School Laws of Oklahoma
Chapter 1 - Oklahoma School Code
Article XV: Textbooks
Section 322. State Textbook Committee - Members’ Qualifications. (70 O.S. § 16-101)
There is hereby created the State Textbook Committee, which shall be composed of two members from each congressional district, appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate and one member, appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate, who shall be a lay citizen not having a teaching certificate and having at least one child in the public schools of Oklahoma. A majority of the twelve members appointed from the congressional districts shall be classroom teachers. The regular terms of all members shall be for three (3) years. No member shall be eligible to succeed himself. At no time shall more than one member of the State Textbook Committee be an employee of the same school district. Each member appointed from a congressional district shall have had not less than five (5) years’ teaching or supervisory experience in the public schools of Oklahoma at the time of appointment, and shall be actively employed in the public schools of Oklahoma during the term of service on said Committee. The State Superintendent of Public Instruction or a designated member of staff shall serve as Secretary of the Committee and vote only when there is a tie vote in the membership of the Committee. Each member shall receive necessary traveling expenses while in the performance of his duties pursuant to the State Travel Reimbursement Act.
The Committee may meet at the call of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction at the State Capitol and elect by secret written ballot a chairperson and vice chairperson from its membership to serve for the year. The terms for which new members from the congressional districts are appointed shall be staggered by the governor in making appointments. The terms of four members shall expire each year. The four new members appointed each year shall be certified in one of the curriculum areas in which the textbooks will be adopted that ensuing fiscal year.
State Textbook Committee lacks authority to require that a statement specified by the Committee be added to or placed in textbooks as a condition of their adoption for use by public schools. February 2, 2000 (AG Op. No. 00-7)
Section 323. Lay Citizen Educator. (70 O.S. § 16-101).1
The lay educator appointed shall be appointed for a term of three (3) years.
Section 324. Meetings - Selection of Textbooks. (70 O.S. § 16-102)
A. The State Textbook Committee shall meet at the call of the chairperson as often as necessary, with two (2) weeks' public notice, to discharge its responsibilities. If necessary, not later than the first day of December of each year the State Textbook Committee shall meet at the call of the chairperson at the State Capitol and select textbooks for subjects taught in the public schools of the state up to and including the twelfth grade, which selections shall be for not more than six (6) years for every textbook.
B. The Committee may suspend any currently pending selection process of textbooks and may extend by at least two (2) years the six-year adoption period of those textbooks currently on the state adopted list, for the purpose of delaying for two (2) years the six-year adoption cycle of subjects.
C. “Textbooks”, as used in Sections 16-101 through 16-124 of this title, means instructional materials that are designed for use by pupils as a learning resource. Instructional materials may be printed or nonprinted and may include textbooks, technology-based and other educational materials. Technology-based materials do not include the equipment required to make use of those materials.
D. The Committee shall select textbooks or series of textbooks for each subject, which are in its judgment satisfactory. The State Textbook Committee may determine that unusual or extraordinary circumstances exist in a particular subject area during the period for which textbooks have been selected for that subject area. Unusual or extraordinary circumstances shall include but not be limited to significant new techniques of teaching in a particular subject area or significant new findings or discoveries in a particular subject area. Upon a determination by three-fourths (3/4) of the members of the State Textbook Committee that unusual or extraordinary circumstances exist in a particular subject area, the Committee may select one or more textbooks in that subject area for the remainder of the adoption period.
E. Five or more district boards of education may petition the State Board of Education to add a book or series of textbooks to the approved list selected by the State Textbook Committee.
The State Board of Education shall promulgate rules to implement the method and time frame for handling the petitions in the most expeditious manner.
Note: Amended by HB 1374, Sec. 1 of the 2011 Reg. Sess.
