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STATE OF OKLAHOMA
2nd Session of the 60th Legislature (2026)
HOUSE BILL 3850 By: Roberts
AS INTRODUCED
An Act relating to prisons and reformatories;
amending 57 O.S. 2021, Sections 510.7 and 510.8,
which relate to the Oklahoma Inmate Literacy Act;
directing the Department of Corrections to fully fund
program for inmates to obtain high school equivalency
diplomas; deleting references to reading proficiency
program; removing financial hardship exception; and
providing an effective date.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 57 O.S. 2021, Section 510.7, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 510.7. A. The Department of Corrections shall
establish and fully fund a program to ensure that inmates have an
opportunity to achieve at least a high school equivalency
development level of proficiency in reading, writing and computation
skills, to the extent resources are available, prior to release,
receive a high school equivalency diploma. The provisions of this
subsection shall apply to all inmates in the custody of the
Department of Corrections, except those inmates identified and
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documented, through the testing requirements provided in subsection
B of this section, to be incapable of benefiting from education
programs, and except those inmates who have already achieved
obtained a general educational development level of proficiency in
reading, writing and computation skills high school equivalency
diploma.
B. The Department of Corrections, in fulfilling its duty to
assess the educational and training needs of an inmate as part of
the assessment and reception process required by Section 530.1 of
this title, shall administer an examination to determine the
educational proficiency level of the inmate, the existence of any
learning disabilities, and any other factors relevant to determining
if the inmate is capable of achieving the educational proficiency
level established in subsection A of this section and if so, to
determine the type of education programs necessary to bring the
inmate to the obtaining a high school equivalency development level
of proficiency diploma.
SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 57 O.S. 2021, Section 510.8, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 510.8. A. The Department of Corrections shall
implement procedures to ensure that priority for placement of
eligible inmates in education programs be given to inmates lacking
basic literacy skills and to inmates closest to their projected
release dates.
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B. Any incarcerated inmate that refuses to participate in
recommended education programs shall be ineligible for earned
credits as provided in Section 138.1 of this title and shall
jeopardize the eligibility of the inmate for parole or participation
in the Preparole Conditional Supervision Program.
C. Any eligible inmate who has not achieved the educational
proficiency level obtained a high school equivalency diploma
established in Section 510.7 of this title, prior to the date of
eligibility for parole or preparole conditional supervision, shall
be required by the Pardon and Parole Board to participate in
education programs approved by the Board to achieve the proficiency
level or, at the discretion of the Board, to obtain a high school
equivalency diploma as a condition of parole or preparole
conditional supervision. If education programs are not available in
the community where the inmate resides, or if the Board finds that
the educational requirements would be a financial hardship on the
inmate or that if the inmate is not physically able to participate,
the Board may waive the educational requirement set forth in this
section.
SECTION 3. This act shall become effective November 1, 2026.
60-2-15665 GRS 01/09/26