State property; permitting residents to forage for nuts, edible plants and fungi on state owned or state managed property. Effective date.

An Act
ENROLLED SENATE
BILL NO. 447 By: Boren and McIntosh of the
Senate

and

Sterling and Waldron of the
House

An Act relating to state property; permitting
residents to forage for nuts and edible plants or
fungi on state-owned or state-managed property;
providing exceptions; encouraging certain apparel
during foraging; defining terms; limiting foraging in
certain areas managed by the Department of Wildlife
Conservation; providing for promulgation of rules;
providing for codification; and providing an
effective date.

SUBJECT: Foraging on state property

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 335 of Title 61, unless there is
created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

A. Any person may forage for nuts and edible plants or fungi on
state-owned or state-managed property accessible to the public for
personal consumption only except when such nuts and other edible
plants or fungi are:

1. From crops certified by the Oklahoma Agricultural Experiment
Station system or the Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service of the
Oklahoma State University Division of Agricultural Sciences and
Natural Resources, as provided in Section 8-33 of Title 2 of the
Oklahoma Statutes; or

ENR. S. B. NO. 447 Page 2
2. From plants that are threatened or endangered.

B. Any person foraging pursuant to this section is encouraged
to:

1. Wear an outer garment of hunter orange that is clearly
visible while in the field; and

2. Recognize which nuts and edible plants or fungi are safe for
human consumption.

C. As used in this section:

1. “State-owned or state-managed property accessible to the
public” means property owned or managed by an agency, municipality,
or political subdivision of this state designated for public use,
unless the property is located on:

a. state-owned or university-owned test or research
farms,

b. land leased to an individual or entity pursuant to
Section 1056 of Title 64 of the Oklahoma Statutes, who
has not given permission to an individual to forage,
or

c. property otherwise restricted for public access by
state or federal law including, but not limited to:

(1) land along public roads, highways, turnpikes, and
interstates,

(2) areas owned or operated by a law enforcement
agency or used for law enforcement training, or

(3) areas surrounding correction facilities owned or
operated by the Department of Corrections, a
county, a municipality, or a private entity
contracted by the Department of Corrections to
operate in this state;

ENR. S. B. NO. 447 Page 3
2. “Edible plant or fungi” means a plant or fungi commonly
found in the wild, which is edible to humans in part or in its
entirety and may require cooking to make safe for consumption;

3. “Nut” means a dry fruit that has a single seed, a hard
shell, and a protective husk; and

4. "Personal consumption" means an amount that can be consumed
in a few days by a person and not sold to another person.

D. 1. After July 1, 2026, any person who is lawfully on a
Wildlife Management Area owned or managed by the Department of
Wildlife Conservation may forage along with other permitted
activities as authorized by the Oklahoma Wildlife Conservation
Commission.

2. The Commission shall promulgate all rules necessary to
implement the provisions of this section.

SECTION 2. This act shall become effective November 1, 2025.

ENR. S. B. NO. 447 Page 4
Passed the Senate the 13th day of May, 2025.

Presiding Officer of the Senate

Passed the House of Representatives the 6th day of May, 2025.

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: _________________________________