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ENGR. S. B. NO. 2040 Page 1
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ENGROSSED SENATE
BILL NO. 2040 By: Goodwin of the Senate
and
Fugate of the House
An Act relating to the Tulsa Reconciliation Education
and Scholarship Program; amending 70 O.S. 2021,
Sections 2621, 2623, and 2625, which relate to
creation of and eligibility for the program;
providing purpose of program; modifying eligibility
for program; increasing income limit for certain
eligibility; directing income limit to be adjusted
annually; exempting certain applicants from certain
income limit; allowing certain form to be used to
verify income; removing certain eligibility criteria;
directing the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher
Education to give first priority status to certain
applicants; modifying process for verifying
documentation of lineage; directing certain rules to
include certain criteria; requiring application form
to include certain language; removing language
authorizing annual award of scholarships to certain
students; directing the State Regents to involve
certain community advisory committee in selection
process; providing for composition of and
appointments to advisory committee; directing certain
university president to submit a list of proposed
members; directing advisory committee to review
certain applications and make certain
recommendations; directing the State Regents to
select recipients from certain list; prescribing
income limitation for eligibility retention; limiting
the number of scholarships that may be awarded to
certain students; defining term; directing certain
students to be given priority; allowing certain
grants and scholarships to be used on certain
expenses; directing certain applicants to always be
given first priority status; updating statutory
language; and declaring an emergency.
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 2621, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 2621. There is hereby created the Tulsa Reconciliation
Education and Scholarship Program to preserve awareness of the
history and meaning of the civil unrest that occurred in Tulsa in
1921. The purpose of the program is to provide a scholarship award
to residents high school students of the Tulsa School District,
which was greatly impacted both socially and economically by the
civil unrest that occurred in the City of Tulsa during 1921.
Beginning with the 2002-2003 school year, or as soon thereafter as
practicable, and subject to the availability of funds, the program
shall each year make scholarships available to as many students as
feasible, up to three hundred scholarships, to qualified residents
students of the Tulsa School District, and to qualified students of
any other public school district in this state who are direct lineal
descendants as defined in subsection C of Section 2623 of this title
and who meet the criteria set forth in Sections 2623 and 2624 of
this title, and who are intending to pursue studies at an
institution of higher education in The Oklahoma State System of
Higher Education or a private institution of higher education, in
this state or who are intending to pursue studies in a postsecondary
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career and technology education program in this state. The
scholarship shall be an amount of not more than not exceeding the
equivalent of the average amount of resident tuition for which an
eligible Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program
participant enrolled at an institution of higher education in The
Oklahoma State System of Higher Education or a postsecondary career
and technology education program, whichever is applicable, is
obligated to pay. The scholarship shall be paid as provided for in
Section 2625 of this title. The further purpose of this program is
to establish and maintain a variety of educational support services
whereby residents students who qualify for the program will be
prepared for success in postsecondary endeavors.
SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 2623, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 2623. A. Subject to the availability of funds, the
Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education may shall annually award
a maximum of up to three hundred full-time-equivalent scholarships
for the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program to
residents:
1. Qualified high school students of the Tulsa School District
who are direct lineal descendants as defined in subsection C of this
section;
2. Qualified high school students of the Tulsa School District;
and
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3. Qualified students of any other public school district in
this state who are direct lineal descendants as defined in
subsection C of this section,
who are intending to pursue studies at an institution of higher
education in The Oklahoma State System of Higher Education or a
private institution of higher education in this state or who are
intending to pursue studies in a postsecondary career and technology
education program in this state.
B. To qualify for a scholarship, the family income of an
applicant shall satisfy the following criteria:
1. The family income of the applicant, from taxable sources is
not more than Seventy Thousand Dollars ($70,000.00), not exceed One
Hundred Twenty-eight Thousand Dollars ($128,000.00) per year. The
income limitation prescribed by this subsection shall be adjusted
annually by the annual percentage change in the Consumer Price
Index, as published by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics,
for the preceding year. There shall be no family income limit for
an applicant who is a direct lineal descendant as defined in
subsection C of this section. The Free Application for Federal
Student Aid (FAFSA) form may be used to verify family income;
2. The applicant attended a Tulsa public school where seventy-
five percent (75%) or more of the students enrolled in the school
qualify for the free and reduced lunch program; and
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3. The applicant resides in a census block area within the
Tulsa School District where thirty percent (30%) or more of the
residents are at or below the poverty level established by the
United States Bureau of the Census.
