6 days ago
Morel hunting to hospital prices: 5 new Oklahoma laws you might have missed
Did you know Oklahomans can soon forage for morel mushrooms on state property? Or that hospitals will face lawsuits for violating price transparency laws?
While much of the news from Oklahoma's Capitol in recent weeks has focused on taxes and the state budget, an impressive number of other policy bills reached the final stage: The desk of Gov. Kevin Stitt.
The governor decided this year to avoid personally taking action on bills he doesn't think are priorities. As of Wednesday, May 28, Stitt has allowed 234 bills to go into law without his signature. Last year it was just 19 bills.
Out of the hundreds of new laws that will go into effect in 2025, here are five that you might not have heard about yet.
Although Senate Bill 447 allows foraging for any edible plant or nut, Oklahomans might be especially interested to know that they can also soon start hunting for morel mushrooms on certain state-owned land.
Finding and picking morels, considered a tasty but expensive variety of mushroom, has become a popular springtime activity. Starting Nov. 1 when the law officially goes into effect, sharp-eyed Oklahomans can expand their search to state-owned or state-managed property that is accessible to the public.
Stitt chose not to sign the bill, but it still became a law because he didn't veto it before it took effect.
Along with fungi, the bill also authorizes foraging for nuts and edible plants, like berries. Don't expect restaurant chefs to be traipsing through state parks looking for them, however. The law clearly states that the foraging must only be done for personal consumption. Foragers are encouraged to wear hunter safety vests.
Foraging will be prohibited in university research crops, from plants that are threatened or endangered, along roads and highways, in areas owned by law enforcement or used for their training, and near correctional facilities and jails.
In an attempt by its authors to streamline Oklahoma's open records process, authorities will be allowed to deny records requests that aren't "reasonably specific."
The new law found in Senate Bill 535 codifies the right of public bodies to require people fill out a form if they're seeking government records. It also says that "if a records request does not describe the requested records with reasonable specificity," the public body can ask the requestor to clarify.
It will become law, although without the governor's signature, on Nov. 1.
The law says these three things meet the definition of reasonable specificity:
Proposing a specific time frame for when records would have been created or transmitted
Requesting identifiable records, instead of asking for general information without specifics, and
Including search terms that will help the public body find those records
If the requestor again fails to clarify, the public body can then deny the request.
The bill's author, state Sen. Julie Daniels, R-Bartlesville, said it was a product of negotiations between the Oklahoma Municipal League and the Oklahoma Press Association.
Daniels faced questions on the Senate floor about a provision in the bill that allows public bodies to ask for a deposit on records requests that will generate a cost to the requestor. Under existing Oklahoma law, governments can charge a copying fee of 25 cents per page. They can also charge a "reasonable fee" to cover the direct costs of searching and copying records if the request is made solely for a commercial purpose or if responding to the request would "clearly cause excessive disruption of the essential functions of the public body."
Her bill lets governments require an advance deposit when the estimated cost of producing those records exceeds $75, or if the requestor has unpaid fees from previous requests.
Oklahoma City Democratic Sen. Regina Goodwin questioned the lack of protections in the bill that would guarantee that a requestor who pays the deposit gets the records they asked for. However, state law already requires public bodies to be responsive to requests, and Daniels said the records request form authorized in her bill would help clarify what records are wanted.
While both federal and state law require hospitals to post their prices online, patient advocates say that most Oklahoma hospitals aren't fully complying. Senate Bill 889 adds sharp teeth to require hospitals follow the state law.
In their latest annual report, said it found that 37 out of 42 Oklahoma hospitals complied with price transparency laws.
More: 2024 analysis finds Oklahoma hospitals not transparent enough when it comes to prices
Starting Nov. 1 (a common date for new laws), anyone facing facing medical debt collection who believes a hospital is not in compliance with the state transparency law can sue to have a court determine whether that's the case. If so, the hospital will be barred from collecting any debt owed for the items or services. The hospital will also have to refund any payments and also pay a penalty equal to the amount of total debt.
Senate Bill 889 also allows the State Department of Health to monitor each hospital's compliance request a corrective action plan. Hospitals that ignore the request or fail to follow their own corrective action plan can be penalized administratively by the department.
Opponents of the bill expressed concern that rural hospitals who get caught up in a lawsuit would face yet another financial threat to their survival.
Stitt signed the bill into law.
Oklahoma law currently requires anyone who suspects child abuse or neglect to report it to authorities or face a misdemeanor charge, up to a year in county jail and a $500 fine.
House Bill 2798, which after the governor's signature officially becomes law in November, increases the penalty to a felony if that person is a school administrator or superintendent.
The new law requires superintendents and school administrators in both public and private schools to promptly report child abuse and neglect. If they knowingly and willfully fail to report, or if they interfere with another person's report, they could face between two and 10 years in state prison, a fine of at least $20,000, or both. They would also have to complete a term of community service.
"School administrator" includes principals and anyone who performs a supervisory or administrative role in a school district.
In the last week of session, Stitt signed a bill that could stop regulated electric utilities from offering incentives for customers to switch from natural gas.
The incentives typically come in the form of appliance rebates, which help customers offset or eliminate the cost of compatible machines. Senate Bill 335 specifically bans the use of ratepayer-funded incentives and goes into effect July 1.
During discussion on the House and Senate floors, opposition lawmakers criticized the bill as a protectionist measure to support the natural gas industry, especially because natural gas companies would still be able to utilize ratepayer income to incentivize switching.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Here's 5 new Oklahoma laws, from mushroom hunting to hospital prices
