HB 1728: Invasive cedar; creating the Salt Cedar Eradication Act; defining terms; creating certain program; rules; report; effective date; emergency. - Oklahoma

Floor (House) → Floor (Senate) · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended to reflect its progression from the House to the Senate floor, resulting in significant formatting updates and minor text adjustments. The core policy content, including the creation of the Salt Cedar Eradication program, the definition of eligible landowners, and the establishment of the revolving fund, remains substantively unchanged.

Scope change

The bill's scope and applicability remain unchanged; the amendments are primarily procedural and formatting adjustments.

TECHNICAL

Header and title pages were updated to reflect the Senate floor version, including the date April 23, 2025, and the bill number 1728.

The legislative summary text was reorganized and slightly rephrased to align with Senate formatting standards.

Minor capitalization and spacing adjustments were made throughout the text, such as changing 'Salt Cedar' to 'Salt cedar' in some instances and adjusting line breaks.

The committee report section was updated to reflect the Senate Appropriations Committee's review date of April 23, 2025, replacing the earlier House committee report date.

HB1728 (5-01-25) (HOWARD) FA1.PDF → Floor (House) · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was converted from a Senate draft to a House Floor version, removing specific amendment instructions that targeted the 'Upper Red River Basin' and replacing them with the full text of the 'Salt Cedar Eradication Act'. This new version establishes a formal program to eradicate invasive salt cedar plants in Oklahoma, creates a revolving fund to finance the work, and defines the roles of state agencies involved.

Scope change

The bill's scope is now explicitly defined as applying to Oklahoma counties within the Upper Red River Basin, targeting the removal of invasive Tamarix species to protect water resources and native ecosystems.

DEFINITION

Added specific legal definitions for 'Eligible Landowners', 'Eradication', and 'Salt Cedar' to clarify the bill's terms.

FISCAL

Created a new 'Salt Cedar Eradication Revolving Fund' in the State Treasury to collect and spend money for the eradication program.

REQUIREMENT

Mandated that the Oklahoma Conservation Commission lead a program including surveys, removal strategies, and assistance for landowners.

TIMELINE

Set the effective date of the act to July 1, 2025.

TECHNICAL

Removed draft amendment instructions and formatting notes from the previous Senate version.

House Committee Substitute → HB1728 (5-01-25) (HOWARD) FA1.PDF · 1 edit

MINOR

The bill was amended to specifically target salt cedar infestations in the 'North Fork of the Upper Red River Basin' rather than the entire Upper Red River Basin. This change narrows the program's geographic scope to a smaller, more specific area within the original basin.

Scope change

The bill's geographic scope was narrowed from the entire Upper Red River Basin to the North Fork of the Upper Red River Basin.

SCOPE

The geographic area for the Salt Cedar Eradication Program was changed from all counties in the Upper Red River Basin to only those counties within the North Fork of the Upper Red River Basin.

Proposed Committee Substitute (full committee) 1 → House Committee Substitute · 1 edit

MINOR

The bill was amended to replace the entire text with a cleaner version, updating the document title from 'Proposed Committee Substitute' to 'Committee Substitute' and changing the required reference number from 12480 to 12636. These changes are primarily technical and administrative, reflecting a procedural update to the bill's versioning and tracking information rather than altering any substantive policy, funding, or eligibility criteria.

TECHNICAL

The document header was updated to remove the word 'Proposed' from the title and change the required reference number from 12480 to 12636.

Engrossed → Proposed Committee Substitute (full committee) 1 · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended to replace the original text with a new version that clarifies the program's name from 'Salt Cedar Eradication Act' to 'Salt Cedar Eradication Program.' The changes update the fund name to 'Salt Cedar Eradication Program Revolving Fund' and adjust the reporting requirements to list specific state officials more clearly. These are primarily technical and formatting updates to align the document with standard legislative procedures.

Scope change

The scope of the bill remains focused on eradicating invasive salt cedar in the Upper Red River Basin, but the specific terminology used for the program and fund was updated to be more consistent.

DEFINITION

The fund name was changed from 'Salt Cedar Eradication Revolving Fund' to 'Salt Cedar Eradication Program Revolving Fund' to better reflect the program's nature.

REQUIREMENT

The annual report requirements were slightly reworded to specify reporting to the 'chairs of the appropriation committees' more clearly.

TECHNICAL

Capitalization was adjusted for terms like 'Eligible Landowners' and 'Salt Cedar' to ensure consistency throughout the text.

A committee amendment header and metadata were added to indicate this is a proposed substitute version.

Amended And Engrossed → Engrossed · 3 edits · May 12, 2025

MINOR

The bill adds specific geographic language to define the program's area as the 'Upper North Fork of the Red River Basin' instead of just the 'Upper Red River Basin.' Additionally, it creates a new permanent revolving fund to finance the eradication efforts and sets a specific effective date of July 1, 2025.

Scope change

The geographic scope of the Salt Cedar eradication program was narrowed to specifically include the 'North Fork' of the Red River Basin.

SCOPE

The geographic area for the eradication program was updated to specify the 'Upper North Fork of the Red River Basin' in multiple sections.

FISCAL

A new 'Salt Cedar Eradication Revolving Fund' was created in the State Treasury to collect and manage money for the program.

TIMELINE

A specific effective date of July 1, 2025, was established for the act.

Introduced → Amended And Engrossed · 3 edits · May 12, 2025

MINOR

The bill was amended to transfer authority over the Salt Cedar Eradication Program from the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry to the Oklahoma Conservation Commission. Additionally, the text was updated to specify that the program targets the North Fork of the Upper Red River Basin rather than the general Upper Red River Basin.

Scope change

The program's administrative oversight shifted from the Department of Agriculture to the Conservation Commission, and the geographic scope was narrowed to the North Fork of the Upper Red River Basin.

SCOPE

Administrative authority over the Salt Cedar Eradication Program was changed from the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry to the Oklahoma Conservation Commission.

The geographic scope of the program was updated to specifically target the North Fork of the Upper Red River Basin instead of the broader Upper Red River Basin.

REQUIREMENT

The bill's title and summary were updated to reflect the new administering agency and the specific geographic focus of the eradication efforts.

Invasive cedar; creating the Salt Cedar Eradication Act; defining terms; creating certain program; rules; report; effective date; emergency.

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