Section 325. (Omitted)
Section 326. Public Hearing on Textbooks being Considered by Committee. (70 O.S. § 16-102.1)
The State Textbook Committee shall conduct a public hearing in the first two (2) weeks of October each year for the purpose of gathering public testimony concerning the various textbooks being considered for adoption by the Committee. Any person wishing to be heard at the public hearing shall register with the secretary of the State Textbook Committee at least two (2) weeks prior to the date set for the public hearing. The registration shall be accompanied by a typed summary detailing the nature of the testimony which will be presented at the public hearing. All testimony shall pertain to a specific textbook or textbooks for which the State Textbook Committee has received bids. The time and number of people testifying for any one organization may be limited by the State Textbook Committee. The Committee, in its discretion, may conduct additional public hearings. The date of the public hearing shall be set by the committee when the advertisement for bids for books is issued.
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Section 327. Advertisement - Sealed Bids. (70 O.S. § 16-103)
The State Textbook Committee shall advertise for books in all basic subjects in such manner and for such time as it may deem best. Each year, the Committee shall advertise for sealed bids from publishers of textbooks for furnishing textbooks for the public schools of this state. Each bid shall state specifically and clearly the price at which each book will be furnished F.O.B. The bidder’s depository or delivered to any ordering school district in this state, and the price the books may be sold for through local retail book dealers, and shall be accompanied by a sample copy of each book offered in such bid, together with any teacher edition or teacher aids used with such book. A copy of each textbook for which a bid has been accepted by the Committee shall be displayed in at least one library or institution of higher education within each Congressional District in this state. The facility shall have free public access. The textbooks shall be displayed from the time they are accepted by the Committee until their final selection or rejection. A record of all the books delivered direct to any school district shall be immediately furnished by the shipper and the school district to the State Board of Education. Each bid shall be accompanied by a sworn statement specifically:
1. stating whether the publisher is the owner of any interest or share in any other textbook publishing houses, and, if so, giving the names and addresses thereof;
2. showing whether any member of the committee is in any manner interested, directly or indirectly, in such person, firm, or corporation submitting such bid; and
3. showing the name and address of every committee, public official, or individual in this state who has been furnished, within the preceding twelve (12) months, any copy of the textbook or textbooks or any edition thereof included in the bid, together with the numbers and titles thereof furnished to each recipient.
If the fact shall be disclosed that any member of the Committee, State Textbook Director, or any employee of that office is interested in the bidder, it shall work a disqualification of such member, and the member shall not be permitted to serve on the Committee, and the bidder shall be disqualified. If it shall be disclosed that such sworn statement does not accurately and completely give the information required, the State Textbook Committee shall disregard the bid. Oklahoma authors of school textbooks shall be permitted to receive the customary royalty, regardless of employment.
Section 328. Bids - Delivery - Investigation - Consultants. (70 O.S. § 16-104)
All bids shall be sealed and delivered to the secretary of the State Textbook Committee, to be delivered by the secretary to the Committee for the purpose of considering the bids. The committee shall meet prior to August 15 of each year at the time and place mentioned in the advertisement, to open and examine the sealed bids received, and make a full and complete investigation of all books and the bids accompanying the same. The Committee may use regular classroom teachers as consultants. The books shall be selected after careful consideration of all the books presented, and the books selected for adoption shall be those which, in the opinion of the Committee, are best suited for the public schools in this state. The committee shall give consideration to any legislative resolution concerning textbook content and the testimony received at public hearings when making the selections. The Committee shall proceed without delay to select, for use of the public schools of this state, textbooks as specified in this article and shall notify publishers to whom contracts are awarded. If the State Textbook Committee determines that significant inaccuracies exist in the contents of a textbook which has been bid or that information contained in the textbook is not current, the Committee may adopt the book on a provisional basis. Final adoption of the textbook and use of textbook money shall be contingent upon the publisher providing a modified or revised textbook which is acceptable by the State Textbook Committee.
