HB 3590: Revenue and taxation; Oklahoma Equal Opportunity Education Scholarship Act; eligibility; removing federal law reference; authorizing payment be made via secure electronic funds transfer; effective date. - Oklahoma

Floor (House) → Floor (Senate) · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was amended to transition from a House version to a Senate floor version, incorporating specific formatting updates and reorganizing the text of the Oklahoma Equal Opportunity Education Scholarship Act. The substantive policy provisions regarding tax credit amounts, eligibility criteria, and reporting deadlines appear to remain consistent between the two versions, with the primary differences being structural layout and the inclusion of a new title header.

Scope change

The bill's scope and applicability remain unchanged; the differences are primarily related to document formatting and the transition from a House committee substitute to a Senate floor version.

TECHNICAL

Updated the document header to reflect the Senate Floor Version and added the date April 7, 2026.

Reorganized the bill title and sponsor information to align with Senate formatting standards.

Reformatted the statutory text and section headers to match the Senate's style guide while preserving the original legislative language.

Proposed Committee Substitute (sub committee) 2 → House Committee Substitute · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was reclassified from a 'Proposed Subcommittee Substitute' to a 'Committee Substitute,' indicating it has moved from a subcommittee review to the full House Committee stage. The most significant policy change is the introduction of a new provision allowing taxpayers to commit to making contributions for two consecutive years, which increases the tax credit from 50% to 75% of the total contribution amount. This change aims to incentivize long-term support for educational improvement grant organizations by offering a higher financial reward for sustained giving.

Scope change

The bill's scope regarding tax credit incentives has expanded to include multi-year contribution commitments, while the legislative status has advanced from subcommittee to full committee.

ELIGIBILITY

The eligibility criteria for the tax credit were expanded to include taxpayers who commit to contributing the same amount for an additional year, in addition to single-year contributors.

FISCAL

A new incentive structure was added that raises the tax credit rate from 50% to 75% for contributions made with a two-year commitment.

REQUIREMENT

A new requirement was added for taxpayers to provide evidence of a written commitment to the Oklahoma Tax Commission at the time of filing their refund claim.

TECHNICAL

The bill title and page headers were updated to reflect the change in legislative status from 'Proposed Subcommittee Substitute' to 'Committee Substitute'.

Proposed Committee Substitute (sub committee) 1 → Proposed Committee Substitute (sub committee) 2 · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was updated with new page numbers and a revised effective date for the tax credit. The most significant policy change is the removal of the specific 'January 1, 2027' date, which likely broadens the window for taxpayers to claim the credit or alters the start of the credit period. Additionally, the reporting requirements were simplified by removing the mandate to disaggregate data by adjusted gross income categories.

Scope change

The bill's applicability regarding the tax credit timeline was altered by removing a specific future date, while the scope of required reporting data was narrowed.

TIMELINE

The specific start date for the tax credit was changed from 'January 1, 2027' to just 'August 26, 2011', potentially expanding the period during which the credit is available.

REQUIREMENT

The requirement for annual reports to be broken down by adjusted gross income categories was removed, simplifying the data reporting process.

TECHNICAL

Page reference numbers were updated from 16364 to 16418, and the document header was revised to reflect a new committee substitute version.

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

MODERATE

The bill was revised from a full committee substitute to a subcommittee substitute, changing the title and effective date of the scholarship program. The most significant policy change is the expansion of the tax credit for contributions to educational organizations, increasing the maximum credit for business entities from $250,000 to $100,000 and adjusting the credit percentage for repeat contributors from 75% to 100%. The reporting deadline for organizations was also extended from 2024 to 2029.

Scope change

The bill's scope shifted from a full committee version to a subcommittee version, which includes a revised effective date and modified financial incentive structures for donors.

TIMELINE

The effective date for the scholarship program was changed from August 26, 2011 to January 1, 2027.

FISCAL

The maximum tax credit for legal business entities contributing to scholarship organizations was reduced from $250,000 to $100,000.

The tax credit percentage for taxpayers who commit to contributing the same amount for an additional year was increased from 75% to 100%.

REQUIREMENT

The deadline for organizations to submit audited financial statements and program reports was extended from April 30, 2024 to December 31, 2029.

Enrolled (final version) → Proposed Committee Substitute (full committee) 1 · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was rewritten to significantly increase tax credit limits for scholarship contributions and change the effective date of the program. It also increased the percentage of contributions eligible for the credit for long-term donors and updated reporting requirements.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded to include higher financial incentives for taxpayers and adjusted the program's start date.

FISCAL

Increased the maximum tax credit for single individuals from $1,000 to $5,000, for married couples from $2,000 to $10,000, and for business entities from $100,000 to $250,000.

Changed the credit percentage for taxpayers who commit to contributing the same amount for an additional year from 75% to 100%.

TIMELINE

Updated the program's effective start date from August 26, 2011, to January 1, 2027.

REQUIREMENT

Modified the reporting schedule for organizations to submit audited financial statements once every two years instead of every four years.

Engrossed → Enrolled (final version) · 2 edits · Apr 29, 2026

MINOR

The bill was finalized into its enrolled version, retaining the core policy of allowing state tax credits for contributions to education scholarship programs. The primary substantive change is the extension of the mandatory reporting deadline for scholarship organizations from April 30, 2024, to December 31, 2029, giving organizations more time to comply with new financial disclosure requirements.

Scope change

The scope of the bill remains unchanged; it continues to apply to taxpayers contributing to eligible scholarship-granting and educational improvement grant organizations.

TIMELINE

The deadline for organizations to submit audited financial statements and program performance data was extended from April 30, 2024, to December 31, 2029, and the reporting frequency was adjusted to every four years instead of every two years.

TECHNICAL

Minor formatting and text cleanup occurred during the finalization process, including the removal of page numbers and the correction of a date sequence error in the reporting schedule.

Introduced → Engrossed · 5 edits · Apr 29, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was significantly restructured and renamed from the 'Oklahoma Opportunity Scholarship Act' to the 'Oklahoma Equal Opportunity Education Scholarship Act' to align with federal non-discrimination requirements. The text was updated to remove references to federal law and replace them with state authority, while also changing the name of the scholarship-granting organizations to 'educational improvement grant organizations' to ensure compliance with federal guidelines. The effective date was moved from November 1, 2026, to December 31, 2029, and the reporting frequency for scholarship organizations was adjusted to occur every four years.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded to explicitly address federal compliance by changing the terminology of the scholarship programs to avoid discrimination claims and by removing all references to federal statutes in favor of state authority.

DEFINITION

The name of the scholarship program was changed from 'Oklahoma Opportunity Scholarship Act' to 'Oklahoma Equal Opportunity Education Scholarship Act' to reflect a focus on equal opportunity.

The term 'scholarship-granting organization' was replaced with 'educational improvement grant organization' to ensure the program complies with federal non-discrimination laws.

REQUIREMENT

References to federal law were deleted and replaced with citations to Oklahoma state authority, clarifying that the program operates under state jurisdiction.

The requirement for organizations to submit financial reports was changed from every two years to every four years.

TIMELINE

The effective date of the legislation was delayed from November 1, 2026, to December 31, 2029.

Revenue and taxation; Oklahoma Equal Opportunity Education Scholarship Act; eligibility; removing federal law reference; authorizing payment be made via secure electronic funds transfer; effective date.

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