{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-60-60-176","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 60, § 60-176","heading":"Trusts for benefit of state, county or municipality -","body":"Approval - Expenditures - Conveyance of title to real property used\n\nfor airport - Bylaws - Amendments - Indebtedness - Bonds - Contracts\n\n- Eminent domain - Exemptions.\n\nA. Express trusts may be created to issue obligations, enter\n\ninto financing arrangements including, but not limited to, lease-\n\nleaseback, sale-leaseback, interest rate swaps, and other similar\n\ntransactions and to provide funds for the furtherance and\n\naccomplishment of any authorized and proper public function or\n\npurpose of the state or of any county or municipality or any and all\n\ncombinations thereof, in real or personal property, or either or\n\nboth, or in any estate or interest in either or both, with the\n\nstate, or any county or municipality or any and all combinations\n\nthereof, as the beneficiary thereof by:\n\n1. The express approval of the Legislature and the Governor if\n\nthe State of Oklahoma is the beneficiary;\n\n2. The express approval of two-thirds (2/3) of the membership\n\nof the governing body of the beneficiary if a county is a\n\nbeneficiary;\n\n3. The express approval of two-thirds (2/3) of the membership\n\nof the governing body of the beneficiary if a municipality is a\n\nbeneficiary; or\n\n4. The express approval of two-thirds (2/3) of the membership\n\nof the governing body of each beneficiary in the event a trust has\n\nmore than one beneficiary; provided, that no funds of a beneficiary\n\nderived from sources other than the trust property, or the operation\n\nthereof, shall be charged with or expended for the execution of the\n\ntrust, except by express action of the legislative authority of the\n\nbeneficiary prior to the charging or expending of the funds. The\n\nofficers or any other governmental agencies or authorities having\n\nthe custody, management, or control of any property, real or\n\npersonal or mixed, of the beneficiary of the trust, or of a proposed\n\ntrust, which property shall be needful for the execution of the\n\ntrust purposes, are authorized and empowered to lease the property\n\nfor those purposes, after the acceptance of the beneficial interest\n\ntherein by the beneficiary as hereinafter provided.\n\nB. Any trust created pursuant to the provisions of this\n\nsection, in whole or in part, may engage in activities outside of\n\nthe geographic boundaries of its beneficiary, so long as the\n\nactivity provides a benefit to a large class of the public within\n\nthe beneficiary’s geographic area or lessens the burdens of\n\ngovernment of the beneficiary and which does not solely provide a\n\nbenefit by generating administrative fees.\n\nC. A municipality may convey title to real property which is\n\nused for an airport to the trustees of an industrial development\n\nauthority trust whose beneficiary is the municipality. The\n\nindustrial development authority trust must already have the\n\ncustody, management, or control of the real property. The\n\nconveyance must be approved by a majority of the governing body of\n\nthe municipality. A conveyance pursuant to this section may be made\n\nonly for the sole purpose of allowing the authority to sell the\n\nproperty for fair market value when the property is to be used for\n\nindustrial development purposes. Conveyances made pursuant to this\n\nsubsection shall be made subject to any existing reversionary\n\ninterest or other restrictions burdening the property and subject to\n\nany reversionary interest or other restriction considered prudent by\n\nthe municipality.\n\nD. The trustees of a public trust having the State of Oklahoma\n\nas beneficiary shall make and adopt bylaws for the due and orderly\n\nadministration and regulation of the affairs of the public trust.\n\nAll bylaws of a public trust having the State of Oklahoma as\n\nbeneficiary shall be submitted in writing to the Governor of the\n\nState of Oklahoma. The Governor must approve the proposed bylaws\n\nbefore they take effect.\n\nE. No public trust in which the State of Oklahoma is the\n\nbeneficiary may be amended without a two-thirds (2/3) vote of\nstration and regulation of the affairs of the public trust.\n\nAll bylaws of a public trust having the State of Oklahoma as\n\nbeneficiary shall be submitted in writing to the Governor of the\n\nState of Oklahoma. The Governor must approve the proposed bylaws\n\nbefore they take effect.