Read the full stored bill text
An Act
ENROLLED SENATE
BILL NO. 553 By: Pugh, Thompson, and Nice of
the Senate
and
Sterling of the House
An Act relating to schools; amending 70 O.S. 2021,
Section 3-104, as last amended by Section 2, Chapter
445, O.S.L. 2024 (70 O.S. Supp. 2024, Section 3-104),
which relates to the powers and duties of the State
Board of Education; adding reason for which a
certificate cannot be issued or can be revoked;
amending 70 O.S. 2021, Section 3-104.1, which relates
to a prohibition on certification of individuals
convicted of certain offenses; adding reason for
which a certificate cannot be issued; amending 70
O.S. 2021, Section 5-142, which relates to criminal
history record checks for school employment;
requiring certain letter to include certain
information; amending 70 O.S. 2021, Section 6-101.22,
which relates to reasons for dismissal of career
teachers; adding reason for dismissal; amending 70
O.S. 2021, Section 6-194, as last amended by Section
2, Chapter 15, O.S.L. 2023 (70 O.S. Supp. 2024,
Section 6-194), which relates to professional
development programs; directing certain program to
include information about certain reporting
requirements; amending 70 O.S. 2021, Section
1210.163, as amended by Section 46, Chapter 59,
O.S.L. 2024 (70 O.S. Supp. 2024, Section 1210.163),
which relates to requirements to report suspected
abuse or neglect; requiring school employees to
annually sign certain attestation; updating statutory
language; updating statutory references; providing an
effective date; and declaring an emergency.
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 2
SUBJECT: Schools
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 3-104, as
last amended by Section 2, Chapter 445, O.S.L. 2024 (70 O.S. Supp.
2024, Section 3-104), is amended to read as follows:
Section 3-104. A. The supervision of the public school system
of Oklahoma shall be vested in the State Board of Education and,
subject to limitations otherwise provided by law, the State Board of
Education shall:
1. Adopt policies and make rules for the operation of the
public school system of the state;
2. Appoint, prescribe the duties, and fix the compensation of a
secretary, an attorney, and all other personnel necessary for the
proper performance of the functions of the State Board of Education.
The secretary shall not be a member of the Board;
3. Submit to the Governor a departmental budget based upon
major functions of the State Department of Education as prepared by
the Superintendent of Public Instruction and supported by detailed
data on needs and proposed operations as partially determined by the
budgetary needs of local school districts filed with the State Board
of Education for the ensuing fiscal year. Appropriations therefor
shall be made in lump-sum form for each major item in the budget as
follows:
a. State Aid to schools,
b. the supervision of all other functions of general and
special education including general control, free
textbooks, school lunch, Indian education, and all
other functions of the Board and an amount sufficient
to adequately staff and administer these services, and
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 3
c. the Board shall determine the details by which the
budget and the appropriations are administered.
Annually, the Board shall make preparations to
consolidate all of the functions of the Department in
such a way that the budget can be based on two items,
administration and aid to schools. A maximum amount
for administration shall be designated as a part of
the total appropriation;
4. On the first day of December preceding each regular session
of the Legislature, prepare and deliver electronically to the
Governor and the Legislature a report for the year ending June 30
immediately preceding the regular session of the Legislature. The
report shall contain:
a. detailed statistics and other information concerning
enrollment, attendance, expenditures including State
Aid, and other pertinent data for all public schools
in this state,
b. reports from each and every division within the State
Department of Education as submitted by the
Superintendent of Public Instruction and any other
division, department, institution, or other agency
under the supervision of the Board,
c. recommendations for the improvement of the public
school system of the state,
d. a statement of the receipts and expenditures of the
State Board of Education for the past year, and
e. a statement of plans and recommendations for the
management and improvement of public schools and such
other information relating to the educational
interests of the state as may be deemed necessary and
desirable;
5. Provide for the formulation and adoption of curricula,
courses of study, and other instructional aids necessary for the
adequate instruction of pupils in the public schools;
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 4
6. Have authority in matters pertaining to the licensure and
certification of persons for instructional, supervisory, and
administrative positions and services in the public schools of the
state subject to the provisions of Section 6-184 of this title, and
shall formulate rules governing the issuance and revocation of
certificates for superintendents of schools, principals,
supervisors, librarians, clerical employees, school nurses, school
bus drivers, visiting teachers, classroom teachers, and for other