C. The Regents may consider as a factor, when determining the
order of preference of applicants, whether State Regents’ selection
process shall give first priority status to an applicant who is a
senior in high school and a direct lineal descendant of a person who
resided in the Greenwood Area in the City of Tulsa between April 30,
1921, and June 1, 1921, and was a victim of the 1921 Tulsa Race
Massacre. If the Regents use Use of descent as a preference factor,
it shall be applied to all applicants regardless of race. The
applicants shall be required to present verifiable documentation of
their lineage. The Oklahoma Historical Society An organization or
individual engaged in genealogy and research of descendants and
history of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre and Greenwood Area shall
verify the authenticity and accuracy of the documentation submitted
by an applicant and shall establish confirm the boundaries of the
Greenwood Area. Verifiable documentation shall include, but not be
limited to, the following:
1. Family records including family bibles, vital records,
correspondence, memoirs, journals, diaries, unrecorded deeds,
diplomas, certificates, or testimonials;
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2. Public records including censuses, government records,
military records, pensions, land bounty records, passport
applications, passenger lists, original grants, naturalization or
immigration records, records of entry, or state, province, or local
records; or
3. Institutional records including church records, cemetery
records and inscriptions, education institutions, insurance records,
or societies and fraternal organizations.
D. The State Regents shall promulgate rules establishing the
application requirements for the program and the system for
evaluating applications based on the preference factors. The rules
shall include the eligibility criteria specified in Section 2624 of
this title and any other relevant criteria as determined by the
State Regents. The application form shall include a small outlined
box graphic, followed by the following language: “Mark the box if
you are a direct lineal descendant of a victim greatly impacted
socially and economically during the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre who
resided in the Greenwood Area of Tulsa, Oklahoma, between April 30,
1921, and June 1, 1921.”
E. Applicants shall also meet the eligibility criteria
established in Section 2624 of this title.
F. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education shall also
be authorized to annually award scholarships for the Tulsa
Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program to two students at
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each of the high schools in the Tulsa School District for the
purpose of preserving awareness of the history and meaning of the
civil unrest that occurred in Tulsa in 1921. The following
provisions shall apply to the scholarship provided in this
subsection:
1. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection B of this
section, eligibility for the scholarships awarded pursuant to this
subsection shall be:
a. enrollment in the appropriate high school,
b. family income of the applicant from taxable sources
not to exceed Seventy Thousand Dollars ($70,000.00)
per year,
c. satisfaction of the criteria specified in Section 2624
of this title, and
d. any other relevant criteria determined by the Oklahoma
State Regents for Higher Education;
2. 1. The State Regents shall involve the administration of
the Tulsa School District and a community advisory committee in the
selection process. The community advisory committee shall be
comprised of seven (7) members appointed by the Chancellor of Higher
Education. The community advisory committee shall be comprised of:
a. the President of Langston University or his or her
designee,
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b. the Superintendent of Tulsa Public Schools or his or
her designee,
c. two members of the Legislature representing the
Greenwood Area in the City of Tulsa or their
designees,
d. two descendants of socially and economically adversely
impacted persons who resided in the Greenwood Area in
the City of Tulsa between April 30, 1921, and June 1,
1921, and
e. a citizen with ties to the historic Greenwood
community who may be engaged in faith-based,
education, or social, business, or advocacy work.
The President of Langston University, or his or her designee,
shall be responsible for coordinating with the community advisory
committee and shall submit to the Chancellor of Higher Education a
list of proposed committee members for review and approval. The
community advisory committee shall review scholarship applications
and make recommendations for scholarship recipients and scholarship
award amounts. The State Regents shall select scholarship
recipients from the list of recommendations provided pursuant to
this paragraph;
3. The award shall be limited to a one-year full-time-
equivalent period. Following successful completion of such award
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2. To retain eligibility for scholarships awarded pursuant to
this subsection, recipients who shall meet the criteria provided in
subsection B of this section shall be eligible to apply and be
considered for continued participation in the full Tulsa
Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program. Any student
subsequently awarded such scholarship shall have the duration of the
scholarship provided pursuant to this subsection deducted from the
limits set in subsection D of Section 2625 of this title;
4. 3. The award may only be funded with state funds
appropriated to the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship
Trust Fund and income therefrom, and shall be made subject to the
availability of such funds; and
5. 4. The awards made pursuant to this subsection shall be
included within the maximum number of scholarships specified in
subsection A of this section.