Section 329. Publishers’ Contracts - Prices - Reduction - Term of Contract. (70 O.S. § 16-106)
A. All contracts with publishers shall be signed by the chairperson and secretary of the State Textbook Committee on behalf of the state. Each contract shall stipulate the price at which each textbook will be sold to the State of Oklahoma, and that all copies supplied to the State of Oklahoma will be equal to or better than the official copy filed with the secretary of the Committee. The State Textbook Committee may approve the substitution of a later edition in lieu of the textbook originally selected. The publisher shall stipulate in the contract that:
1. The price for which the textbook is to be furnished will be the lowest at which the same textbook will be sold or offered for sale for the purpose of securing a state or local selection or adoption elsewhere in the United States during the six (6) months prior to the date of the execution of the contract;
2. It will reduce the contract price of the textbook, if the price of the same textbook is reduced below such contract price elsewhere in the United States, and that it will file with the secretary of the Committee a sworn statement of such reduction made elsewhere;
3. If it prepares any supplementary or abridged or special editions of any of the textbooks, and shall sell such editions elsewhere at a lower price than that stipulated in the contract, it will file copies of any and all such editions, together with the prices thereof, with the secretary of the Committee;
4. It has not entered into any understanding, agreement or combination to control the prices or restrict competition in the sale of textbooks;
5. It will furnish the textbooks to the State of Oklahoma during the term of the contract in such amounts as may be required; and
6. It will furnish for a like period in lieu of the corresponding textbooks under contract any other books listed in any annual statement subsequently filed by it during the term of the contract to any school district at the lowest new prices contained in such statement, and that it will maintain said prices uniformly through the state.
B. Textbooks selected by the State Textbook Committee may be purchased by school districts at the prices for which contracts have been awarded, pending the effective dates of the contracts.
C. The chairperson and secretary of the State Textbook Committee, on the advice and consent of the attorney for the State Department of Education, may, with the consent of the holders of state textbook contracts, change any contract to conform with the provisions of Section 16-102 of this title.
D. As requested by a school district or the Oklahoma School for the Blind, all publishers who enter into contracts with the State Textbook Committee shall be required to furnish the Committee with electronic files in a file format from which Braille and other accessible versions of the instructional materials can be produced. The file format in which electronic instructional materials files are provided to the Committee shall be in a format prescribed by federal law or regulations promulgated by the United States Department of Education which requires national standards for electronic files to be used for production of accessible instructional materials. In the absence of a federal law or regulation establishing a national standard, a file format standard shall be prescribed by the State Department of Rehabilitation Services.
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Section 330. Revised Editions - Late Adoptions. (70 O.S. § 16-107)
A. In the event that a publisher whose bid has been accepted shall publish at any time before the expiration of the adoption period a new or revised edition of the adopted textbook, the State Textbook Committee may require such publisher to substitute such new or revised edition for the adopted edition at a price to be mutually agreed upon by the publisher and the State Textbook Committee, but not in excess of the lowest price at which the same textbook will be sold or offered for sale for the purpose of securing a state or local selection or adoption elsewhere in the United States during the twelve (12) months preceding the date of submitting such new or revised edition. A contract shall be made for such new or revised edition as for any other selection. Each bidder shall expressly agree to this provision as a part of the bid and the contract awarded if successful.
B. In the event that a publisher shall publish a textbook for a subject during the period for which adoption for that subject have not expired, such publisher may submit a bid for such textbook at the time and in the manner other bids are submitted. The State Textbook Committee may adopt such book for the balance of the adoption period and thereafter local textbook committees may adopt such book.
Section 331. Surety Bond - Attorney General - Recoveries. (70 O.S. § 16-108)
The bidder to whom one or more contracts may be awarded shall make and execute a good and sufficient surety bond, payable to the State of Oklahoma, in a sum not less than Two Thousand Dollars ($2,000.00), nor more than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00), to be fixed by the Committee, conditioned that the contractor shall perform all of the conditions of the contract. Prior to acceptance, the contract shall be approved by an attorney for the State Department of Education and shall be in conformity with, and subject to, all of the provisions of this article. The bond shall not be exhausted by a single recovery thereon but may be sued upon until the full amount thereof is recovered; and the Committee may, after twenty (20) days’ notice, require a new bond to be given, and, in the event the contractor shall fail to furnish such new bond, such contract may at the option of the Committee be forfeited.
