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1 STATE OF OKLAHOMA
2 2nd Session of the 60th Legislature (2026)
3 HOUSE BILL 3051 By: Stewart
4
5
6 AS INTRODUCED
7 An Act relating to the Tulsa Reconciliation Education
and Scholarship Act; amending 70 O.S. 2021, Section
8 2621, which relates to the Tulsa Reconciliation
Education and Scholarship Program; replacing resident
9 with student; modifying computation of scholarship
amount; amending 70 O.S. 2021, Section 2622, which
10 relates to definitions; striking resident definition;
amending 70 O.S. 2021, Section 2623, which relates to
11 qualifications to apply for the program; replacing
resident with student; increasing income threshold;
12 removing certain limitations for eligibility;
striking requirement that the Oklahoma Historical
13 Society verify certain documentation; requiring
submission of an attestation; directing the State
14 Regents for Higher Education to create attestation
form; barring a student who is twenty-one years of
15 age or older to be eligible to apply for the program;
striking annual award scholarships to two students at
16 each high school in the Tulsa Public School District;
permitting the State Regents to contract with the
17 Tulsa Public School District for administration of
the program; amending 70 O.S. 2021, Section 2624,
18 which relates to eligibility to participate in the
program; replacing resident with student; amending 70
19 O.S. 2021, Section 2625, which relates to amount of
awards; modifying computation of scholarship award;
20 striking certain option to use award for fees, books,
and room and board; amending 70 O.S. 2021, Section
21 2626, which relates to the Tulsa Reconciliation
Education and Scholarship Trust Fund; updating
22 citation; permitting adoption of rules instead of
requiring; providing an effective date; and declaring
23 an emergency.
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2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
3 SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 2621, is
4 amended to read as follows:
5 Section 2621. There is hereby created the Tulsa Reconciliation
6 Education and Scholarship Program. The purpose of the program is to
7 provide a scholarship award to residents students of the Tulsa
8 School District, which was greatly impacted both socially and
9 economically by the civil unrest that occurred in the City of Tulsa
10 during 1921. Beginning with the 2002-2003 school year, or as soon
11 thereafter as practicable, and subject to the availability of funds,
12 the program shall each year make scholarships available to qualified
13 residents students of the Tulsa School District, who meet the
14 criteria set forth in Sections 2623 and 2624 of this title, and who
15 are intending to pursue studies at an institution of higher
16 education in The Oklahoma State System of Higher Education or a
17 private institution of higher education, or who are intending to
18 pursue studies in a postsecondary career technology education
19 program. The scholarship shall be an amount of not more than the
20 equivalent of the average amount of resident tuition for which an
21 eligible Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program
22 participant enrolled at an institution in The Oklahoma State System
23 of Higher Education or a postsecondary career technology education
24 program, whichever is applicable, is obligated to pay. The
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1 scholarship shall be paid as provided for in Section 2625 of this
2 title. The further purpose of this program is to establish and
3 maintain a variety of educational support services whereby residents
4 students who qualify for the program will be prepared for success in
5 postsecondary endeavors.
6 SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 2622, is
7 amended to read as follows:
8 Section 2622. As used in the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and
9 Scholarship Act:
10 1. "Resident" means a person of any age who has resided within
11 the Tulsa School District for not less than two (2) years prior to
12 applying for participation in the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and
13 Scholarship Program;
14 2. "Private institution" means a private institution of higher
15 learning located within this state which is accredited pursuant to
16 Section 4103 of this title; and
17 3. 2. "Postsecondary career technology education program" means
18 a postsecondary vocational-technical program or course that is
19 eligible for Title IV federal student aid and is offered through a
20 technology center school.
21 SECTION 3. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 2623, is
22 amended to read as follows:
23 Section 2623. A. Subject to the availability of funds, the
24 Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education may annually award a
Req. No. 15705 Page 3
1 maximum of three hundred full-time-equivalent scholarships for the
2 Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program to residents
3 students of the Tulsa Public School District.
4 B. To initially qualify for a scholarship, an applicant shall
5 satisfy the following criteria:
6 1. The family income of the applicant from taxable sources is
7 not more than Seventy Thousand Dollars ($70,000.00) One Hundred and
8 Twenty-Five Thousand Dollars ($125,000.00) per year; and
9 2. The applicant attended a Tulsa public school where seventy-
10 five percent (75%) or more of the students enrolled in the school
11 qualify for the free and reduced lunch program; and
12 3. The applicant resides in a census block area within the
13 Tulsa School District where thirty percent (30%) or more of the
14 residents are at or below the poverty level established by the
15 United States Bureau of the Census.
16 C. The State Regents may consider as a factor, when determining
17 the order of preference of applicants, whether an applicant is a
18 direct lineal descendant of a person who resided in the Greenwood
19 Area in the City of Tulsa between April 30, 1921, and June 1, 1921.
20 If the State Regents use descent as a preference factor, it shall be
21 applied to all applicants regardless of race. The applicants shall
22 be required to present verifiable documentation of their lineage.
