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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES - FLOOR VERSION
STATE OF OKLAHOMA
2nd Session of the 60th Legislature (2026)
HOUSE BILL 3984 By: Caldwell (Trey) of the
House
and
Coleman of the Senate
AS INTRODUCED
[ workforce recruitment - Oklahoma Talent Attraction
and Relocation Act - Oklahoma Department of
Commerce - grant incentives - reporting - creating
the Oklahoma Talent Attraction and Relocation
Revolving Fund - establishing revolving fund nature
and characteristics - expenditure of funds –
procedures - effective date ]
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 5160.1 of Title 74, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
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A. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Oklahoma
Talent Attraction and Relocation Act".
B. There is hereby created within the Oklahoma Department of
Commerce the "Oklahoma Talent Attraction and Relocation Program", to
be administered by the Department for the purpose of awarding grants
to support talent recruitment programs that incent households to
relocate to Oklahoma from outside the state.
C. As used in this section:
1. "Department" means the Oklahoma Department of Commerce;
2. "Eligible applicant" means:
a. a city, town, or county, or
b. a nonprofit corporation whose primary purpose includes
economic development, workforce development, or
community development;
3. "Household" means a group of one or more individuals who
dwell together within the same dwelling; and
4. "Household goal" means the total number of households that a
talent recruitment program seeks to successfully incent to relocate
or commit to relocate from outside this state to a municipality in
this state.
D. Subject to availability of funds, the Department may award
grants to eligible applicants for the administration of talent
recruitment programs and for costs associated with incenting
households to relocate from outside this state to establish
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residency within this state. No more than Two Hundred Fifty
Thousand Dollars ($250,000.00) in grant funds may be awarded to
support talent recruitment programming in a single municipality in a
single fiscal year.
E. To the extent funds are available, the Department shall
disburse fifty percent (50%) of the total grant amount upon
execution of a grant contract and fifty percent (50%) of the total
grant amount upon verification that the recipient has successfully
met at least one-half of the household goal stated in the approved
talent recruitment program plan. If the recipient fails to meet at
least one-half of its stated household goal, the remaining portion
of the grant shall not be disbursed.
F. To be considered for a grant, an eligible applicant shall
submit to the Department a written talent recruitment program plan
that includes:
1. The total estimated cost of the program and the estimated
costs associated with program design, administration, marketing, and
relocation incentive initiatives;
2. The household goal and the estimated total grant amount per
household;
3. The estimated state and local tax impact;
4. The estimated total economic impact; and
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5. Evidence that the proposed incentives do not duplicate
existing state or local relocation programs serving the same
households or geographic area.
G. The applicant shall demonstrate the ability to contribute at
least twenty percent (20%) of the total cost of the talent
recruitment program, which may include local investments and in-kind
donations. An applicant that has previously received a grant under
this section shall not be eligible for an additional grant unless
the applicant has met or exceeded the household goal stated in its
prior approved talent recruitment program plan.
H. If a recipient fails to meet its household goal by the end
of the program period, or if after notice and hearing the Department
determines grant funds were used for unauthorized purposes or
obtained through material misrepresentation of fact, the Department
may require repayment of all or part of the grant disbursed, plus
interest at the rate provided in Section 2357 of Title 68 of the
Oklahoma Statutes. The Department shall promulgate rules for
repayment procedures pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act.
I. Each recipient of a grant under this section shall provide
semiannual reports to the Department that include:
1. The total number of household applications;
2. The total number of approved households;
3. The cost per approved household;
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4. The annual incomes and occupations of approved households,
reported in aggregate form;
5. The economic impact of the talent recruitment program,
including state and local tax revenue and new consumer spending, to
the extent such information can be reasonably estimated;
6. Certification by a certified public accountant or other
independent third party acceptable to the Department verifying
household relocations through documentation including lease
agreements, utility service transfers, or employment records; and
7. If total grant funds exceed One Hundred Thousand Dollars
($100,000.00), a financial audit of program expenditures.
J. A household shall be eligible to receive incentives under a
talent recruitment program funded pursuant to this section if:
1. The household resides outside the State of Oklahoma at the
time the household applies for incentives;
2. The household has an individual household income of at least
Fifty-five Thousand Dollars ($55,000.00); and
3. The household submits an application to a grant recipient
for incentives under the talent recruitment program.
K. Beginning two (2) years after the effective date of this
section, and every two (2) years thereafter, the Department shall
submit a report to the Governor, Speaker of the Oklahoma House of
Representatives, and President Pro Tempore of the Oklahoma State
Senate evaluating:
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1. Total grants awarded versus verified household relocations;
2. Actual versus projected state and local tax revenue
generated;
3. Cost per verified household; and
4. Net economic impact.
L. The Oklahoma Department of Commerce shall promulgate rules
as necessary to implement and administer the provisions of this
section pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act.
SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 5160.2 of Title 74, unless there
is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
A. There is hereby created in the State Treasury a revolving
fund for the Oklahoma Department of Commerce to be designated the
"Oklahoma Talent Attraction and Relocation Revolving Fund".
B. The fund shall be a continuing fund, not subject to fiscal
year limitations, and shall consist of all monies appropriated by
the Legislature for the purposes of the Oklahoma Talent Attraction
and Relocation Program, any monies received by the Department from
federal funds, gifts, grants, donations, or any other source for the
purposes of the Program, and any repayments, refunds, or other
amounts received by the Department pursuant to Section 1 of this
act.
C. All monies accruing to the credit of the fund are hereby
appropriated and may be budgeted and expended by the Oklahoma
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Department of Commerce for the purpose of implementing and
administering the Oklahoma Talent Attraction and Relocation Program,
including the award and administration of grants, program
evaluation, and related administrative costs.
D. Expenditures from the Oklahoma Talent Attraction and
Relocation Revolving Fund shall be made upon warrants issued by the
State Treasurer against claims filed as prescribed by law with the
Director of the Office of Management and Enterprise Services for
approval and payment.
SECTION 3. This act shall become effective November 1, 2026.
COMMITTEE REPORT BY: COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS AND BUDGET, dated
03/04/2026 - DO PASS, As Amended and Coauthored.