personnel performing instructional, administrative, and supervisory
services, but not including members of boards of education and other
employees who do not work directly with pupils, and may charge and
collect reasonable fees for the issuance of such certificates:
a. the State Department of Education shall not issue a
certificate to and shall revoke the certificate of any
person who has been convicted, whether upon a verdict
or plea of guilty or upon a plea of nolo contendere,
or received a suspended sentence or any probationary
term for a crime or an attempt to commit a crime
provided for in Section 843.5 of Title 21 of the
Oklahoma Statutes if the offense involved sexual abuse
or sexual exploitation as those terms are defined in
Section 1-1-105 of Title 10A of the Oklahoma Statutes,
Section 741, 843.1, if the offense included sexual
abuse or sexual exploitation, 865 et seq., 885, 888,
891, 1021, 1021.2, 1021.3, 1040.13a, 1087, 1088,
1111.1, 1114, or 1123 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma
Statutes or who enters this state and who has been
convicted, received a suspended sentence, or received
a deferred judgment for a crime or attempted crime
which, if committed or attempted in this state, would
be a crime or an attempt to commit a crime provided
for in any of the laws, and
b. the State Department of Education shall not issue a
certificate to and shall revoke the certificate of any
person who has been convicted, whether upon a verdict
or plea of guilty or upon a plea of nolo contendere,
or received a suspended sentence or any probationary
term for knowingly and willfully failing to report
suspected abuse or neglect of a child in violation of
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 5
Section 1-2-101 of Title 10A of the Oklahoma Statutes,
and
c. all funds collected by the State Department of
Education for the issuance of certificates to
instructional, supervisory, and administrative
personnel in the public schools of the state shall be
deposited in the “Teachers’ Certification Fund” in the
State Treasury and may be expended by the State Board
of Education to finance the activities of the State
Department of Education necessary to administer the
program, for consultative services, publication costs,
actual and necessary travel expenses as provided in
the State Travel Reimbursement Act incurred by persons
performing research work, and other expenses found
necessary by the State Board of Education for the
improvement of the preparation and certification of
teachers in this state. Provided, any unobligated
balance in the Teachers’ Certification Fund in excess
of Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) on June 30 of any
fiscal year shall be transferred to the General
Revenue Fund of this state. Until July 1, 1997, the
State Board of Education shall have authority for
approval of teacher education programs. The State
Board of Education shall also have authority for the
administration of teacher residency and professional
development, subject to the provisions of the Oklahoma
Teacher Preparation Act;
7. Promulgate rules governing the classification, inspection,
supervision, and accrediting of all public nursery, kindergarten,
elementary and secondary schools, and on-site educational services
provided by public school districts or state-accredited private
schools in partial hospitalization programs, day treatment programs,
and day hospital programs as defined in this section, Section 3-
104.7 of this title, and Section 603.4 175.20 of Title 10 of the
Oklahoma Statutes for persons between the ages of three (3) and
twenty-one (21) years of age in the state. However, no school shall
be denied accreditation solely on the basis of average daily
attendance.
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 6
Any school district which maintains an elementary school and
faces the necessity of relocating its school facilities because of
construction of a lake, either by state or federal authority, which
will inundate the school facilities, shall be entitled to receive
probationary accreditation from the State Board of Education for a
period of five (5) years after June 12, 1975, and any school
district, otherwise qualified, shall be entitled to receive
probationary accreditation from the State Board of Education for a
period of two (2) consecutive years to attain the minimum average
daily attendance. The Head Start and public nurseries or
kindergartens operated from community action agency funds shall not
be subjected to the accrediting rules of the State Board of
Education. Neither will the State Board of Education make rules
affecting the operation of the public nurseries and kindergartens
operated from federal funds secured through community action
agencies even though they may be operating in the public schools of
the state. However, any of the Head Start or public nurseries or
kindergartens operated under federal regulations may make
application for accrediting from the State Board of Education but
will be accredited only if application for the approval of the
programs is made. The status of no school district shall be changed
which will reduce it to a lower classification until due notice has
been given to the proper authorities thereof and an opportunity
given to correct the conditions which otherwise would be the cause
of such reduction.