G. No more than five percent (5%) of scholarships awarded
pursuant to the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Act
shall be provided to nontraditional students. For the purposes of
this section, a nontraditional student is an applicant who is
twenty-six (26) years of age or older. In awarding scholarships to
nontraditional students, priority shall be given to applicants who
are direct lineal descendants as defined in subsection C of this
section.
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SECTION 3. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 2625, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 2625. A. Subject to the availability of funds, an
amount of not more than the equivalent of the average amount of
resident tuition for which an eligible Tulsa Reconciliation
Education and Scholarship Program participant enrolled in an
institution in The Oklahoma State System of Higher Education, or
enrolled in a postsecondary career and technology education program,
whichever is applicable, is obligated to pay shall be awarded by
allocation from the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship
Trust Fund.
B. Subject to the availability of funds, for each eligible
Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program participant
enrolled at a private institution of higher education, the Oklahoma
State Regents for Higher Education shall award from the Tulsa
Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Trust Fund an amount of not
more than the equivalent of the average amount of resident tuition
for which the participant would be eligible if the participant were
enrolled in a program at an institution of The Oklahoma State System
of Higher Education.
C. Subject to the availability of funds, an amount of not more
than the equivalent of the average amount of tuition for which an
eligible Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program
participant enrolled in a postsecondary career and technology
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education program is obligated to pay shall be awarded by allocation
from the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Trust Fund.
The allocation shall not exceed the amount a participant would have
received for enrollment at a two-year institution within The
Oklahoma State System of Higher Education.
D. Benefits awarded under the Tulsa Reconciliation Education
and Scholarship Program shall not be allowed for courses or other
postsecondary units taken in excess of the requirements for
completion of a baccalaureate program or taken more than five (5)
years after the student’s first semester of participation in the
program. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education may award
the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program benefits
for courses of postsecondary units taken more than five (5) years
after the student’s first semester of participation in the program
only in hardship circumstances. No Tulsa Reconciliation Education
and Scholarship Program participant may receive benefits beyond a
cumulative time period of five (5) years. The Oklahoma State
Regents for Higher Education may establish a maximum limit on the
number of courses or other postsecondary units to which Tulsa
Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program benefits will
apply. An award to an eligible Tulsa Reconciliation Education and
Scholarship Program participant who is enrolled in a postsecondary
career and technology education program may be used to pay for both
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career and technology education and college work if both are
required by the program.
E. Benefits awarded under the Tulsa Reconciliation Education
and Scholarship Program shall be awarded to not more than 300 three
hundred eligible participants annually, subject to the amount of
funds available for the program and the number of eligible
participants. Subject to the provisions of subsection F of this
section, if If funds are not sufficient to provide awards for the
maximum number of eligible participants each year, the Oklahoma
State Regents for Higher Education shall make awards on the basis of
need. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education shall take
into consideration other grants and scholarships received by an
eligible student when making awards. If an eligible student
receives other grants and scholarships, the benefits awarded under
the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program may cover
any additional educational costs not covered by the other grants and
scholarships including, but not limited to, fees, required textbooks
or materials, and room and board. If the family of an eligible
Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program participant
may qualify for the federal Hope Scholarship or Lifetime Learning
tax credit as provided for in the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997, P.L.
No. 105-34, the participant may elect to use the award allowed by
this section to pay for fees, required textbooks or materials and,
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if any funds remain, to pay for room and board instead of resident
tuition.
F. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education may, at the
time an award is made on behalf of a Tulsa Reconciliation Education
and Scholarship Program participant, set aside in the Tulsa
Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Trust Fund funds for the
full commitment made to such Tulsa Reconciliation Education and
Scholarship Program participant. For all academic years,
participants who have previously received awards under the
provisions of the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Act
and who have continued at all times to fulfill the requirements for
eligibility to receive awards provided pursuant to this program
shall be given an absolute priority for continued financial support
by the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program
superior to any residents students who are applying for such
benefits for the first time; provided, however, that scholarship
applicants who are direct lineal descendants as defined in
subsection C of Section 2623 of this title shall always be given
first priority status.
SECTION 4. It being immediately necessary for the preservation
of the public peace, health, or safety, an emergency is hereby
declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and
be in full force from and after its passage and approval.
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Passed the Senate the 25th day of March, 2026.
Presiding Officer of the Senate
Passed the House of Representatives the ____ day of __________,
2026.
Presiding Officer of the House
of Representatives