Section 332. Right to Reject Bids - Failure to Secure Textbooks. (70 O.S. § 16-109)
The State Textbook Committee shall have and reserve the right to reject any and all bids, if said Committee be of the opinion that any or all bids should, for any reason, be rejected; and in case it fails, from among the proposals submitted, to select sufficient books upon any of the branches of study provided for herein, it may advertise for sealed bids under the same terms as before, and proceed in its investigation in all respects as it did in the first instance.
Section 333. List of Textbooks. (70 O.S. § 16-110)
As soon as any contract is entered into for the furnishing of textbooks for use in the public schools of the state, the secretary of the State Textbook Committee shall send a list of the textbooks selected by the State Textbook Committee to every superintendent of schools and local textbook committee in the state, which list shall show the respective prices of such textbooks and contain such other information as the secretary shall deem advisable. The secretary shall annually publish and distribute a list of all textbooks that have been selected and that are then in force.
Section 334. Local Textbook Committee - Examination Copies Adoptions - Requisitions. (70 O.S. § 16-111)
A. Except as otherwise provided for in subsection E of this section, the superintendent of schools of each school district in the state shall appoint a local textbook committee consisting of not fewer than three nor more than nine members. Each committee shall have one lay member, with the remainder of the members being teachers employed in the public schools of the district, a majority of whom shall be classroom teachers. The superintendent of schools or a designee who shall be a principal or a curriculum specialist shall serve as chairperson of the local textbook committee.
B. Upon the written request of any duly appointed local textbook coordinator, the publisher of a textbook selected by the State Textbook Committee shall furnish at least one examination copy of the textbook and the teacher edition of the textbook, if one is published, and a copy of software for purposes of complete demonstration and review, if available, to the school district so that the local textbook committee may examine any or all new adoptions in the subjects taught or to be taught in schools in the district.
C. Except as otherwise provided for in subsection E of this section, on or before a date to be fixed by the State Board of Education, each local textbook committee shall adopt textbooks from the multiple list selected by the State Textbook Committee in a manner as shall be prescribed by the State Board of Education. Each local textbook committee shall serve without compensation and shall cease to exist when local adoptions have been completed and shall be replaced by another local textbook committee appointed in the same manner as provided for in this section.
D. Except as otherwise provided for in subsection E of this section, on or before a date to be fixed by the State Board of Education, the superintendent of each school district shall submit to the State Board of Education a textbook plan outlining the estimated number of textbooks needed by the school district and the total amount of money to be expended by the district for textbooks including the allocated funds and any additional supplemental funds to be expended. The superintendent or textbook coordinator appointed by the superintendent, shall place orders from the proper depository or depositories for all of the textbooks needed as outlined in the textbook plan by the district for the ensuing year. The superintendent of a school district or textbook coordinator may order any textbooks placed on the official multiple textbook list. If the order exceeds the allocation for each school district as provided in Section 16-114a of this title any additional funds expended shall be reported on the statement of expenditures for the district.
E. For the fiscal years ending June 30, 2013, and June 30, 2014, a school district shall not be required to appoint a local textbook committee, adopt textbooks, submit a textbook plan, or expend money on the purchase of textbooks during the fiscal year if the school district makes the election as provided for in subsection B of Section 16-114a of this title.
The Legislature has mandated that the local committees adopt textbooks from State multiple list. There are no directives as to how the selection process is to be carried out. Therefore, in light of the Oklahoma Constitution and applicable statutes, there is no requirement that a local textbook committee review the full list of textbooks adopted by the State Textbook Committee, but whichever books they select must come from that list. August 2, 1993 (AG Inf. Op. No. 93-652)
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Section 335. District Purchase of Supplementary Textbooks and Materials. (70 O.S. § 16-111.1)
The funds allocated for textbooks in Section 16-114a of this title may be used by a school district for supplementary textbooks and other instructional materials other than those selected and listed by the State Textbook Committee.