23 The Oklahoma Historical Society shall verify the authenticity and
24 accuracy of the documentation submitted by an applicant and shall
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1 establish the boundaries of the Greenwood Area. Verifiable
2 documentation shall include, but not be limited to the following:
3 1. Family records including family bibles, vital records,
4 correspondence, memoirs, journals, diaries, unrecorded deeds,
5 diplomas, certificates, or testimonials;
6 2. Public records including censuses, government records,
7 military records, pensions, land bounty records, passport
8 applications, passenger lists, original grants, naturalization or
9 immigration records, records of entry, or state, province, or local
10 records; or
11 3. Institutional records including church records, cemetery
12 records and inscriptions, education institutions, insurance records,
13 or societies and fraternal organizations.
14 With the submission of the verifiable documentation, the
15 applicant shall also submit an attestation stating that the
16 applicant swears under oath that the verifiable documentation is, to
17 the best of the applicant's knowledge, true and correct. The State
18 Regents shall create a standard attestation form for applicants to
19 use.
20 D. The In addition to the requirements in subsection C of this
21 section, the State Regents shall may promulgate rules establishing
22 the application requirements for the program and the system for
23 evaluating applications based on the preference factors.
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1 E. Applicants shall also meet the eligibility criteria
2 established in Section 2624 of this title. However, a student who
3 is twenty-one (21) years of age or older shall not be eligible to
4 apply for initial participation in the program regardless of whether
5 the student meets the eligibility criteria.
6 F. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education shall also
7 be authorized to annually award scholarships for the Tulsa
8 Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program to two students at
9 each of the high schools in the Tulsa School District for the
10 purpose of preserving awareness of the history and meaning of the
11 civil unrest that occurred in Tulsa in 1921. The following
12 provisions shall apply to the scholarship provided in this
13 subsection:
14 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection B of this
15 section, eligibility for the scholarships awarded pursuant to this
16 subsection shall be:
17 a. enrollment in the appropriate high school,
18 b. family income of the applicant from taxable sources
19 not to exceed Seventy Thousand Dollars ($70,000.00)
20 per year,
21 c. satisfaction of the criteria specified in Section 2624
22 of this title, and
23 d. any other relevant criteria determined by the Oklahoma
24 State Regents for Higher Education;
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1 2. The State Regents shall involve the administration of the
2 Tulsa School District in the selection process;
3 3. The award shall be limited to a one-year full-time-
4 equivalent period. Following successful completion of such award,
5 recipients who meet the criteria provided in subsection B of this
6 section shall be eligible to apply and be considered for continued
7 participation in the full Tulsa Reconciliation Education and
8 Scholarship Program. Any student subsequently awarded such
9 scholarship shall have the duration of the scholarship provided
10 pursuant to this subsection deducted from the limits set in
11 subsection D of Section 2625 of this title;
12 4. The award may only be funded with state funds appropriated
13 to the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Trust Fund and
14 income therefrom, and shall be made subject to the availability of
15 such funds; and
16 5. The awards made pursuant to this subsection shall be
17 included within the maximum number of scholarships specified in
18 subsection A of this section The State Regents may contract with
19 Tulsa Public School District for the administration of the Tulsa
20 Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program.
21 SECTION 4. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 2624, is
22 amended to read as follows:
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1 Section 2624. A. To be eligible to participate in the Tulsa
2 Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program and to qualify for
3 an award, a resident student shall:
4 1. Have satisfied admission standards as determined by the
5 Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education for the appropriate type
6 of institution or, if attending a private institution of higher
7 education, have satisfied admission standards as determined by the
8 private institution. No resident student participating in the Tulsa
9 Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program shall be admitted
10 into an institution of higher education by special admission
11 standards; and
12 2. Have secured admission to, and enrolled in, an institution
13 which is a member of The Oklahoma State System of Higher Education,
14 a private institution of higher education, or a postsecondary career
15 technology education program.
16 B. To retain eligibility while pursuing the program of higher
17 learning in which enrolled, the participant shall:
18 1. Maintain good academic standing and satisfactory academic
19 progress according to standards of the Oklahoma State Regents for
20 Higher Education; and
21 2. Comply with the standards related to maintenance of
22 eligibility as promulgated by the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher
23 Education or the State Board of Career and Technology Education.
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1 C. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education shall may
2 promulgate rules relating to maintenance of eligibility under this
3 act by a participant.
4 SECTION 5. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 2625, is
5 amended to read as follows:
6 Section 2625. A. Subject to the availability of funds, an
7 amount of not more than the equivalent of the average amount of
8 resident tuition for which an eligible Tulsa Reconciliation
9 Education and Scholarship Program participant enrolled in an
10 institution in The Oklahoma State System of Higher Education, or
11 enrolled in a postsecondary career technology education program,
12 whichever is applicable, is obligated to pay shall be awarded by
13 allocation from the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship
14 Trust Fund.
15 B. Subject to the availability of funds, for each eligible
16 Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program participant
17 enrolled at a private institution of higher education, the Oklahoma
18 State Regents for Higher Education shall award from the Tulsa
19 Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Trust Fund an amount of not
20 more than the equivalent of the average amount of resident tuition
21 for which the participant would be eligible if the participant were
22 enrolled in a program at an institution of The Oklahoma State System
23 of Higher Education of comparable type which has the highest general
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1 enrollment fees of its type of institution in the State System as
2 determined annually by the State Regents.
