This week was an active week for the state of Oklahoma. A whole list of new House and Senate bills were introduced on varying topics from school credit hours to new proposed fees for legal newspapers. Here is a rundown on a few proposals. As of this writing these bills are only in review.
Oklahoma House Bill 216 was introduced on February 3, 2025, by Representative John Pfeiffer and proposes modifications to the fees and procedures associated with the publication of legal notices in the state. The bill seeks to amend Section 121 of Title 28 of the Oklahoma Statutes, focusing on several key areas.
For non-tabular content, the bill proposes increasing the fee from the current $0.14 per word for the first insertion to $0.22, and from $0.13 per word for subsequent insertions to $0.20. For tabular content, such as graphics, maps and lists, the fee would be set at $0.70 per line per newspaper column in width for the first insertion, and $0.65 per line for each subsequent insertion.
The bill mandates that newspapers publish legal notices in a format readable to a reasonable person, specifying that the type size should be no less than eight-point and no more than 10-point non-condensed type, unless a larger size is requested in writing. It requires newspapers to post legal notices on their websites, if available, in front of any paywall – meaning, it should be free to the public - and upload them to a statewide website maintained jointly by many Oklahoma newspapers qualified to publish such notices. These online postings must be done in a timely manner but do not invalidate the publication if delayed. Individuals or officials responsible for publishing legal notices must submit them in writing or electronically by the newspaper's established deadline, which cannot be more than five business days before the publication date, excluding the publication date, weekend, and legal holidays.
Upon request, newspapers are required to confirm receipt of the notice and inform the submitter of the publication dates. If a newspaper fails to publish the notice as confirmed, it must publish the notice in a future issue specified by the submitter at no additional charge. For notices requiring multiple insertions, only the first omitted notice must be run at no charge.
OklahomaSenateBill628, introduced in the 2025 Regular Session by Senato rChristi Gillespie, proposes modifications to the state's firearm regulations, particularly concerning unlawful carry provisions. The bill seeks to authorize the governing bodies of towns, cities or counties to permit the concealed carry of handguns into structures, buildings or office spaces owned or leased by these entities. However, this authorization explicitly excludes courthouses and detention facilities. Additionally, the bill allows governing bodies to enable their employees to carry firearms during their duties, Oklahoma House Bill 1944, introduced by Representative Michelle McCane on February 3, 2025, proposes a system for assigning high school students' grade levels based on the number of course credits they've earned. This system is set to begin with students entering ninth grade in the 2025-2026 school year.
Under this bill, students would be classified as follows: Freshman, 9th grade: 0 to 6 earned credits; sophomore, 10th grade: 7 to 12 earned credits; junior, 11th grade: 13 to 18 earned credits; senior, 12thgrade: 19 or more earned credits. Students who do not accumulate the necessary credits by the end of a school year will remain at their current grade level and will not advance.
Additionally, the bill mandates that high school report cards include the student's total earned credits to date, the student's grade level based on earned credits, a description of outstanding graduation requirements and the student's anticipated graduation date. The bill is scheduled to take effect on July 1, 2025, and includes an emergency clause to emphasize its immediate importance for educational planning and student progress tracking.
Oklahoma House Bill 1932, introduced in the 2025 Regular Session by Representative Jonathan Wilk, proposes the creation of the 'Donald J. Trump Mass Deportation Revolving Fund' within the State Treasury. This fund is intended to finance the deportation of illegal immigrants.
It is designed as a continuing fund, not subject to fiscal year limitations and will consist of monies received from sources provided by law. The State Treasurer is authorized to budget and expend these funds for deportation purposes. The bill includes an emergency clause, allowing it to take effect immediately upon passage and approval.