Note: Amended by SB 278, Sec. 4 of the 2011 Reg. Sess.
Section 336. Cost of Textbooks - Payment - Repair Service. (70 O.S. § 16-113)
A. All monies allocated for the purchase of textbooks shall be sent directly to the school districts. The treasurer of each school district shall enter the allocated textbook amount for deposit in the appropriate account and the reporting of financial transactions involving textbooks shall be made according to the Oklahoma Cost Accounting System, as adopted by the State Board of Education pursuant to Section 5-135 of this title. The price to be paid for instructional materials on the state textbook list shall be no greater than that stipulated in the contract with the publisher. The State Board of Education shall approve purchase order forms to be used by school districts to order books from the depository. All books shall be delivered to the school district. Depositories are authorized to confer with individual school districts on plans to reduce the number of textbooks returned by school district depositories and to confer on restocking fees associated with such returns.
B. The State Board of Education shall provide sufficient office space, equipment, records and supplies necessary for a proper performance of the duties and functions vested in it and the State Textbook Committee, and the State Board of Education shall appoint and fix the compensation and duties of necessary personnel to assist the State Board of Education in performing its said duties and functions.
C. The State Board of Education shall not reserve any funds from appropriations made for the purchase of textbooks for rebinding or for freight or transportation costs. Each school district shall be responsible for any cost incurred by that district for rebinding services or freight or transportation costs.
Section 337. Textbook Allocation to School Districts. (70 O.S. § 16-114a)
A. Based upon legislative appropriations, the State Board of Education shall determine the textbook allocation to be distributed to each school district in the state. Each year the textbook allocation for each school district shall be calculated and distributed in July and adjusted in December. The initial allocation shall be calculated based on the audited end-of-year average daily attendance of the preceding school year multiplied by Fifty-five Dollars ($55.00). The initial allocation shall be calculated and distributed to each school district in July. The December adjustment shall be calculated by multiplying the audited first nine (9) weeks’ average daily attendance for that current school year by Fiftyfive Dollars ($55.00) and subtracting from that amount the amount of the initial allocation. The adjustment shall be calculated in December and distributed to each eligible school district no later than January 15. A school district shall receive an adjustment only if the adjustment figure as calculated in this section is greater than zero. The State Department of Education shall retain from the total amount appropriated for textbooks not less than one percent (1%) of the total amount to be used for the purpose of making the adjustments. If the amount appropriated, including the retained amount, is not sufficient to fully fund the adjusted allocation, each school district eligible for an adjustment shall receive a proportionate reduction in funding. Any unused portion of the value of textbooks allowed to a school district shall be cumulative and may be carried over by the school district to subsequent fiscal years, in addition to the allocation it is entitled to receive during that fiscal year.
B. For the fiscal years ending June 30, 2013, and June 30, 2014, a school district may elect to expend any monies allocated pursuant to this section for textbooks, including any monies carried over as authorized pursuant to subsection A of this section, for any purpose related to the support and maintenance of the school district as determined by the board of education of the school district.
C. All textbooks distributed to a school district that have been destroyed by fire or other hazard shall be replaced by the State Board of Education. The total cost of all additional textbooks delivered to school districts to replace those destroyed by fire or other hazard shall not exceed, for the entire state in any fiscal year, the aggregate sum of One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($100,000.00), which sum shall be reserved for that purpose from any appropriation made to carry out the provision of this section for any fiscal year.
State Board of Education may replace textbooks lost in shipment by district to State bindery. AG Op. October 21, 1958
District from which surplus textbooks are transferred shall be given credit thereof. AG Op. October 26, 1949
Section 337.1. Textbook Funding. (70 O.S. § 16-114.1)
The funds appropriated for the purchase of textbooks shall be apportioned by the State Board of Education to each school district pursuant to the provisions of Sections 16-101 through 16-124 of this title. Upon application from a local school district, the State Board of Education may allocate funds appropriated for the purchase of textbooks to be used for the purchase of special education textbooks or other instructional materials for those students enrolled in special education programs. Approval of funds shall be based on the following formula:
No funds shall be provided for students attending special education classes less than two (2) hours per day. Those attending two (2) hours or more per day but less than four (4) hours shall receive a one-half (½) allocation. Those attending special education classes for four (4) or more hours per day shall receive a full allocation.
