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An Act
ENROLLED SENATE
BILL NO. 1224 By: Jech of the Senate
and
Duel of the House
An Act relating to pardons and paroles; amending 57
O.S. 2021, Section 332.2, as amended by Section 1,
Chapter 198, O.S.L. 2022 (57 O.S. Supp. 2025, Section
332.2), which relates to pardon and parole
procedures; authorizing electronic notification to
victims and victim representatives; updating
statutory language; and providing an effective date.
SUBJECT: Pardon and parole procedures
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 57 O.S. 2021, Section 332.2, as
amended by Section 1, Chapter 198, O.S.L. 2022 (57 O.S. Supp. 2025,
Section 332.2), is amended to read as follows:
Section 332.2. A. The Pardon and Parole Board, which shall
meet only on the call of the Chair chair, is authorized, if and when
an application made to the Governor for a reprieve, commutation,
parole, pardon, or other act of clemency is certified thereto by the
Governor, to examine into the merits of said the application and
make recommendations to the Governor in relation thereto, said such
recommendation being advisory to the Governor and not binding
thereon.
B. Any consideration for commutation shall be made only after
application is made to the Pardon and Parole Board pursuant to the
procedures set forth in this section. The Pardon and Parole Board
shall provide a copy of the application to the district attorney,
the victim or representative of the victim, and the Office of the
ENR. S. B. NO. 1224 Page 2
Attorney General within ten (10) business days of receipt of such
application.
C. An application for commutation, other than those provided
for in subsection F of this section, must be sent to the trial
officials, who shall have twenty (20) business days to provide a
written recommendation or protest prior to consideration of the
application. Trial officials shall include:
1. The current elected judge of the court where the conviction
was had;
2. The current elected district attorney of the jurisdiction
where the conviction was had; or
3. The chief or head administrative officer of the arresting
law enforcement agency.
D. In cases resolved prior to the tenure of the present
officeholders, the recommendation or protest of persons holding such
offices at the time of conviction may also be considered by the
Board.
E. The recommendation for commutation of a sentence by a trial
official may include the following:
1. A statement that the penalty now appears to be excessive;
2. A recommendation of a definite term now considered by the
official as just and proper; and
3. A statement of the reasons for the recommendation based upon
facts directly related to the case which were not available to the
court or jury at the time of the trial or based upon there having
been a statutory change in penalty for the crime which makes the
original penalty appear excessive.
F. The Pardon and Parole Board shall establish an accelerated,
single-stage commutation docket for any applicant who has been
convicted of a crime that has been reclassified from a felony to a
misdemeanor under Oklahoma law. The Pardon and Parole Board shall
be empowered to recommend to the Governor for commutation, by
ENR. S. B. NO. 1224 Page 3
majority vote, any commutation application placed on the
accelerated, single-stage commutation docket that meets the
eligibility criteria provided above. The Department of Corrections
shall certify a list of potentially eligible inmates to the Pardon
and Parole Board within thirty (30) days of the effective date of
this act no later than December 1, 2019.
G. The Pardon and Parole Board shall schedule the application
on a commutation docket in compliance with the notice requirements
set forth herein. The Board shall provide the victim or
representative of the victim at least twenty (20) days to offer
recommendations or protests before consideration of the application.
H. Applications for commutation shall be given impartial review
as required in Section 10 of Article VI of the Oklahoma
Constitution.
I. Any consideration for pardon shall be made only after
application is made to the Pardon and Parole Board. Upon receipt of
an application for pardon, the Board shall provide a copy of the
application to the district attorney, the victim or representative
of the victim, and the Office of the Attorney General within twenty
(20) business days of receipt of such application. The district
attorney and the victim or representative of the victim shall have
twenty (20) business days to provide written recommendation or
protest prior to the consideration of the application. The Board
shall schedule the application on a pardon docket in compliance with
the notice requirements set forth herein.
J. In accordance with Section 10 of Article VI of the Oklahoma
Constitution, the Board shall communicate to the Legislature, at
each regular session, by providing a summary of the activities of
the Board. This summary shall include, but not be limited to, the
following Board activity:
1. The approval or recommendation rates of the Board for both
violent and nonviolent offenses;
2. The parole approval rates for each individual Board member
for both violent and nonviolent offenses; and
ENR. S. B. NO. 1224 Page 4
3. The percentage of public comments to and personal
appearances before the Board including victim protests and personal
appearances, district attorney protests and personal appearances,
and delegate recommendations and personal appearances on behalf of
the offender.
This summary shall be made available to the public through
publication on the website of the Pardon and Parole Board.