3 C. Subject to the availability of funds, an amount of not more
4 than the equivalent of the average amount of tuition for which an
5 eligible Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program
6 participant enrolled in a postsecondary career technology education
7 program is obligated to pay shall be awarded by allocation from the
8 Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Trust Fund. The
9 allocation shall not exceed the amount a participant would have
10 received for enrollment at a two-year institution within The
11 Oklahoma State System of Higher Education.
12 D. Benefits awarded under the Tulsa Reconciliation Education
13 and Scholarship Program shall not be allowed for courses or other
14 postsecondary units taken in excess of the requirements for
15 completion of a baccalaureate program or taken more than five (5)
16 years after the student's first semester of participation in the
17 program. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education may award
18 the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program benefits
19 for courses of postsecondary units taken more than five (5) years
20 after the student's first semester of participation in the program
21 only in hardship circumstances. No Tulsa Reconciliation Education
22 and Scholarship Program participant may receive benefits beyond a
23 cumulative time period of five (5) years. The Oklahoma State
24 Regents for Higher Education may establish a maximum limit on the
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1 number of courses or other postsecondary units to which Tulsa
2 Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program benefits will
3 apply. An award to an eligible Tulsa Reconciliation Education and
4 Scholarship Program participant who is enrolled in a postsecondary
5 career technology education program may be used to pay for both
6 career technology education and college work if both are required by
7 the program.
8 E. Benefits awarded under the Tulsa Reconciliation Education
9 and Scholarship Program shall be awarded to not more than 300 three
10 hundred (300) eligible participants annually, subject to the amount
11 of funds available for the program and the number of eligible
12 participants. Subject to the provisions of subsection F of this
13 section, if funds are not sufficient to provide awards for the
14 maximum number of eligible participants each year, the Oklahoma
15 State Regents for Higher Education shall make awards on the basis of
16 need. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education shall may
17 take into consideration other grants and scholarships received by an
18 eligible student when making awards. If an eligible student
19 receives other grants and scholarships, the benefits awarded under
20 the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program may cover
21 any additional educational costs not covered by the other grants and
22 scholarships. If the family of an eligible Tulsa Reconciliation
23 Education and Scholarship Program participant may qualify for the
24 federal Hope Scholarship or Lifetime Learning tax credit as provided
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1 for in the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997, P.L. No. 105-34, the
2 participant may elect to use the award allowed by this section to
3 pay for fees, required textbooks or materials and, if any funds
4 remain, to pay for room and board instead of resident tuition.
5 F. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education may, at the
6 time an award is made on behalf of a Tulsa Reconciliation Education
7 and Scholarship Program participant, set aside in the Tulsa
8 Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Trust Fund funds for the
9 full commitment made to such Tulsa Reconciliation Education and
10 Scholarship Program participant. For all academic years,
11 participants who have previously received awards under the
12 provisions of the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Act
13 and who have continued at all times to fulfill the requirements for
14 eligibility to receive awards provided pursuant to this program
15 shall be given an absolute priority for continued financial support
16 by the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program
17 superior to any residents students who are applying for such
18 benefits for the first time.
19 SECTION 6. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 2626, is
20 amended to read as follows:
21 Section 2626. A. There is hereby created a trust fund to be
22 known as the "Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Trust
23 Fund". The trust fund shall be managed and controlled by a board of
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1 trustees. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education shall
2 constitute the board of trustees of the Trust Fund.
3 B. The State Regents shall utilize said Trust Fund to implement
4 the provisions of the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship
5 Act.
6 C. The Trust Fund capital shall consist of monies the
7 Legislature appropriates or transfers to the Oklahoma State Regents
8 for Higher Education for the Trust Fund, monies transferred from the
9 donations from taxpayers pursuant to Section 12 2627 of this act
10 title, and any monies or assets contributed to the Trust Fund from
11 any other source, public or private.
12 D. The board of trustees shall invest the trust capital in a
13 reasonable and prudent manner which, consistent with any long-term
14 investment needs, will produce the greatest trust income over the
15 term of the investment while preserving the trust capital. All
16 trust income shall be reinvested into the trust fund except for the
17 purposes of awarding scholarships pursuant to the Tulsa
18 Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Act.
19 E. The State Regents shall may adopt rules for accomplishing
20 transfer of funds from the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and
21 Scholarship Trust Fund to the appropriate institutional Educational
22 and General Operations Revolving Funds, as provided in Section 3901
23 of this title, to private institutions of higher education, and to
24 the appropriate technology center school. Allocations from the
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1 Trust Fund may be made only for the purpose of covering the
2 scholarship award of eligible participants. No portion of the Trust
3 Fund may be used or allocated for administrative or operating
4 expenses of any higher education institution or technology center
5 school.
6 SECTION 7. This act shall become effective July 1, 2026.
7 SECTION 8. It being immediately necessary for the preservation
8 of the public peace, health or safety, an emergency is hereby
9 declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and
10 be in full force from and after its passage and approval.
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