Section 338. Contractors - Depository - Supply of Textbooks. (70 O.S. § 16-115)
All contractors shall establish and maintain a suitable and convenient depository or depositories in the State of Oklahoma where a stock of their books to supply all immediate demands shall be kept. Said depository or depositories may be operated jointly with other contractors. Each contractor shall maintain at the depository a sufficient supply of textbooks for individuals or boards of education desiring to purchase the same and shall be required to sell such books to any individual or board of education at the same price at which the textbook is sold to the State of Oklahoma plus cost of transportation to the individual or board of education purchasing textbook. Upon the failure of any contractor to carry a sufficient stock of books at the depository to take care of all immediate demands of the State of Oklahoma and others requesting the same, or to furnish the textbooks as required by the contract, the State Board of Education shall have power to recover on the bond given by such contractor for the full value of the books not furnished as required by the contract and terminate said contract.
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Section 339. List of Names of Agents and Representatives of Publishers. (70 O.S. § 16-117)
Each person, firm or corporation offering textbooks for sale in the State of Oklahoma shall list with the secretary of the State Textbook Committee the names and addresses of its agents or representatives which shall be a matter of public record in the office of the secretary of the State Textbook Committee.
Section 340. Rules and Regulations for Issuance of Textbooks. (70 O.S. § 16-118)
The State Board of Education shall adopt rules for the issuance of textbooks to school children and for the preservation of such textbooks, and all rules it deems necessary to carry out its duties and functions, and all such rules shall apply alike to all school districts. It shall prescribe the form of all reports and applications, and superintendents of schools, and boards of education shall be required to make such reports fully and completely at the time and in the manner prescribed by the State Board of Education. The State Board of Education shall keep an exact account of the cost of books distributed to each school district, together with the proper proportion of transportation and accounting charges.
The State Textbook Committee shall also have the power to adopt such rules as it deems necessary to enable it to perform its functions and duties.
Section 341. Sample Textbooks. (70 O.S. § 16-119)
All advance or sample copies of textbooks or any edition thereof furnished to any member of the State Textbook Committee, or to any individual for the purpose of obtaining a selection of the textbook by the State Textbook Committee, shall not be sold by the recipient thereof, but shall be disposed of as may be prescribed by the rules of the State Board of Education. Any advance or sample textbook or any edition thereof furnished to a member of a local textbook committee, or to any school official or individual for the purpose of obtaining a local adoption of the textbook, may be returned to the publisher for credit if the cost of such book was charged against the value of textbooks allowed such school district. Publishers shall pay the cost of shipment on returned samples. All publishers having contracts to furnish textbooks to the State of Oklahoma shall be required to file with the State Board of Education, not later than the first day of January and the first day of July of each year following the dates of their respective contracts, a sworn statement showing the names and addresses of all persons to whom they have furnished, during the preceding six (6) months, any advance or sample copies of such textbooks, or any edition thereof, together with the numbers and titles of such textbooks furnished to each such recipient, and a failure to do so, or to give accurate and complete information concerning the same, shall authorize the State Board of Education to cancel the contract of such publisher.
Section 342. Free Textbooks - Ownership. (70 O.S. § 16-121)
A. All textbooks adopted, purchased and distributed to school districts shall be furnished free of cost to the school children of such districts and shall be owned by such districts and each district shall mark each textbook with an appropriate number or other identification as deemed necessary to maintain proper records thereof. Each district board of education shall ensure that all textbooks necessary for completion of assigned course work are routinely available for every child enrolled in the schools of the district for the child’s personal use in a manner that will enable the child to complete assigned course work. The State Board of Education shall maintain a replacement program so that all textbooks for student use are in satisfactory condition. Nothing herein shall prevent the purchase, from local school district funds, or any adopted textbook or any additional and supplementary textbooks if the board of education of any school district deems it necessary to make such purchases in order to establish and maintain the highest standards of excellence of its schools.
