HB 1240 Oklahoma House · 2026 Regular Session

Prisons and reformatories; granting elected state officials the right to access facilities operated by the Department of Corrections without prior notification; codification; effective date.

HB 1240 (Oklahoma) removes the requirement for elected state officials (such as legislators) to sign nondisclosure agreements before visiting Department of Corrections facilities. The bill amends Oklahoma law to ensure these officials can freely report or comment on facility conditions without prior notification or confidentiality restrictions. It directly affects state legislators and other elected officials who conduct facility inspections. The change takes effect November 1, 2025.

Issues: ✓ Criminal Justice

Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2025

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Feb 3, 2025 Last action Feb 5, 2025

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduced → Proposed Committee Substitute (full committee) 1 · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended to replace the original text with a committee substitute that expands the State Board of Corrections' oversight responsibilities to include the Office of the Inspector General, requires the Director of Corrections to report directly to the Board, and exempts elected state officials from signing nondisclosure agreements when visiting correctional facilities. The effective date remains November 1, 2025.

Scope change

The bill's scope was significantly expanded to include oversight of the Office of the Inspector General and added training requirements for private prison contractors, while also clarifying reporting lines between the Director of Corrections and the State Board of Corrections.

REQUIREMENT

Changed the reporting structure so the Director of the Department of Corrections must now report directly to the State Board of Corrections instead of the Governor.

Added requirement for the Board to provide training to employees of private prison contractors and other governmental entities on a fee basis.

SCOPE

Added new oversight responsibilities for the State Board of Corrections to include supervising the Office of the Inspector General within the Department.

ELIGIBILITY

Modified to exempt elected state officials from signing or complying with nondisclosure or confidentiality agreements when visiting correctional facilities.

TECHNICAL

Changed the bill title from 'AS INTRODUCED' to 'PROPOSED COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE' and updated the amendment tracking number from 10836 to 12417.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Feb 5, 2025

Lower · Passed

Policy recommendation to the Judiciary and Public Safety Oversight committee; Do Pass Public Safety

lower

Feb 4, 2025

Committee

Referred to Public Safety

lower

Feb 3, 2025

Introduced

First Reading

lower

2 primary · 0 co-sponsors