\n\nE. No public trust in which the State of Oklahoma is the\n\nbeneficiary may be amended without a two-thirds (2/3) vote of\n\napproval of the trustees of the trust; provided, that any amendment\n\nis subject to the approval of the Governor of the State of Oklahoma.\n\nAny amendments shall be sent to the Governor within fifteen (15)\n\ndays of their adoption.\n\nF. No trust in which a county or municipality is the\n\nbeneficiary shall hereafter create an indebtedness or obligation\n\nuntil the indebtedness or obligation has been approved by a two-\n\nthirds (2/3) vote of the governing body of the beneficiary. In the\n\nevent a trust has more than one beneficiary, as authorized by this\n\nsection, the trust shall not incur an indebtedness or obligation\n\nuntil the indebtedness or obligation has been approved by a two-\n\nthirds (2/3) vote of the governing body of two-thirds (2/3) of the\n\nbeneficiaries of the trust. Provided, however, a municipality with\n\na governing body consisting of fewer than seven (7) members shall be\n\nrequired to approve the creation of an indebtedness or obligation\n\nunder this subsection by a three-fifths (3/5) vote of the governing\n\nbody.\n\nG. All bonds described in subsection F of this section, after\n\nDecember 1, 1976, except bonds sold to the federal government or any\n\nagency thereof or to any agency of the State of Oklahoma, shall be\n\nawarded to the lowest and best bidder based upon open competitive\n\npublic offering, advertised at least once a week for two (2)\n\nsuccessive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county\n\nwhere the principal office of the trust is located prior to the date\n\non which bids are received and opened; provided, competitive bidding\n\nmay be waived on bond issues with the approval of three-fourths\n\n(3/4) of the trustees, unless the trust has fewer than four\n\ntrustees, in which case a two-thirds (2/3) approval shall be\n\nrequired, and a three-fourths (3/4) vote of the governing body of\n\nthe beneficiary, unless the beneficiary is a county in which case a\n\ntwo-thirds (2/3) vote of the members of the governing body shall be\n\nrequired, or three-fourths (3/4) vote of the governing bodies of\n\neach of the beneficiaries of the trust, unless one of the\n\nbeneficiaries is a county in which case a two-thirds (2/3) vote of\n\nthe members of the governing body of such county shall be required.\n\nNo bonds shall be sold for less than par value, except upon approval\n\nof three-fourths (3/4) of the trustees, unless the beneficiary is a\n\ncounty in which case a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the members of the\n\ngoverning body shall be required. In no event shall bonds be sold\n\nfor less than sixty-five percent (65%) of par value; provided,\n\nhowever, in no event shall the original purchaser from the issuer of\n\nany bonds issued by any public trust for any purpose receive\n\ndirectly or indirectly any fees, compensation, or other remuneration\n\nin excess of four percent (4%) of the price paid for the bonds by\n\nthe purchaser of the bonds from the original purchaser; and further\n\nprovided, that the average coupon rate thereon shall in no event\n\nexceed fourteen percent (14%) per annum. No public trust shall sell\n\nbonds for less than ninety-six percent (96%) of par value until the\n\npublic trust has received from the underwriter or financial advisor\n\nor, in the absence of an underwriter or financial advisor, the\n\ninitial purchaser of the bonds, an estimated alternative financing\n\nstructure or structures showing the estimated total interest and\n\nprincipal cost of each alternative. At least one alternative\n\nfinancing structure shall include bonds sold to the public at par.\nthe\n\npublic trust has received from the underwriter or financial advisor\n\nor, in the absence of an underwriter or financial advisor, the\n\ninitial purchaser of the bonds, an estimated alternative financing\n\nstructure or structures showing the estimated total interest and\n\nprincipal cost of each alternative. At least one alternative\n\nfinancing structure shall include bonds sold to the public at par.\n\nAny estimates shall be considered a public record of the public\n\ntrust. Bonds, notes, or other evidences of indebtedness issued by\n\nany public trust shall be eligible for purchase by any state banking\n\nassociation or corporation subject to such limitations as to\n\ninvestment quality as may be imposed by regulations, rules, or\n\nrulings of the Bank Commissioner.