B.
1. Each school child who has been issued a set of textbooks pursuant to this section, and the parents or legal guardian of such child shall be responsible to the school district for the return of or payment for such textbook issued to the child which is not returned to the school.
2. The State Board of Education is authorized to promulgate rules requiring the return of or payment for any textbook used by a school child which is not returned to the school. Such rules shall provide for certain exceptions to such policies. Local boards shall include considerations for the inability to pay for the textbook, and reasons for the nonreturn of the textbook. A local school board is authorized to withhold transcripts, or other records of the school relating to any school child who fails to return a textbook or make payment for the textbook if not returned. For the purpose of this subsection, the term “transcript” shall include any record of a grade or grades given to a student by a teacher.
3. The provisions of this subsection shall not authorize the State Board of Education to prevent any school child from actually receiving a grade he is otherwise entitled to for completion of a course of study, from graduating upon completion of the requirements, or from obtaining any records or information supplied to the school or otherwise owned by the child.
Section 343. Bribes - Punishment. (70 O.S. § 16-122)
Any person who directly or indirectly promises or offers to give, or causes to be promised, offered or given, any money, books, bribe, present or reward or any valuable thing whatsoever to any member of the State Board of Education, the State Textbook Committee, or a local textbook committee, or any member of a board of education, teacher or other person with the intent to influence a decision on any question, matter, cause or proceeding in the selection or adoption of any textbooks, or series of textbooks, upon conviction, shall be guilty of a felony. Any teacher in the public schools of Oklahoma, any superintendent of a school district or any employee of a school district who shall in any way be interested in the profits, proceeds or sale of any school textbook used in the public schools under such person’s charge, or with which such person is connected in any official capacity, upon conviction, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be punished by a fine of not less than Fifty Dollars ($50.00) and not more than Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00) and shall in addition thereto forfeit the office or position.
Section 344. Soliciting or Receiving Bribes - Punishment. (70 O.S. § 16-123)
Any member of the State Board of Education and any member of the State Textbook Committee who directly or indirectly solicits, receives or agrees to receive any money, goods, bribe, present, reward or any valuable thing whatsoever with the intent, and which will have the effect, to influence a decision on any question, matter, cause or proceeding in the selection or adoption of any textbook or series of textbooks provided for in this article, upon conviction, shall be guilty of a felony.
Any district superintendent of schools, any member of a board of education, and any member of a local textbook committee who directly or indirectly solicits, receives or agrees to receive any money, goods, bribe, present, reward or any valuable thing whatsoever with the intent and which will have the effect to influence a decision on any question, matter, cause or proceeding in the selection or adoption of any textbook or series of textbooks, upon conviction, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be punished by a fine of not to exceed Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), or by imprisonment in the county jail for a term of not to exceed six (6) months, or both such fine and imprisonment.
Section 345. Violation of Article - Punishment. (70 O.S. § 16-124)
Any person, firm or corporation that violates any of the provisions of this article, or any of the rules of the State Board of Education or the State Textbook Committee adopted pursuant to the provisions of this article, the penalty for violation thereof not otherwise being provided herein, upon conviction, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a fine of not less than One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) and not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), or by imprisonment in the county jail for not less than ninety (90) days and not more than one (1) year, or by both such fine and imprisonment. Any public official or public employee violating any of the provisions of this article or any of such rules shall be subject to the foregoing penalties and in addition thereto shall forfeit the position or office. Any officer or employee of the State Board of Education or of the State Textbook Committee who knowingly or willingly apportions or disburses any money appropriated to carry out the provisions hereof, contrary to the provisions hereof, shall be subject to the foregoing penalties and in addition thereto shall forfeit the office or position.
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