Private and parochial schools may be accredited and classified
in like manner as public schools or, if an accrediting association
is approved by the State Board of Education, by procedures
established by the State Board of Education to accept accreditation
by such accrediting association, if application is made to the State
Board of Education for such accrediting;
8. Be the legal agent of this state to accept, in its
discretion, the provisions of any Act of Congress appropriating or
apportioning funds which are now, or may hereafter be, provided for
use in connection with any phase of the system of public education
in Oklahoma. It shall prescribe such rules as it finds necessary to
provide for the proper distribution of such funds in accordance with
the state and federal laws;
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 7
9. Be and is specifically hereby designated as the agency of
this state to cooperate and deal with any officer, board, or
authority of the United States Government under any law of the
United States which may require or recommend cooperation with any
state board having charge of the administration of public schools
unless otherwise provided by law;
10. Be and is hereby designated as the “State Educational
Agency” state educational agency referred to in Public Law 396 of
the 79th Congress of the United States, as amended, which law states
that the act may be cited known as the “National Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act” Act, and the State Board of Education is
hereby authorized and directed to accept the terms and provisions of
the act and to enter into such agreements, not in conflict with the
Constitution of Oklahoma or the Constitution and Statutes of the
United States, as may be necessary or appropriate to secure for this
state the benefits of the school lunch program established and
referred to in the act;
11. Have authority to secure and administer the benefits of the
Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, Public Law 396 of the
79th Congress of the United States, as amended, in this state and is
hereby authorized to employ or appoint and fix the compensation of
such additional officers or employees and to incur such expenses as
may be necessary for the accomplishment of the above purpose, and
administer the distribution of any state funds appropriated by the
Legislature required as federal matching to reimburse on children’s
meals;
12. Accept and provide for the administration of any land,
money, buildings, gifts, donation donations, or other things of
value which may be offered or bequeathed to the schools under the
supervision or control of the Board;
13. Have authority to require persons having administrative
control of all school districts in Oklahoma to make such regular and
special reports regarding the activities of the schools in the
districts as the Board may deem needful for the proper exercise of
its duties and functions. Such authority shall include the right of
the State Board of Education to withhold all state funds under its
control, to withhold official recognition including accrediting,
until such required reports have been filed and accepted in the
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 8
office of the Board and to revoke the certificates of persons
failing or refusing to make such reports;
14. Have general supervision of the school lunch program. The
State Board of Education may sponsor workshops for personnel and
participants in the school lunch program and may develop, print, and
distribute free of charge or sell any materials, books, and
bulletins to be used in the school lunch programs. There is hereby
created in the State Treasury a revolving fund for the Board, to be
designated the “School Lunch Workshop Revolving Fund”. The fund
shall consist of all fees derived from or on behalf of any
participant in any such workshop sponsored by the State Board of
Education, or from the sale of any materials, books, and bulletins,
and funds shall be disbursed for expenses of such workshops and for
developing, printing, and distributing of the materials, books, and
bulletins relating to the school lunch program. The fund shall be
administered in accordance with Section 155 of Title 62 of the
Oklahoma Statutes;
15. Prescribe all forms for school district and county officers
to report to the State Board of Education where required. The State
Board of Education shall also prescribe a list of appropriation
accounts by which the funds of school districts shall be budgeted,
accounted for, and expended; and it shall be the duty of the State
Auditor and Inspector in prescribing all budgeting, accounting, and
reporting forms for school funds to conform to such lists;
16. Provide for the establishment of a uniform system of pupil
and personnel accounting, records, and reports;
17. Have authority to provide for the health and safety of
school children and school personnel while under the jurisdiction of
school authorities;
18. Provide for the supervision of the transportation of
pupils;
19. Have authority, upon request of the local school board, to
act in behalf of the public schools of the state in the purchase of
transportation equipment;
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 9
20. Have authority and is hereby required to perform all duties
necessary to the administration of the public school system in
Oklahoma as specified in the Oklahoma School Code; and, in addition
thereto, those duties not specifically mentioned herein if not
delegated by law to any other agency or official;
21. Administer the State Public Common School Building
Equalization Fund established by Section 32 of Article X of the
Oklahoma Constitution. Any monies as may be appropriated or
designated by the Legislature, other than ad valorem taxes, any
other funds identified by the State Department of Education, which
may include, but not be limited to, grants-in-aid from the federal
government for building purposes, the proceeds of all property that
shall fall to the state by escheat, penalties for unlawful holding
of real estate by corporations, and capital gains on assets of the
permanent school funds, shall be deposited in the State Public
Common School Building Equalization Fund. The fund shall be used to
aid school districts and charter schools in acquiring buildings,
subject to the limitations fixed by Section 32 of Article X of the
Oklahoma Constitution. It is hereby declared that redbud school
grants disbursed from the State Public Common School Building
Equalization Fund shall be used for the same purposes as a building
fund, as provided for in Section 1-118 of this title. It is hereby
declared that the term “school districts” as used in Section 32 of
Article X of the Oklahoma Constitution shall mean school districts
and eligible charter schools as defined in subsection B of this
section. The State Board of Education shall disburse redbud school
grants annually from the State Public Common School Building
Equalization Fund to public schools and eligible charter schools
pursuant to subsection B of this section. The Board shall
promulgate rules for the implementation of disbursing redbud school
grants pursuant to this section. The State Board of Education shall
prescribe rules for making grants of aid from, and for otherwise
administering, the fund pursuant to the provisions of this
paragraph, and may employ and fix the duties and compensation of
technicians, aides, clerks, stenographers, attorneys, and other
personnel deemed necessary to carry out the provisions of this
paragraph. The cost of administering the fund shall be paid from
monies appropriated to the State Board of Education for the
operation of the State Department of Education. From monies
apportioned to the fund, the State Department of Education may
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 10
reserve not more than one-half of one percent (1/2 of 1%) for
purposes of administering the fund;
22. Recognize that the Director of the Department of
Corrections shall be the administrative authority for the schools
which are maintained in the state reformatories and shall appoint
the principals and teachers in such schools. Provided, that rules
of the State Board of Education for the classification, inspection,
and accreditation of public schools shall be applicable to such
schools; and such schools shall comply with standards set by the
State Board of Education; and
23. Have authority to administer a revolving fund which is
hereby created in the State Treasury, to be designated the
“Statistical Services Revolving Fund”. The fund shall consist of
all monies received from the various school districts of the state,
the United States Government, and other sources for the purpose of
furnishing or financing statistical services and for any other
purpose as designated by the Legislature. The State Board of
Education is hereby authorized to enter into agreements with school
districts, municipalities, the United States Government,
foundations, and other agencies or individuals for services,
programs, or research projects. The Statistical Services Revolving
Fund shall be administered in accordance with Section 155 of Title
62 of the Oklahoma Statutes.
B. 1. The redbud school grants shall be determined by the
State Department of Education as follows:
a. divide the county four-mill levy revenue by four to
determine the nonchargeable county four-mill revenue
for each school district,
b. determine the amount of new revenue generated by the
five-mill building fund levy as authorized by Section
10 of Article X of the Oklahoma Constitution for each
school district as reported in the Oklahoma Cost
Accounting System for the preceding fiscal year,
c. add the amounts calculated in subparagraphs a and b of
this paragraph to determine the nonchargeable millage
for each school district,
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 11
d. add the nonchargeable millage in each district
statewide as calculated in subparagraph c of this
paragraph and divide the total by the average daily
membership in public schools statewide based on the
preceding school year’s average daily membership,
according to the provisions of Section 18-107 of this
title. This amount is the statewide nonchargeable
millage per student, known as the baseline local
funding per student,
e. all eligible charter schools shall be included in
these calculations as unique school districts,
separate from the school district that may sponsor the
eligible charter school, and the total number of
districts shall be used to determine the statewide
average baseline local funding per student,
f. for each school district or eligible charter school
which is below the baseline local funding per student,
the Department shall subtract the baseline local
funding per student from the average nonchargeable
millage per student of the school district or eligible
charter school to determine the nonchargeable millage
per student shortfall for each district, and
g. the nonchargeable millage per student shortfall for a
school district or eligible charter school shall be
multiplied by the average daily membership of the
preceding school year of the eligible school district
or eligible charter school. This amount shall be the
redbud school grant amount for the school district or
eligible charter school.
2. For fiscal year 2022, monies for the redbud school grants
shall be expended from the funds apportioned pursuant to Section 426
of Title 63 of the Oklahoma Statutes. For fiscal year 2023 and each
subsequent fiscal year, monies for the redbud school grants shall be
appropriated pursuant to Section 426 of Title 63 of the Oklahoma
Statutes, not to exceed three-fourths (3/4) of the tax collected in
the preceding fiscal year pursuant to Section 426 of Title 63 of the
Oklahoma Statutes as determined by the Oklahoma Tax Commission. For
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 12
fiscal year 2023 and each subsequent fiscal year, if such
appropriated funds are insufficient to fund the redbud school
grants, then an additional apportionment of funds shall be made from
sales tax collections as provided by subsection D of Section 1353 of
Title 68 of the Oklahoma Statutes. If both funds are insufficient,
the Department shall promulgate rules to permit a decrease to the
baseline local funding per student to the highest amount allowed
with the funding available.
3. As used in this section, “eligible charter school” shall
mean a charter school which is sponsored pursuant to the provisions
of the Oklahoma Charter Schools Act. Provided, however, eligible
charter school shall not include a statewide virtual charter school
sponsored by the Statewide Charter School Board but shall only
include those which provide in-person or blended instruction, as
provided by Section 1-111 of this title, to not less than two-thirds
(2/3) of students as the primary means of instructional service
delivery.
4. The Department shall develop a program to acknowledge the
redbud school grant recipients and shall include elected members of
the House of Representatives and Senate who represent the school
districts and eligible charter schools.
5. The Department shall create a dedicated page on its website
listing annual redbud school grant recipients, amount awarded to
each recipient, and other pertinent information about the Redbud
School Funding Act.
6. The Department shall provide the chair of the House
Appropriations and Budget Committee and the chair of the Senate
Appropriations Committee no later than February 1 of each year with
an estimate of the upcoming year’s redbud school grant allocation as
prescribed by this section.
SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 3-104.1, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 3-104.1. No person shall receive a certificate for an
instructional, supervisory, or administrative position in an
accredited school of this state who has been convicted of a felony,
any crime involving moral turpitude, knowingly and willfully failing
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 13
to report suspected abuse or neglect of a child in violation of
Section 1-2-101 of Title 10A of the Oklahoma Statutes, or a felony
violation of the narcotic laws of the United States or the State of
Oklahoma this state, provided the conviction was entered within the
preceding ten-year period.
SECTION 3. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 5-142, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 5-142. A. Except as otherwise provided for in
subsection F of this section, for purposes of employment, a board of
education may request in writing to the State Board of Education
that a national criminal history record check be conducted of any
employee of the school and shall request such information for any
person seeking employment with the school; provided, that a board of
education shall not be required to obtain a new criminal history
record check for an individual who has obtained certification from
the State Department of Education within the previous twelve (12)
months. The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) shall
obtain fingerprints of the employee or prospective employee and
require that the person pay a search fee not to exceed Fifty Dollars
($50.00) or the cost of the search, whichever is the lesser amount.
The fee shall be deposited in the OSBI Revolving Fund. School
districts may reimburse employees for the cost of the search. The
State Board of Education shall contact the Oklahoma State Bureau of
Investigation OSBI for any national criminal history record of the
person within fourteen (14) working days of receiving a written
request from the board of education.
B. The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation shall provide the
national criminal history record check requested by the State Board
of Education within fourteen (14) working days from the receipt of
the request. The Bureau may contact the Federal Bureau of
Investigation to obtain the information requested.
C. The State Board of Education shall provide the information
received from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation to the
board of education within fourteen (14) days from the receipt of the
information. The State Board of Education shall provide any follow-
up information received from the OSBI concerning a person for which
whom a national criminal history record check was requested to the
employing board of education.
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 14
D. For the purpose of this section:
1. “Board of education” includes both public and private boards
of education within or outside this state;
2. “Employing agency” means a political subdivision or law
enforcement agency in this state;
3. “Law enforcement officer” means a peace or police officer
who is certified by the Council on Law Enforcement Education and
Training;
4. “National criminal history record check” means a national
criminal history record check as defined in Section 150.9 of Title
74 of the Oklahoma Statutes; and
5. “Prospective employee” means an individual who has received
an offer of temporary employment from a school district pending the
results of the national criminal history record check.
E. Each public board of education within this state shall
promulgate a statement regarding the felony record search policy for
that school district. The policy may permit temporary employment of
prospective employees for a maximum of sixty (60) days pending
receipt of results of national criminal history record check
requests. The temporary employment of the prospective employee
shall terminate after sixty (60) days unless the school district
receives the results of the national criminal history record check.
The sixty-day temporary employment period shall begin on the first
day the prospective employee reports for duty at the employing
school district. Prospective employees shall be notified of the
requirement, the fee, and the reimbursement policy when first
interviewed concerning employment. The school district’s
reimbursement policy shall provide, at a minimum, that employees
shall be promptly reimbursed in full for the fee if employed by the
district at the time the national criminal history record check
request is made unless the person was employed pending receipt of
results as set forth above.
F. 1. Any person who has been employed as a full-time teacher
by a school district in this state and applies for employment as a
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 15
full-time teacher in another a school district in this state may not
be required to have a national criminal history record check if the
teacher produces a copy of a national criminal history record check
completed within the preceding five (5) years and a letter from the
school district in which the teacher was employed stating the
teacher left in good standing and whether the teacher was the
subject of any allegation of inappropriate behavior with a student.
2. For any person applying for employment as a substitute
teacher, a national criminal history record check shall be required
for the school year; provided, however, a board of education may
choose whether to require a national criminal history record check
from a prospective substitute teacher who has been employed by the
school district in the last year. Any person applying for
employment as a substitute teacher in more than one school district
shall only be required to have one national criminal history record
check, and, upon the request of the substitute teacher, that record
check shall be sent to all other school districts in which the
substitute teacher is applying to teach.
3. Any person employed as a full-time teacher by a school
district in this state in the five (5) years immediately preceding
an application for employment as a substitute teacher may not be
required to have a national criminal history record check, if the
teacher produces a copy of a national criminal history record check
completed within the preceding five (5) years and a letter from the
school district in which the teacher was last employed stating the
teacher left in good standing and whether the teacher was the
subject of any allegation of inappropriate behavior with a student.
4. Any person employed as a substitute teacher by a school
district in this state for a minimum of five (5) years immediately
preceding an application for employment as a full-time teacher in a
school district in this state may not be required to have a national
criminal history record check if the teacher produces a copy of a
national criminal history record check completed within the
preceding five (5) years and a letter from the school district in
which the teacher was employed as a substitute teacher stating the
teacher left in good standing and whether the teacher was the
subject of any allegation of inappropriate behavior with a student.
