HB 1393 amends Oklahoma's special education law to clarify how alternate achievement standards are applied in Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) for students with disabilities. It replaces the phrase "based on alternate academic achievement standards" with language requiring assessments "that promote access to and progress in the general education curriculum." This change directly affects students with disabilities in Oklahoma public schools who use alternate assessments, ensuring their IEPs focus on meaningful engagement with standard curriculum content. The bill specifies that alternate assessments must support students' ability to access and advance in regular classroom learning, not just measure them against different standards. The amendment became law after Governor approval on May 9, 2025.
HB 1940 amends Oklahoma's charter school law to establish a new annual limit: the Statewide Charter School Board may sponsor no more than five new charter schools per year in counties with fewer than 500,000 residents. This directly affects the Statewide Charter School Board's authority and charter school expansion in smaller counties, while maintaining existing sponsorship rules for other areas. The rule applies to all new charter school applications approved after July 1, 2025, when the bill takes effect. The bill does not change sponsorship requirements for schools in larger counties or other sponsor types.
SB 139 requires Oklahoma public school district boards of education to adopt cell phone policies by the 2025-2026 school year. Starting in the 2026-2027 school year, boards may choose to implement policies prohibiting students from using cell phones or personal electronic devices on school campuses "from bell to bell" during school hours. The bill directly affects school districts by setting a timeline for policy adoption and defining the scope of device restrictions during instructional time. This legislation, approved by the governor on May 3, 2025, provides a framework for district-level decisions without mandating specific enforcement.
SB 758 limits when Oklahoma public school districts and charter schools can count virtual instruction toward required annual instructional hours (1,080 hours or 180 days). Starting in the 2026-2027 school year, schools generally cannot count days when school is closed with virtual instruction toward these requirements. The bill allows counting up to two days (or 12 hours) per year only if the Superintendent of Public Instruction approves the school's virtual instruction plan. This change directly affects how districts report instructional time and must comply with state guidelines for virtual learning.
SB 409 would require Oklahoma public school districts to add one additional day of classroom instruction starting July 1, 2025, if the state allocates at least $25 million more in funding for public schools than the previous fiscal year. This provision directly affects all Oklahoma public school districts by mandating an extra school day when specific state budget increases are met. The bill establishes a clear funding trigger ($25 million greater than prior year) as the mechanism for the requirement, with no changes to existing minimum instructional time standards (180 days or 1,080 hours). It is designed to link state education funding increases directly to expanded instructional time for students. The bill was introduced but failed passage in April 2025 (22-63 vote).
HB 2017 updates Oklahoma's anti-bullying and online harassment laws to better protect students. It adds "aiding suicide" as a criminal offense (Section 1) and expands definitions of electronic harassment to include threatening online communications directed at specific individuals (Section 2), with misdemeanor penalties for first offenses and felony for repeat violations. The bill also modifies school safety policies under the School Safety and Bullying Prevention Act (Section 3), requiring schools to update anti-bullying policies annually, report incidents to parents within 24 hours, and prohibit retaliation against staff who report incidents. These changes directly affect students, schools, and online platforms by strengthening legal consequences for targeted online harassment and improving school response protocols.
HB 1396 prohibits private schools in Oklahoma from requiring parents to participate in the Oklahoma Parental Choice Tax Credit Program as a condition for enrolling their child. It requires schools to provide enrolled students using the tax credit a written tuition agreement showing the base rate, with future increases limited to the State Treasurer's annual inflation measure (based on local consumer index data) and requiring written notice at least one semester in advance. This applies only to students receiving the tax credit, not to other students. The bill aims to prevent schools from tying enrollment to tax credit participation while standardizing tuition increase notifications for tax credit users. It takes effect July 1, 2025.
HB 1760 creates tax credits for Oklahoma taxpayers who contribute to eligible scholarship-granting or educational improvement organizations. It allows a 50% tax credit (up to $1,000 for individuals, $2,000 for married couples, $100,000 for businesses) on contributions, increasing to 75% for those making a multi-year commitment with written proof. The bill also modifies how credits are allocated to business owners and requires annual financial reporting from participating organizations. These credits are subject to annual caps established by the Oklahoma Tax Commission.
HB 1603 requires Oklahoma public schools to teach a specific human growth and development curriculum, including a high-definition ultrasound video showing fetal development and a computer animation of cell/organ growth. It mandates this content be delivered in an age-appropriate manner, with parents able to opt their child out using a state-prescribed form two weeks before instruction. The bill affects all public school students in grades 9-12, as completion of this curriculum is required for graduation with a standard diploma unless a parent opts out. Schools must integrate this into health or science courses and align it with state academic standards, effective November 1, 2025.
HB 1280 (2025) requires Oklahoma school districts to spend at least 50% of their annual budget on classroom instruction starting in 2025-2026. If a district falls below this threshold, it must increase instructional spending by 2% annually until reaching 50%, or face a written warning and, after four years of non-compliance, a permanent 2% annual teacher pay raise for each year missed. The bill defines "annual budget" to exclude bond sales, fundraisers, and non-educational grants, and "instructional expenditures" per federal standards. The bill failed to pass (36-57) on March 27, 2025, so it is not law.
