{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-56-56-243","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 56, § 56-243","heading":"Food stamp fraud - Penalties","body":"A. No person shall:\n\n1. Obtain;\n\n2. Attempt to obtain;\n\n3. Aid;\n\n4. Abet;\n\n5. Assist any person to obtain, by means of:\n\na. a false statement or representation,\n\nb. false impersonation,\n\nc. a fictitious transfer, conveyance or encumbrance of\n\nproperty or income,\n\nd. knowing and willful failure to report to the\n\nDepartment of Human Services:\n\n(1) income,\n\n(2) personal property,\n\n(3) real property,\n\n(4) household members, or\n\n(5) other eligibility factors,\n\nat the time of application or during a period of\n\nreceipt of assistance, or\n\ne. any other fraudulent device:\n\n(1) food stamps or coupons, or any benefit or debit\n\ncard or any other device authorizing\n\nparticipation in the food stamp program, to which\n\nsuch applicant for food stamps or coupons, or any\n\nbenefit or debit card or any other device\n\nauthorizing participation in the food stamp\n\nprogram is not entitled, or\n\n(2) a greater amount of food stamps or coupons, or a\n\ngreater number of benefit or debit cards or any\n\nother device authorizing participation in the\n\nfood stamp program than that amount or number\n\nwhich such applicant for food stamps or coupons,\n\nor any benefit or debit card or any other device\n\nauthorizing participation in the food stamp\n\nprogram is justly entitled to;\n\n6. Acquire, possess, use or transfer food stamps or coupons, or\n\nany benefit or debit card or any other device authorizing\n\nparticipation in the food stamp program that has been issued to\n\nanother person, except as authorized by this act and the rules of\n\nthe Department of Human Services;\n\n7. Acquire or transfer food stamps or coupons, or any benefit\n\nor debit card or any other device authorizing participation in the\n\nfood stamp program, except in exchange for food or food products for\n\nhuman consumption. For purposes of this paragraph, the phrase \"food\n\nor food products for human consumption\" shall not be construed as\n\nincluding alcoholic beverages, tobacco, beer, or imported foods; or\n\n8. Transfer any food stamps or coupons, or any benefit or debit\n\ncard or any other device authorizing participation in the food stamp\n\nprogram, to a person who is not authorized by this act and rules of\n\nthe Department of Human Services to acquire, possess, or use the\n\ntransferred food stamps or coupons, or any benefit or debit card or\n\nany other device authorizing participation in the food stamp\n\nprogram.\n\nB. 1. Any person, firm or corporation who violates any of the\n\nprovisions of this section shall be guilty of a:\n\na. misdemeanor, if the aggregate amount of food stamps or\n\ncoupons, or the aggregate value of any benefit or\n\ndebit card or any other device authorizing\n\nparticipation in the food stamp program obtained or\n\ntransferred is Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) or less,\n\nand, upon conviction thereof, shall be punishable by a\n\nfine of not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00),\n\nor by imprisonment in the county jail for not more\n\nthan three (3) months, or by both such fine and\n\nimprisonment, in the discretion of the court, or\n\nb. Class D3 felony offense, if the aggregate amount of\n\nfood stamps or coupons, or the aggregate value of any\n\nbenefit card or debit card or any other device\n\nauthorizing participation in the food stamp program\n\nobtained or transferred is in excess of Five Hundred\n\nDollars ($500.00), and, upon conviction thereof, shall\n\nbe punishable by a fine of not more than Five Thousand\n\nDollars ($5,000.00), or by imprisonment as provided\n\nfor in subsections B through F of Section 20P of Title\n\n21 of the Oklahoma Statutes, or by both such fine and\n\nimprisonment, in the discretion of the court.\n\n2. Any store which allows purchases of prohibited items shall\n\nnot be allowed to participate in the program.\n\n3. Any person, firm or corporation who knowingly traffics in\n\nfood stamps or coupons of an aggregate value of One Hundred Dollars\nd\n\nfor in subsections B through F of Section 20P of Title\n\n21 of the Oklahoma Statutes, or by both such fine and\n\nimprisonment, in the discretion of the court.\n\n2. Any store which allows purchases of prohibited items shall\n\nnot be allowed to participate in the program.\n\n3. Any person, firm or corporation who knowingly traffics in\n\nfood stamps or coupons of an aggregate value of One Hundred Dollars\n\n($100.00) or less, or any benefit or debit card or any other device\n\nauthorizing participation in the food stamp program with an\n\naggregate value of One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) or less, shall,\n\nupon conviction, be guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of\n\nnot more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), by imprisonment in the\n\ncounty jail for not more than three (3) months, or by both such fine\n\nand imprisonment, in the discretion of the court.\n\n4. Any person, firm or corporation who knowingly traffics in\n\nfood stamps or coupons of an aggregate value exceeding One Hundred\n\nDollars ($100.00), or any benefit or debit card or any other device\n\nauthorizing participation in the food stamp program with an\n\naggregate value exceeding One Hundred Dollars ($100.00), shall, upon\n\nconviction, be guilty of a Class D3 felony offense, punishable by a\n\nfine of not more than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), by\n\nimprisonment as provided for in subsections B through F of Section\n\n20P of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes, or by both such fine and\n\nimprisonment, in the discretion of the court.\n\n5. Any district attorney who enters into a deferred\n\nadjudication or who negotiates for a deferred sentence with a\n\ndefendant charged with a violation of the provisions of this section\n\nshall present the defendant with a disqualification consent\n\nagreement as part of the deferred adjudication or sentence.\n\nC. As used in this section, \"to traffic or trafficking in food\n\nstamps\" means:\n\n1. The buying, selling, stealing, or otherwise effecting an\n\nexchange of food stamp benefits issued and accessed via electronic\n\nbenefit transfer cards, benefit or debit cards, card numbers and\n\npersonal identification numbers, or by manual voucher and signature,\n\nfor cash or consideration other than eligible food, either directly,\n\nindirectly, in complicity or collusion with others, or acting alone;\n\n2. The exchange of firearms, ammunition, explosives, or\n\ncontrolled substances, as defined in Section 802 of Title 21 of the\n\nUnited States Code, for food stamp benefits or food stamp electronic\n\nbenefit transfer cards, benefit or debit cards;\n\n3. The possession of stolen food stamp electronic benefit\n\ntransfer cards, benefit or debit cards;\n\n4. Purchasing a product with food stamp benefits that has a\n\ncontainer requiring a return deposit with the intent of obtaining\n\ncash by discarding the product and returning the container for the\n\ndeposit amount, intentionally discarding the product, and\n\nintentionally returning the container for the deposit amount;\n\n5. Purchasing a product with food stamp benefits with the\n\nintent of obtaining cash or consideration other than eligible food\n\nby reselling the product, and subsequently intentionally reselling\n\nthe product purchased with food stamp benefits in exchange for cash\n\nor consideration other than eligible food; or\n\n6. Intentionally purchasing products originally purchased with\n\nfood stamp benefits in exchange for cash or consideration other than\n\neligible food.","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":"eaa5c0d0a4318def98d77dfd164f95b9ab6376e5c30271f74b64ffe80eb546d5","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-56-56-242","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-56-56-244"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}