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 16
5. Any person employed as a full-time teacher by a school
district in this state for ten (10) or more consecutive years
immediately preceding an application for employment as a substitute
teacher in the same school district may not be required to have a
national criminal history record check for as long as the person
remains employed for consecutive years by that school district as a
substitute teacher, if the teacher left full-time employment in good
standing. If the teacher applies for employment as a substitute
teacher in another school district, a national criminal history
record check shall be required.
G. 1. Except as otherwise provided by this subsection, any
teacher employed by an Oklahoma school district prior to the
effective date of this act May 19, 2020, who does not have an
Oklahoma criminal history record check from the Oklahoma State
Bureau of Investigation as well as a national criminal history
record check, as defined in Section 150.9 of Title 74 of the
Oklahoma Statutes, on file with his or her employing district as
required by this section shall complete the criminal history record
checks upon the next renewal of his or her Standard Teaching
Certificate standard teaching certificate as required by Section 6-
154.1 of this title or State Board of Education administrative rules
promulgated thereto.
2. Except as otherwise provided by this subsection, any other
person employed by an Oklahoma school district prior to the
effective date of this act May 19, 2020, who does not have an
Oklahoma criminal history record check from the Oklahoma State
Bureau of Investigation as well as a national criminal history
record check, as defined in Section 150.9 of Title 74 of the
Oklahoma Statutes, on file with his or her employing district as
required by this section shall have until July 1, 2022, to complete
the criminal history record checks.
3. Any teacher eligible to retire from the Teachers’ Retirement
System of Oklahoma who does not have an Oklahoma criminal history
record check from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation as well
as a national criminal history record check, as defined in Section
150.9 of Title 74 of the Oklahoma Statutes, on file with his or her
employing district as required by this section shall complete the
criminal history record checks by the earlier of the following
dates:
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 17
a. July 1, 2022, or
b. at the next renewal of his or her Standard Teaching
Certificate standard teaching certificate as required
by Section 6-154.1 of this title or State Board of
Education administrative rules promulgated thereto.
H. The provisions of this section shall not apply to technology
center employees hired on a part-time or temporary basis for the
instruction of adult students only.
I. The provisions of this section shall not apply to law
enforcement officers who are employed by an employing agency at the
time of application for employment at a public school district.
J. Nothing in this section shall be construed to impose
liability on school districts, except in negligence, for employing
prospective employees within the sixty-day temporary employment
window pending the results of the national criminal history record
check.
SECTION 4. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 6-101.22, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 6-101.22. A. Subject to the provisions of the Teacher
Due Process Act of 1990, a career teacher may be dismissed or not
reemployed for:
1. Willful neglect of duty;
2. Repeated negligence in performance of duty;
3. Mental or physical abuse to a child;
4. Knowing and willful failure to report suspected child abuse
or neglect;
5. Incompetency;
5. 6. Instructional ineffectiveness;
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 18
6. 7. Unsatisfactory teaching performance;
7. 8. Commission of an act of moral turpitude; or
8. 9. Abandonment of contract.
B. Subject to the provisions of the Teacher Due Process Act of
1990, a probationary teacher may be dismissed or not reemployed for
cause.
C. During the 2017-2018 school year and thereafter:
1. A career teacher who has received a district evaluation
rating of “ineffective” as measured pursuant to the Oklahoma Teacher
and Leader Effectiveness Evaluation System (TLE) for two (2)
consecutive school years shall be dismissed or not reemployed on the
grounds of instructional ineffectiveness by the school district,
subject to the provisions of the Teacher Due Process Act of 1990.
However, the superintendent may recommend and the school district
board of education may approve continued employment of the teacher;
and
2. A career teacher who has received a district evaluation
rating of “needs improvement” or lower as measured pursuant to the
TLE for three (3) consecutive school years may be dismissed or not
reemployed on the grounds of instructional ineffectiveness by the
school district, subject to the provisions of the Teacher Due
Process Act of 1990.
D. During the 2017-2018 school year and thereafter:
1. A probationary teacher who has received a district
evaluation rating of “ineffective” as measured pursuant to the TLE
for two (2) consecutive school years may be dismissed or not
reemployed by the school district subject to the provisions of the
Teacher Due Process Act of 1990; and
2. A probationary teacher who has not attained career teacher
status within a four-year period may be dismissed or not reemployed
by the school district, subject to the provisions of the Teacher Due
Process Act of 1990.
