HB 2401 Oklahoma House · 2026 Regular Session

State government; State Government Act of 2025; effective date.

HB 2401 creates the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department to manage a program offering matching funds to municipalities for tourism-related projects. It allows cities to apply for up to $5,000 in state funds to match their own spending on projects like murals, statues, or structures designed to boost tourism revenue. Municipalities must submit detailed plans and budgets for Council approval before spending, with only actual, approved expenditures counting toward matching. The program is effective November 1, 2025, and defines "allowable expenditures" as costs directly tied to generating tourism revenue.

Issues: ✓ Budget & Taxes

Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2025

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Feb 3, 2025 Last action Feb 4, 2025

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Introduced → Proposed Policy Committee Substitute 1 · 6 edits

MODERATE

The bill was completely rewritten by the Policy Committee to replace a generic 'State Government Act' with a specific 'Oklahoma Tourism Ignition Program' that creates a new funding mechanism for municipalities. The new version directs the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department to market the program while the Oklahoma Arts Council administers it, allowing municipalities to receive matching funds for tourism-related projects like statues, murals, or structures.

Scope change

The bill's scope changed from a broad, noncodified state government act to a specific tourism and economic development program with defined roles for state agencies and municipalities.

SCOPE

Removed the original bill which established a generic 'State Government Act of 2025' with no specific program details.

FISCAL

Added a new Oklahoma Tourism Ignition Program that provides matching funds to municipalities, up to $5,000, for tourism-related expenditures.

ELIGIBILITY

Added eligibility criteria requiring municipalities to submit plans and budget work programs, with funds restricted to allowable expenditures that create positive economic impact via tourism.

DEFINITION

Defined 'allowable expenditures' as costs for creating tourism revenue-generating assets like statues, structures, or murals, based on actual expenditures less any discounts or rebates.

TIMELINE

Changed the program duration to run until November 1, 2027, and set the effective date to November 1, 2025.

REQUIREMENT

Added requirements for the Oklahoma Arts Council to administer the program and promulgate administrative rules, and for the Tourism and Recreation Department to market the program.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Feb 3, 2025

Introduced

First Reading

lower

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors