{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-56-56-185","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 56, § 56-185","heading":"Fraud in obtaining assistance - Penalties - Signage","body":"A. Any person who:\n\n1. Obtains or attempts to obtain, or aids, abets or assists any\n\nperson to obtain, by means of a false statement or representation,\n\nby false impersonation, by a fictitious transfer, conveyance or\n\nencumbrance of property or income, by a knowing and willful failure\n\nto report to the Department of Human Services income, personal\n\nproperty, real property, household members, or other material\n\neligibility factors at the time of application or during the receipt\n\nof assistance, or by other fraudulent device, assistance to which an\n\napplicant is not entitled or assistance greater than that to which\n\nan applicant is justly entitled; or\n\n2. By sale, barter, purchase, theft, acquisition, possession or\n\nuse of any electronic benefits or debit card or any other device\n\nauthorizing participation in the Temporary Assistance for Needy\n\nFamilies or other program of the Department, knowingly obtains,\n\naids, abets or assists any person to obtain or attempt to obtain\n\nassistance to which a person is not entitled,\n\nshall be guilty of a misdemeanor, if the aggregate amount of\n\nassistance received as a result thereof is Five Hundred Dollars\n\n($500.00) or less. Upon conviction thereof, such person shall be\n\nfined not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) or be imprisoned\n\nfor not more than three (3) months or be both so fined and\n\nimprisoned in the discretion of the court; provided, however, if the\n\naggregate amount of assistance received as a result thereof is in\n\nexcess of Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), such person shall be\n\nguilty of a Class D3 felony offense and, upon conviction thereof,\n\nshall be fined not more than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), or\n\nbe imprisoned as provided for in subsections B through F of Section\n\n20P of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes, or be subject to both such\n\nfine and imprisonment in the discretion of the court.\n\nB. Every county Department of Human Services office in this\n\nstate shall conspicuously post a sign in an area clearly visible to\n\nall visitors of the county office which shall provide information\n\nabout how to report individuals who have obtained public assistance\n\nthrough fraudulent means or who have used public assistance in a\n\nmanner not consistent with its intended use. The sign shall make\n\nreference to the Department of Human Services fraud hotline and\n\nprovide the current phone number for the hotline. The sign shall\n\nalso contain notification that all reports to the hotline may be\n\nfiled anonymously by persons suspecting fraudulent activity.\n\nC. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the identity of\n\nany person making a report on another individual who may have\n\nobtained public assistance through fraudulent means, or an\n\nindividual using public assistance in a manner not consistent with\n\nits intended use, shall not be revealed without the permission of\n\nthe person making the report.\n\nAdded by State Question No. 226, Initiative Petition No. 155, § 26,\n\nadopted July 7, 1936. Amended by Laws 1973, c. 60, § 1, emerg. eff.\n\nApril 27, 1973; Laws 1985, c. 58, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 1985; Laws 1997,\n\nc. 133, § 499, eff. July 1, 1999; Laws 1999, c. 17, § 2, emerg. eff.\n\nApril 5, 1999; Laws 1999, 1st Ex.Sess., c. 5, § 364, eff. July 1,\n\n1999; Laws 2013, c. 67, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2013; Laws 2025, c. 486, §\n\n719, eff. Jan. 1, 2026.\n\nNOTE: Laws 1998, 1st Ex.Sess., c. 2, § 23 amended the effective\n\ndate of Laws 1997, c. 133, § 499 from July 1, 1998, to July 1, 1999.","path":["OK Code","Title 56"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os56.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"b0acbafb990e3386ffdac72c8e45478b9513bab8a3c80d83d2ec3aa5a8cf2fd0","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-56-56-183","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-56-56-186"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}