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 19
E. A teacher shall be dismissed or not reemployed, unless a
presidential or gubernatorial pardon has been issued, if during the
term of employment the teacher is convicted in this state, the
United States, or another state of:
1. Any sex offense subject to the Sex Offenders Registration
Act in this state or subject to another state’s or the federal sex
offender registration provisions; or
2. Knowingly and willfully failing to report suspected abuse or
neglect of a child in violation of Section 1-2-101 of Title 10A of
the Oklahoma Statutes; or
3. Any felony offense.
F. A teacher may be dismissed, refused employment, or not
reemployed after a finding that such person has engaged in acts that
could form the basis of criminal charges sufficient to result in the
denial or revocation of a certificate for a reason set forth in
subparagraph a or b of paragraph 6 of Section 3-104 of this title.
G. As used in this section, “abandonment of contract” means the
failure of a teacher to report at the beginning of the contract term
or otherwise perform the duties of a contract of employment when the
teacher has accepted other employment or is performing work for
another employer that prevents the teacher from fulfilling the
obligations of the contract of employment.
H. A school district shall notify the State Board of Education
within ten (10) days of the dismissal or nonreemployment of a
probationary or career teacher for reasons outlined in subsection F
of this section.
SECTION 5. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 6-194, as
last amended by Section 2, Chapter 15, O.S.L. 2023 (70 O.S. Supp.
2024, Section 6-194), is amended to read as follows:
Section 6-194. A. The district boards of education of this
state shall establish professional development programs for the
certified teachers and administrators of the district. Programs
shall be adopted by each board based upon recommendations of a
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 20
professional development committee appointed by the board of
education for the district.
B. Each professional development committee shall include
classroom teachers, administrators, school counselors or licensed
mental health providers, and parents, guardians, or custodians of
children in the school district and shall consult with a higher
education faculty. A majority of the members of the professional
development committee shall be composed of classroom teachers. The
teacher members shall be selected by a designated administrator of
the school district from a list of names submitted by the teachers
in the school district. The members selected shall be subject to
the approval of a majority vote of the teachers in the district.
C. In developing program recommendations, each professional
development committee shall annually utilize a data-driven approach
to analyze student data and determine district and school
professional development needs. The professional development
programs adopted shall be directed toward development of
competencies and instructional strategies in the core curriculum
areas for the following goals:
1. Increasing the academic performance data scores for the
district and each school site;
2. Closing achievement gaps among student subgroups;
3. Increasing student achievement as demonstrated on state-
mandated tests and the ACT;
4. Increasing high school graduation rates; and
5. Decreasing college remediation rates.
Each program may also include components on classroom management
and student discipline strategies, outreach to parents, guardians,
or custodians of students, special education, and racial and ethnic
education, which all personnel defined as teachers in Section 1-116
of this title shall be required to complete at a frequency as
determined by the board of education. The State Board of Education
shall provide guidelines to assist school districts in developing
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 21
and implementing racial and ethnic education components into
professional development programs.
D. A program which includes the following information shall be
completed the first year a certified teacher is employed by a school
district, and then once every fifth academic year:
1. Training on recognition of child abuse and neglect;
2. Recognition of child sexual abuse;
3. Proper reporting of suspected abuse including the reporting
requirements of Section 1-2-101 of Title 10A of the Oklahoma
Statutes and Section 1210.163 of this title and associated penalties
for failure to report; and
4. Available resources.
E. One time per year, beginning in the 2009-2010 school year,
training in the area of autism shall be offered and all resident
teachers of students in early childhood programs through grade three
shall be required to complete the autism training during the
resident year and at least one time every three (3) years
thereafter. All other teachers and education support professionals
of students in early childhood programs through grade three shall be
required to complete the autism training at least one time every
three (3) years. The autism training shall include a minimum
awareness of the characteristics of autistic children, resources
available and an introduction to positive behavior supports to
challenging behavior. Each adopted program shall allow school
counselors to receive at least one-third (1/3) of the hours or
credit required each year through programs or courses specifically
designed for school counselors.
Districts are authorized to utilize any means for professional
development that is not prohibited by law including, but not limited
to, professional development provided by the district, any state
agency, institution of higher education, or any private entity.
F. One time per year, beginning in the 2020-2021 school year, a
dyslexia awareness program shall be offered. Beginning in the 2023-
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 22
2024 school year, the program shall include information and training
in dysgraphia. At a minimum, the program shall include:
1. Training in awareness of dyslexia characteristics in
students;
2. Training in effective classroom instruction to meet the
needs of students with dyslexia; and
3. Available dyslexia resources for teachers, students and
parents.
