Oklahoma legislation · 2026 Regular Session
Oklahoma HB3883: Cities and towns; public utility; system malfunctions; liability; third-party contractors; effective date.
Status: In committee, March 3, 2026
What the bill says
An Act relating to cities and towns; providing definitions; directing the governing body of the public utility to engage users of the utility to be advised of their responsibility to properly use the system; providing for notification of system malfunctions to be advised on; limiting liability of public utilities that implement provided standards; providing an affirmative defense for third-party contractors; limiting liability for community public utility systems for violations or alleged noncompliance that arose under prior owner or operator; providing for codification…
From the engrossed text, March 3, 2026:
An Act relating to cities and towns; providing definitions; directing the governing body of the public utility to engage users of the utility to be advised of their responsibility to properly use the system; providing for notification of system malfunctions to be advised on; limiting liability of public utilities that implement provided standards; providing an affirmative defense for third-party contractors; limiting liability for community public utility systems for violations or alleged noncompliance that arose under prior owner or operator; providing for codification; and providing an effective date. BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA: SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 37-235 of Title 11, unless there is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows: A. As used in this act: HB3883 HFLR Page BOLD FACE denotes Committee Amendments. 1. "Public utility" means a municipally owned utility or other publicly owned utility providing municipal water or wastewater services through a utility system; 2. "Qualified operations and maintenance program" is a formal, documented program for the management, operation, and maintenance of a municipal water or wastewater utility system. The program may be implemented directly by municipal employees or through a contractual agreement between the municipality and a third-party operator delegating responsibilities and liabilities for operation …