16281596 board of education to meet the professional development requirements
16291597 established by the board, or established through the negotiation
16301598 process. Except as otherwise p rovided for in this subsection, the
16311599 professional development requirements established by each board of
16321600 education shall require every teacher to annually complete a minimum
16331601 number of the total number of points required to maintain
16341602 employment; provided, no m ore than a total of one hundred fifty
16351603 (150) hours of local, state, or federal professional development or
16361604 training shall be required for classroom teachers during any five -
16371605 year period. Failure of any teacher to meet district board of
16381606 education professiona l development requirements may be grounds for
16391607 nonrenewal of such teacher ’s contract by the board. Such failure
16401608 may also be grounds for nonconsideration of salary increments
16411609 affecting the teacher. Teachers shall maintain written
16421610 documentation of all their completed professional development.
16431611 H. Each district shall annually submit a report to the State
16441612 Department of Education on the district level professional
16451613 development needs, activities completed, expenditures, and results
16461614 achieved for each school year b y each goal as provided in subsection
16471615 C of this section. If a school district elects not to adopt and
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16751642 offer a professional development program as provided for in
16761643 subsection A of this section, the district shall not be required to
16771644 submit an annual report a s required pursuant to this subsection but
16781645 shall report to the State Department of Education its election not
16791646 to offer a program and all professional development activities
16801647 completed by teachers and administrators of the school district.
16811648 I. Subject to the availability of funds, the Department shall
16821649 develop an online system for reporting as required in subsection H
16831650 of this section. The Department shall also make such information
16841651 available on its website.
16851652 SECTION 6. AMENDATORY 70 O .S. 2021, Section 1210.163, as
16861653 amended by Section 46, Chapter 59, O.S.L. 2024 (70 O.S. Supp. 2024,
16871654 Section 1210.163), is amended to read as follows:
16881655 Section 1210.163. A. Every school employee having reason to
16891656 believe that a student under the age of eight een (18) years is a
16901657 victim of abuse or neglect shall report the matter immediately to
16911658 the Department of Human Services and local law enforcement. Reports
16921659 to the Department shall be made to the hotline provided for in
16931660 Section 1-2-101 of Title 10A of the Ok lahoma Statutes. Any
16941661 allegation of abuse or neglect reported in any manner to a county
16951662 office shall immediately be referred to the hotline by the
16961663 Department.
16971664 B. Every school employee having reason to believe that a
16981665 student age eighteen (18) years or olde r is a victim of abuse or
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17261692 neglect shall report the matter immediately to local law
17271693 enforcement.
17281694 C. In reports required by subsection A or B of this section,
17291695 local law enforcement shall keep confidential and redact any
17301696 information identifying the reporting school employee unless
17311697 otherwise ordered by the court. A school employee with knowledge of
17321698 a report required by subsection A or B of this section shall not
17331699 disclose information identifying the reporting school employee
17341700 unless otherwise ordered by the cou rt or as part of an investigation
17351701 by local law enforcement or the Department.
17361702 D. Every school employee shall annually sign an attestation
17371703 acknowledging his or her responsibility to report suspected child
17381704 abuse or neglect pursuant to this section and Secti on 1-2-101 of
17391705 Title 10A of the Oklahoma Statutes.
17401706 E. For the purposes of this section, “child abuse and neglect ”
17411707 shall include, but not be limited to:
17421708 1. Child abuse as defined in Section 843.5 of Title 21 of the
17431709 Oklahoma Statutes;
17441710 2. Sexual abuse or se xual exploitation as defined in Section 1 -
17451711 1-105 of Title 10A of the Oklahoma Statutes;
17461712 3. Contributing to the delinquency of a minor , as defined
17471713 described in Section 856 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
17481714 4. Trafficking in children , as defined in Section 866 of Title
17491715 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
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17771742 5. Incest, as described in Section 885 of Title 21 of the
17781743 Oklahoma Statutes;
17791744 6. Forcible sodomy, as described in Section 888 of Title 21 of
17801745 the Oklahoma Statutes;
17811746 7. Maliciously, forcibly or fraudulently tak ing or enticing a
17821747 child away, as described in Section 891 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma
17831748 Statutes;
17841749 8. Soliciting or aiding a minor child to perform or showing,
17851750 exhibiting, loaning or distributing obscene material or child sexual
17861751 abuse material, as described in Section 1021 of Title 21 of the
17871752 Oklahoma Statutes;
17881753 9. Procuring or causing the participation of any minor child in
17891754 any child sexual abuse material or knowingly possessing, procuring
17901755 or manufacturing child sexual abuse material, as described in
17911756 Section 1021.2 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
17921757 10. Permitting or consenting to the participation of a minor
17931758 child in any child sexual abuse material, as described in Section
17941759 1021.3 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
17951760 11. Facilitating, encouraging, offeri ng or soliciting sexual
17961761 conduct with a minor, as described in Section 1040.13a of Title 21
17971762 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
17981763 12. Offering or offering to secure a minor child for the
17991764 purposes of prostitution or any other lewd or indecent act, as
18001765 described in Section 1087 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
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18281792 13. Causing, inducing, persuading or encouraging a minor child
18291793 to engage or continue to engage in prostitution, as described in
18301794 Section 1088 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
18311795 14. Rape or rape by instrumen tation, as described in Sections
18321796 1111.1 and 1114 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes; and
18331797 15. Making any oral, written or electronically or computer -
18341798 generated lewd or indecent proposals to a minor child under the age
18351799 of sixteen (16) as described in Secti on 1123 of Title 21 of the
18361800 Oklahoma Statutes.
18371801 SECTION 7. This act shall become effective July 1, 2025.
18381802 SECTION 8. It being immediately necessary for the preservation
18391803 of the public peace, health, or safety, an emergency is hereby
18401804 declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and
18411805 be in full force from and after its passage and approval.
1806+Passed the Senate the 24th day of March, 2025.
18421807
1843-COMMITTEE REPORT BY: COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION OVERSIGHT, dated
1844-04/23/2025 - DO PASS.
1808+
1809+
1810+ Presiding Officer of the Senate
1811+
1812+
1813+Passed the House of Representatives t he ____ day of __________,
1814+2025.
1815+
1816+
1817+
1818+ Presiding Officer of the House
1819+ of Representatives
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