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House advances ODOT land-return bill after lawmakers question look-back language
Summary
House Bill 11-03, aimed at extending notice periods and clarifying when former landowners can reclaim property taken for road projects, passed the House after floor questions revealed removal of a five-year look‑back limitation in the bill text.
House Bill 11-03, a constituent-request bill addressing property taken by the Oklahoma Department of Transportation, advanced on final passage after lawmakers spent floor time clarifying how far back former landowners may claim a right of first refusal when ODOT no longer needs property.
Representative Gann explained the bill as extending notice and transparency around ODOT property disposition: it “extends the window for previous landowners to reclaim the reclaim any land, adds transparency to the process with online publication, and clarifies eligibility, ensures and ensures fair offers.” During questioning, he said the bill lengthens a notice period from 30 days to 90 days.
Why it matters: several members questioned whether the bill removed the existing five-year look-back that had limited how far back a former owner could reclaim property at the price originally paid. Representative Fugate and others pressed the point and were told by the author that language had in fact been stricken, meaning there is no explicit time horizon in the bill text for the look-back.
Representative Fugate asked whether the five-year provision had been removed; Representative Gann confirmed that the lines striking the five‑year language remain in the bill and that, “That that language was stricken.” Representative Fugate later summarized the consequence on the House floor: “theoretically, if say that they could go back 50 years ... whatever the price of the land was 50 years ago is what they would be forced to sell it back to that owner today.” Representative Gann said he recalled the committee discussion and acknowledged the change.
Action and outcome: House Bill 11-03 was advanced from general order and passed final passage on a recorded vote of 84 ayes and 9 nays. The clerk declared the bill passed.
Next steps and implementation notes: the bill requires ODOT to publish disposition information online and to provide longer notice to prior owners. The transcript indicates that the removal of the five-year look-back was intentional and was discussed on the floor; the bill text as described would allow claims based on the original acquisition price without an explicit time limit. The transcript does not record subsequent amendments on the floor to reinstate a fixed horizon.
