HB 1138: Law enforcement; modifying duties of the Human Capital Management Division and the Civil Service Division of the Office of Management and Enterprise Services; effective date. - Oklahoma

Floor (House) → Floor (Senate) · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended to transition from a House version to a Senate floor version, incorporating significant policy changes to the Civil Service and Human Capital Modernization Act. These amendments expand the scope of disciplinary actions covered, introduce a confidential whistleblower program, and modify complaint filing and hearing timelines. The changes also clarify the role of mediation for specific disciplinary issues and adjust the list of officials exempt from the act's provisions.

Scope change

The bill's scope was broadened to include a new whistleblower program and expanded definitions of covered disciplinary actions, while exemptions were adjusted to include the Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency.

REQUIREMENT

Added a new confidential whistleblower program allowing employees to report mismanagement or misuse of funds, with the Attorney General authorized to investigate and prosecute claims.

Clarified that punitive transfers must undergo mediation before a hearing, while written reprimands require exclusive mediation before a hearing is permitted.

TIMELINE

Modified complaint filing deadlines and hearing timelines, specifying that complaints must be filed within 10 business days and hearings held within 30 business days, with exceptions for specific disciplinary actions.

SCOPE

Expanded the definition of 'disciplinary actions' to explicitly include written reprimands alongside termination, suspension, and demotion.

ELIGIBILITY

Added the Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency to the list of entities and officials exempt from the act's provisions.

Enrolled (final version) → Floor (House) · 1 edit

MINOR

The bill text was reformatted from an enrolled version to a floor version, adding page numbers and committee amendment markers. The substantive policy content, including the creation of a dispute resolution program, whistleblower protections, and specific exemptions for certain government employees, remains unchanged.

TECHNICAL

The document structure was updated to include line numbers, page headers, and bold formatting to indicate committee amendments, while the actual legislative text and policy provisions were preserved without substantive alteration.

Engrossed → Enrolled (final version) · 5 edits · May 19, 2025

MODERATE

The bill was finalized and enrolled for signature, retaining its core purpose of modernizing state employee dispute resolution and civil service procedures. The final version clarifies the scope of disciplinary actions covered, expands exemptions for specific groups like temporary and seasonal workers, and establishes a confidential whistleblower program for reporting mismanagement.

Scope change

The bill's scope was broadened to explicitly include grievances from specific statutory categories and to clarify that 'disciplinary actions' cover termination, suspension, demotion, punitive transfers, and written reprimands. Additionally, new exemptions were added for executive management, temporary employees, and seasonal workers.

REQUIREMENT

Added a confidential whistleblower program allowing employees to report mismanagement and misuse of funds, with the Attorney General authorized to investigate and prosecute claims.

Clarified that 'disciplinary actions' specifically include termination, suspension, involuntary demotion, punitive transfers, and written reprimands.

Added a provision allowing the presiding officer to require the non-prevailing party to pay reasonable attorney fees and costs if their position was without reasonable basis or frivolous.

ELIGIBILITY

Expanded the list of exemptions to include executive management (up to 5% of an agency), temporary employees working less than 1,000 hours annually, and seasonal employees working less than 1,600 hours annually.

SCOPE

Consolidated and clarified rules regarding mediation for punitive transfers versus written reprimands, and expanded the types of complaints the Civil Service Division must act upon.

Amended And Engrossed → Engrossed · 5 edits · May 12, 2025

MODERATE

The bill was amended to clarify which state employees are eligible for mediation and hearings regarding disciplinary actions. Specifically, it added a provision that employees offered relocation incentives are exempt from being classified as having received a punitive transfer. It also expanded the list of covered employees to include those under specific sections of the Oklahoma Statutes related to mediation, allowing them to proceed to a hearing if mediation fails.

Scope change

The scope of the bill was expanded to include additional categories of state employees (specifically those under Title 70, Section 510 of Title 57, and Section 2-105 of Title 47) who are now permitted to proceed to a hearing if mediation is unsuccessful. Additionally, a new exemption was created for employees offered relocation incentives.

ELIGIBILITY

Employees offered relocation incentives are explicitly excluded from being deemed subject to a punitive transfer.

State employees performing duties under specific sections of the Oklahoma Statutes (Title 70, Section 510 of Title 57, and Section 2-105 of Title 47) are now permitted to proceed to a hearing if mediation is unsuccessful.

DEFINITION

The definition of 'disciplinary actions' was updated to explicitly include termination, suspension without pay, involuntary demotion, punitive transfers, and written reprimands.

ENFORCEMENT

The presiding officer of Civil Service Division proceedings is authorized to require the non-prevailing party to pay reasonable attorney fees if their position was without reasonable basis or frivolous.

EXEMPTIONS

A new list of exemptions was added, excluding elected officials, political appointees, district attorneys, and executive management (up to 5% of an agency) from the bill's protections.

Introduced → Amended And Engrossed · 2 edits · May 12, 2025

MINOR

The bill was amended to explicitly include Section 510 of Title 57 (the Oklahoma State Police) in the list of agencies covered by the Civil Service and Human Capital Modernization Act. Additionally, the text was cleaned up to fix inconsistent spacing and punctuation throughout the document.

Scope change

The scope of the bill was expanded to explicitly include the Oklahoma State Police under the new dispute resolution and disciplinary review procedures.

SCOPE

Added explicit reference to 'Section 510 of Title 57' in two locations to ensure the Oklahoma State Police are clearly included in the bill's protections.

TECHNICAL

Corrected inconsistent spacing and punctuation errors in the title page and the main text to improve readability and professional formatting.

Law enforcement; modifying duties of the Human Capital Management Division and the Civil Service Division of the Office of Management and Enterprise Services; effective date.

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