\n\nH. Public trusts created pursuant to this section shall file\n\nannually, with their respective beneficiaries, copies of financial\n\ndocuments and reports sufficient to demonstrate the fiscal activity\n\nof such trust including, but not limited to, budgets, financial\n\nreports, bond indentures, and audits. Amendments to the adopted\n\nbudget shall be approved by the trustees of the public trust and\n\nrecorded as such in the official minutes of such trust.\n\nI. Public construction contracts as provided in the Public\n\nCompetitive Bidding Act of 1974 shall be subject to the Public\n\nCompetitive Bidding Act of 1974 and the Fair Pay for Construction\n\nAct, where applicable. The provisions of this subsection shall not\n\napply to contracts of industrial and cultural trusts.\n\nJ. Any public trust created pursuant to the provisions of this\n\nsection shall have the power to acquire lands by use of eminent\n\ndomain in the same manner and according to the procedures provided\n\nfor in Sections 51 through 66 of Title 66 of the Oklahoma Statutes.\n\nAny exercise of the power of eminent domain by a public trust\n\npursuant to the provisions of this section shall be limited to the\n\nfurtherance of public purpose projects involving revenue-producing\n\nutility projects of which the public trust retains ownership;\n\nprovided, for public trusts in which the State of Oklahoma is the\n\nbeneficiary the exercise of the power of eminent domain may also be\n\nused for public purpose projects involving air transportation.\n\nRevenue-producing utility projects shall be limited to projects for\n\nthe transportation, delivery, treatment, or furnishing of water for\n\ndomestic purposes or for power including, but not limited to, the\n\nconstruction of lakes, pipelines, and water treatment plants or for\n\nprojects for rail transportation. Any public trust formed pursuant\n\nto this section which has a county as its beneficiary shall have the\n\npower to acquire, by use of eminent domain, any lands located either\n\ninside the county, or contiguous to the county pursuant to the\n\nlimitations imposed pursuant to this section.\n\nK. If a roadway owned and maintained by a public trust whose\n\nbeneficiary is the State of Oklahoma, which roadway is not within\n\nthe corporate limits of any municipality and has been used by the\n\npublic for any length of time, and the trust has not dedicated the\n\nroadway for public use by written easement, plat, or similar writing\n\nrecorded in the land records of the county clerk of the county in\n\nwhich the roadway is located, the trust may at any time, by\n\nresolution of its board of trustees, close, reopen, or re-close the\n\nroadway to public use. Such closure shall not leave any property\n\nnot owned by the trust without contiguous access to a roadway,\n\nwhether a public right-of-way or a roadway owned by the trust. If a\n\nroadway is closed pursuant to this subsection and the right to\n\nreopen the roadway is foreclosed by the district court of the county\n\nwhere the roadway is located, pursuant to the procedures provided in\n\nSections 42-111 through 42-115 of Title 11 of the Oklahoma Statutes,\n\nthen the closure of such roadway shall be permanent and not subject\n\nto being reopened.\nor a roadway owned by the trust. If a\n\nroadway is closed pursuant to this subsection and the right to\n\nreopen the roadway is foreclosed by the district court of the county\n\nwhere the roadway is located, pursuant to the procedures provided in\n\nSections 42-111 through 42-115 of Title 11 of the Oklahoma Statutes,\n\nthen the closure of such roadway shall be permanent and not subject\n\nto being reopened.\n\nL. Provisions of this section shall not apply to entities\n\ncreated under Sections 1324.1 through 1324.26 of Title 82 of the\n\nOklahoma Statutes.\n\nM. Any trust created under Section 176 et seq. of this title,\n\nin whole or in part, to operate, administer, or oversee any county\n\njail facility shall consist of not fewer than five members and\n\ninclude a county commissioner and the county sheriff, or their\n\ndesignees, and one member appointed by each of the county\n\ncommissioners. The appointed members shall not be elected\n\nofficials.","path":["OK Code","Title 60"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os60.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"a74bd2592a45d6567a53d15d9c50eb1d25192aff5a45d81e915689dc1ba6bfe1","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-60-60-175.92","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-60-60-176.1"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}