SB 1775: Municipalities; clarifying that penalties for certain municipal ordinances may be equal to penalties in state statute. Emergency. - Oklahoma

Floor (House) → Floor (Senate) · 6 edits

MODERATE

This bill updates Oklahoma's municipal ordinance penalties to align with state statute limits, clarifies that fines can equal state penalties, and introduces specific new rules for courts of record. Key changes include raising the maximum fine for prostitution offenses in courts of record and adding a new category for wastewater and stormwater regulations. The bill also mandates that a portion of alcohol-related fines be remitted to a state database fund.

Scope change

The bill expands the scope of municipal authority by explicitly allowing ordinances regulating wastewater and stormwater discharges, while clarifying that penalties for other offenses can match state statutory limits.

ENFORCEMENT

Clarified that fines for municipal ordinance violations can be equal to penalties established in state statutes.

Added a requirement for courts of record to remit $50 of each alcohol-related fine to a municipal fund for juvenile access enforcement costs.

SCOPE

Added a new provision allowing courts of record to enact fines for violations of ordinances regulating wastewater pretreatment and stormwater discharges.

REQUIREMENT

Increased the maximum fine for prostitution offenses in courts of record from $2,500 to $5,000 for a second conviction and $7,500 for a third or subsequent conviction.

FISCAL

Required courts to remit $15 of every DUI fine to the Oklahoma Impaired Driver Database Revolving Fund.

TECHNICAL

Updated the fine amount for useful labor from $50 to $50 (no change in value, but text was reorganized) and corrected formatting errors in the original House version.

SB1775 (3-24-26) (PEDERSON) FA1.PDF → Floor (House) · 4 edits

MODERATE

This bill updates Oklahoma municipal fine limits to align with state statutes and introduces specific new rules for alcohol, drug, and prostitution offenses. It clarifies that fines for certain local violations can now match state-level penalties, while setting new maximum fine amounts and mandatory fund remittals for specific crime categories.

Scope change

The bill expands the scope of municipal enforcement authority by allowing fines for certain offenses to equal state statutory penalties, whereas previously local limits were often lower or undefined relative to state law.

ENFORCEMENT

Replaced a general clause about voiding excessive fines with specific, itemized maximum fine amounts for different offense types (e.g., speeding, parking, alcohol, and prostitution).

FISCAL

Mandated that $50 of every alcohol-related fine be remitted to a municipal fund for enforcement costs, and $15 of every DUI fine be sent to the state Impaired Driver Database Revolving Fund.

ELIGIBILITY

Established higher fine caps for cities with a criminal court of record compared to those with a non-record court, creating a tiered enforcement system based on court type.

REQUIREMENT

Added specific sentencing guidelines for prostitution offenses, including escalating fines for repeat convictions and mandatory community service for third or subsequent offenses.

Enrolled (final version) → SB1775 (3-24-26) (PEDERSON) FA1.PDF · 1 edit

MINOR

The bill was amended to add a new provision stating that any municipal fine exceeding the maximum amount authorized by state law is automatically void and unenforceable. This change clarifies that courts must reduce excessive fines to the legal maximum rather than allowing municipalities to charge amounts above statutory limits.

Scope change

The bill's scope was expanded to include an automatic enforcement mechanism for invalidating excessive fines, ensuring municipalities cannot charge penalties higher than state law permits.

ENFORCEMENT

Added a new subsection G stating that fines exceeding statutory maximums are void and unenforceable to the extent of the excess.

Engrossed → Enrolled (final version) · 3 edits · May 13, 2026

MINOR

The bill was finalized for signature, removing draft markings and adding an official subject line. The core policy content regarding fine limits and penalties for municipalities remained largely unchanged, though minor formatting corrections were made to the text.

TECHNICAL

Removed draft indicators (e.g., 'ENGROSSED') and added the final 'ENROLLED' status and a subject line to prepare the bill for the Governor's signature.

Corrected a numbering error in the prostitution penalty section by changing '2. 4.' to '4.' to align with the rest of the subsection.

Fixed a grammatical error in the general penalties section by removing the redundant phrase 'any alcohol-related or drug-related offenses' which interrupted the sentence flow.

Introduced → Engrossed · 4 edits · Mar 30, 2026

MODERATE

This bill updates Oklahoma's municipal ordinance penalty laws by clarifying that fines for local violations can match state statutory limits. It introduces specific new categories for wastewater and stormwater violations, increases maximum fines for alcohol and drug offenses, and adds a mandatory fee for DUI cases to fund a state database.

Scope change

The bill expands the scope of municipal enforcement by explicitly adding wastewater and stormwater regulations as enforceable municipal offenses with defined penalty caps.

ELIGIBILITY

Added specific authority for cities to set fines for violations of municipal ordinances regulating wastewater pretreatment and stormwater discharges.

REQUIREMENT

Increased the maximum fine for alcohol-related or drug-related traffic offenses from $800 to $1,250 when penalties are not set by state statute.

FISCAL

Established a mandatory $15 fee for every DUI case to be remitted to the Oklahoma Impaired Driver Database Revolving Fund.

ENFORCEMENT

Clarified that municipal fines for certain offenses may be equal to the penalties established in state statutes.

Municipalities; clarifying that penalties for certain municipal ordinances may be equal to penalties in state statute. Emergency.

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