K. The Pardon and Parole Board shall provide a copy of their
regular docket and administrative parole docket to each district
attorney in this state at least twenty (20) days before such docket
is considered by the Board, or in the case of a supplemental,
addendum, or special docket, at least ten (10) days before such
docket is considered by the Board, and shall notify the district
attorney of any recommendations for commutations or paroles no later
than twenty (20) days after the docket is considered by the Board.
L. The Pardon and Parole Board shall notify all victims any
victim or representatives of the victim in writing at least twenty
(20) days before an inmate is considered by the Board provided the
Board has received a request from the victim or representatives of
the victim for notice. The Board shall provide all victims any
victim or representatives of the victim with the date, time, and
place of the scheduled meeting and rules for attendance and
providing information or input to the Board regarding the inmate or
the crime. If requested by the victim or representatives of the
victim, the Board shall allow the victim or representatives of the
victim to testify at the parole hearing of the inmate for at least
five (5) minutes.
M. The Pardon and Parole Board shall notify all victims or
representatives of the victim in writing of the decision of the
Board no later than twenty (20) days after the inmate is considered
by the Board.
N. Any notice required to be provided to the victims or the
representatives of the victim shall be mailed by first-class mail to
the last-known address of the victim or representatives of the
victim or shall be sent by email to the last-known email address of
the victim or representatives of the victim if the victim or
representatives of the victim have provided an email address to the
ENR. S. B. NO. 1224 Page 5
Pardon and Parole Board. It is the responsibility of the victims or
representatives of the victim to provide the Pardon and Parole Board
a current mailing address or email address. The victim-witness
coordinator of the district attorney shall assist the victims or
representatives of the victim with supplying their address or email
address to the Board if they wish to be notified. Upon failure of
the Pardon and Parole Board to notify a victim who has requested
notification and has provided a current mailing address or email
address, the final decision of the Board may be voidable, provided,
the victim who failed to receive notification requests a
reconsideration hearing within thirty (30) days of the
recommendation by the Board for parole. The Pardon and Parole Board
may reconsider previous action and may rescind a recommendation if
deemed appropriate as determined by the Board.
O. For purposes of this section, “victim” shall mean all
persons any person who have has suffered direct or threatened
physical or emotional harm, or financial loss as the result of the
commission or attempted commission of criminally injurious conduct,
and “representatives of the victim” shall mean those persons who are
members of the immediate family of the victim, including
stepparents, stepbrothers, stepsisters, and stepchildren.
P. All meetings of the Pardon and Parole Board shall comply
with Section 301 et seq. of Title 25 of the Oklahoma Statutes;,
provided that the Board shall have the authority to limit the number
of persons attending in support of, or in opposition to, any inmate
being considered for parole and shall have the authority to exclude
persons from attendance in accordance with prison security
regulations and the capacity of the meeting room. Persons excluded
from attending the meeting under this provision shall be informed of
their right to be informed of the vote of the Board in accordance
with Section 312 of Title 25 of the Oklahoma Statutes. Provided
further, nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent any
member of the press or any public official from attending any
meeting of the Pardon and Parole Board, except as provided by the
Oklahoma Open Meeting Act.
Q. All victim information maintained by the Department of
Corrections and the Pardon and Parole Board shall be confidential
and shall not be released.
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R. When a commutation is granted or denied, the Secretary of
State shall give notice of that fact to the district attorney and
clerk of the court in the county where the sentence was originally
obtained within thirty (30) business days. Said Such notice may be
given by either first-class mail or email. Upon receipt of said
such notice, the clerk of the court shall file the notice. The
district attorney shall confirm that the clerk of the court has
filed said the notice. The notice shall include the following
information:
1. The month and year in which the commutation was recommended
by the Pardon and Parole Board;
2. The decision of the Governor to grant or deny commutation;
and
3. If commutation is granted, the new term of sentence,
including conditions thereof, if any, for each charged count.
S. The district attorney in the district where the sentence was
originally obtained shall ensure that all victims or representatives
of the victim are given notice of the decision regarding
commutation.
SECTION 2. This act shall become effective November 1, 2026.
ENR. S. B. NO. 1224 Page 7
Passed the Senate the 14th day of May, 2026.
Presiding Officer of the Senate
Passed the House of Representatives the 6th day of May, 2026.
Presiding Officer of the House
of Representatives
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
Received by the Office of the Governor this ____________________
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________
Approved by the Governor of the State of Oklahoma this _________
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
_________________________________
Governor of the State of Oklahoma
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE
Received by the Office of the Secretary of State this __________
day of __________________, 20 _______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________