Bill > HB3131

This bill, known as the Oklahoma Homeless Shelter Safety and Accountability Act, establishes statewide minimum standards for homeless shelter providers that receive state-administered funds or state-administered federal funds, which are funds distributed by a state agency either from state appropriations or federal grants. The State Department of Health is granted rulemaking authority to set basic life safety, sanitation, hygiene, and staff training standards, as well as procedures for reporting "material safety events"—defined as deaths not from natural causes, serious injuries requiring hospitalization, fires, violent felonies, or imminent threats to life or safety—and for addressing health or safety deficiencies, but it cannot create a statewide continuum of care, require client-level data, or impose zoning requirements. The Oklahoma Department of Commerce will oversee financial transparency, requiring providers to demonstrate fiscal stability through existing documentation and potentially tiered financial reviews, and will also handle administrative procedures related to funding eligibility. Providers must submit annual aggregate data on capacity, occupancy, safety events, and exits, which will be used for transparency and planning, not to set performance benchmarks. The act outlines complaint and enforcement procedures, allowing for the suspension or withholding of funds for non-compliance, and includes an advisory board to guide the Department of Health and Commerce on rule development and recommendations, with the board set to sunset five years after the act's effective date of November 1, 2026, and importantly, this act does not supersede local zoning or permitting authority.

Health and Social Services

http://www.oklegislature.gov/BillInfo.aspx?Bill=hb3131&Session=2600