G. Except as otherwise provided for in this subsection, each
certified teacher in this state shall be required by the district
board of education to meet the professional development requirements
established by the board, or established through the negotiation
process. Except as otherwise provided for in this subsection, the
professional development requirements established by each board of
education shall require every teacher to annually complete a minimum
number of the total number of points required to maintain
employment; provided, no more than a total of one hundred fifty
(150) hours of local, state, or federal professional development or
training shall be required for classroom teachers during any five-
year period. Failure of any teacher to meet district board of
education professional development requirements may be grounds for
nonrenewal of such teacher’s contract by the board. Such failure
may also be grounds for nonconsideration of salary increments
affecting the teacher. Teachers shall maintain written
documentation of all their completed professional development.
H. Each district shall annually submit a report to the State
Department of Education on the district level professional
development needs, activities completed, expenditures, and results
achieved for each school year by each goal as provided in subsection
C of this section. If a school district elects not to adopt and
offer a professional development program as provided for in
subsection A of this section, the district shall not be required to
submit an annual report as required pursuant to this subsection but
shall report to the State Department of Education its election not
to offer a program and all professional development activities
completed by teachers and administrators of the school district.
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 23
I. Subject to the availability of funds, the Department shall
develop an online system for reporting as required in subsection H
of this section. The Department shall also make such information
available on its website.
SECTION 6. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 1210.163, as
amended by Section 46, Chapter 59, O.S.L. 2024 (70 O.S. Supp. 2024,
Section 1210.163), is amended to read as follows:
Section 1210.163. A. Every school employee having reason to
believe that a student under the age of eighteen (18) years is a
victim of abuse or neglect shall report the matter immediately to
the Department of Human Services and local law enforcement. Reports
to the Department shall be made to the hotline provided for in
Section 1-2-101 of Title 10A of the Oklahoma Statutes. Any
allegation of abuse or neglect reported in any manner to a county
office shall immediately be referred to the hotline by the
Department.
B. Every school employee having reason to believe that a
student age eighteen (18) years or older is a victim of abuse or
neglect shall report the matter immediately to local law
enforcement.
C. In reports required by subsection A or B of this section,
local law enforcement shall keep confidential and redact any
information identifying the reporting school employee unless
otherwise ordered by the court. A school employee with knowledge of
a report required by subsection A or B of this section shall not
disclose information identifying the reporting school employee
unless otherwise ordered by the court or as part of an investigation
by local law enforcement or the Department.
D. Every school employee shall annually sign an attestation
acknowledging his or her responsibility to report suspected child
abuse or neglect pursuant to this section and Section 1-2-101 of
Title 10A of the Oklahoma Statutes.
E. For the purposes of this section, “child abuse and neglect”
shall include, but not be limited to:
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 24
1. Child abuse as defined in Section 843.5 of Title 21 of the
Oklahoma Statutes;
2. Sexual abuse or sexual exploitation as defined in Section 1-
1-105 of Title 10A of the Oklahoma Statutes;
3. Contributing to the delinquency of a minor, as defined
described in Section 856 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
4. Trafficking in children, as defined in Section 866 of Title
21 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
5. Incest, as described in Section 885 of Title 21 of the
Oklahoma Statutes;
6. Forcible sodomy, as described in Section 888 of Title 21 of
the Oklahoma Statutes;
7. Maliciously, forcibly or fraudulently taking or enticing a
child away, as described in Section 891 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma
Statutes;
8. Soliciting or aiding a minor child to perform or showing,
exhibiting, loaning or distributing obscene material or child sexual
abuse material, as described in Section 1021 of Title 21 of the
Oklahoma Statutes;
9. Procuring or causing the participation of any minor child in
any child sexual abuse material or knowingly possessing, procuring
or manufacturing child sexual abuse material, as described in
Section 1021.2 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
10. Permitting or consenting to the participation of a minor
child in any child sexual abuse material, as described in Section
1021.3 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
11. Facilitating, encouraging, offering or soliciting sexual
conduct with a minor, as described in Section 1040.13a of Title 21
of the Oklahoma Statutes;
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 25
12. Offering or offering to secure a minor child for the
purposes of prostitution or any other lewd or indecent act, as
described in Section 1087 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
13. Causing, inducing, persuading or encouraging a minor child
to engage or continue to engage in prostitution, as described in
Section 1088 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes;
14. Rape or rape by instrumentation, as described in Sections
1111.1 and 1114 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes; and
15. Making any oral, written or electronically or computer-
generated lewd or indecent proposals to a minor child under the age
of sixteen (16) as described in Section 1123 of Title 21 of the
Oklahoma Statutes.
SECTION 7. This act shall become effective July 1, 2025.
SECTION 8. 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.
ENR. S. B. NO. 553 Page 26
Passed the Senate the 24th day of March, 2025.
Presiding Officer of the Senate
Passed the House of Representatives the 1st 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: _________________________________