Evictions in Oklahoma may be on the decline and several lawmakers are focusing on legislation to further lower the number of eviction cases filed in the state.
According to Legal Services Corporation eviction tracking, approximately 48,070 eviction cases were filed in 2024, a drop of 200 cases from 2023.
Several state lawmakers this legislative session are promoting bills designed to further reduce evictions in Oklahoma.
“In both chambers, it appears there is interest,” said Rep. Daniel Pae, D-Lawton. “I do generally believe that there’s broad agreement we need to modify statutes when it comes to the Landlord Tenant Act and housing issues in general.”
Legal Services for Eviction Defense
House Bill 2014, authored by Pae, would amend existing law to allow the Oklahoma attorney general to allocate money from the existing Legal Services Revolving Fund to provide legal representation for people in eviction cases who can’t afford an attorney. The money would go to legal services organizations that represent Oklahomans facing eviction, such as Legal Aid Services Oklahoma
Pae said the amendment would codify Attorney General Gentner Drummond’s July opinion that allocating municipal money to a nonprofit to fund eviction prevention services is constitutional in Oklahoma.
The bill is part of a nationwide movement for a tenant’s right to counsel, free representation in an eviction proceeding if they can’t afford an attorney on their own.
When tenants have legal counsel during eviction hearings, they are more likely to avoid a judgment against them. Housing attorneys can identify illegal eviction filings, discriminatory cases, or mistakes made by landlords in the eviction filing process that can help tenants stay in their homes.
Bills to Ban Retaliation
A handful of anti-retaliation bills confirm bicameral interest in eviction laws.
In addition to his Legal Services Revolving Fund amendment, Pae filed HB 2015 in his continuing effort to pass legislation protecting tenants from landlord retaliation.
Oklahoma is one of only six states without anti-retaliation laws prohibiting landlords from evicting tenants or withholding services after tenants take specific actions, such as reporting unlivable housing conditions to code enforcement or the health department.
Without laws preventing retaliation, tenants have little recourse against bad-actor landlords.
“We do not want to be on the list of the six states that don’t have anti-retaliation laws; that’s not a good list to be on,” said Rep. Mark Tedford, R-Tulsa.
Tedford said HB 1083 is written to protect both tenant and landlord, while previous anti-retaliation bills had too few landlord protections.
“It’s a balance to forge here, where if something is too pro-tenant, then it could potentially have the effect of reducing the incentive for landlords to invest back in the state and build more housing stock,” Tedford said.
House Bill 1083 would create a new law prohibiting retaliation by landlords within a set of parameters and protect landlords against false claims of retaliation by tenants. The bill prescribes civil penalties for both types of actions.
Tedford said the high eviction rate in Oklahoma during the post-COVID years was in part due to a housing shortage that was caused by an influx of residents from outside the state.
Without emergency rent assistance that kept landlords afloat during pandemic years, Tedford said, landlords are less likely to be patient, particularly during a spike in housing demand.
Sen. Mary Boren, D-Norman, filed SB 149, a similar anti-retaliation bill without the landlord-friendly language of Tedford’s. Boren said she intends to reduce retaliatory evictions and with an eye for reducing homelessness, which sometimes results from evictions.
In her bill, Boren suggests an alternative court system for evictions in which mediators help parties reach agreements. She said that could involve community wrap-around services, such as rent and utility assistance and help finding a job.
Boren said she is open to collaborating with Tedford on anti-retaliation legislation.
Extending the Eviction Timeline
For the second year, Sen. Julia Kirt, D-Oklahoma City, filed legislation that would give tenants more time to prepare for an eviction hearing.
Kirt’s bill, SB 128, lengthens the time between when a tenant is served a court summons and their eviction hearing from five days to 10.
“We have one of the shortest timelines in the country, and it skews heavily toward speed and encourages eviction,” Kirt said.
Nearly half of tenants dealing with evictions lose their court cases because they don’t show up. Tenants who do make it to court often come with children in tow.
Kirt said her bill would benefit tenants by giving them time to schedule time off work, find childcare, access legal assistance and arrange transportation.
“Exploitative landlords take advantage,” Kirt said.
Kirt said that while most landlords already operate ethically, lawmakers can increase housing stability by enacting legislation that protects tenants from exploitative landlords.
“We need to fix the system to a more balanced, fair process to make sure the law encourages responsible tenants and landlords,” Kirt said.
