Oklahoma § 56-167.2 - Subpoena power of the Inspector General

§ 56-167.2. Subpoena power of the Inspector General

A. In any investigation relating to crimes committed against

the Department of Human Services or crimes committed in the course

of any program administered by the Department, or in investigations

of Medicaid recipient fraud, the Inspector General of the

Department, if approved by the legal counsel of the Department, may

require, by subpoena, the production of any records, including

books, papers, documents and other tangible things which constitute

or contain evidence, which the Inspector General or agent finds

relevant or material to the investigation. The production of

records may be required from any place in the state to be forwarded

to the Inspector General.

B. Compliance with the subpoena may be accomplished by:

1. Producing documents, as requested; or

2. Notifying the Department, in writing, of refusal to produce

documents, within ten (10) days of the date of service.

C. The subpoena shall specify a date for production that is at

least fifteen (15) days after the date that the subpoena is served

upon the person named therein. The subpoena form shall clearly set

forth the optional means of compliance including instructions for

sending written notice of refusal.

D. A subpoena issued to a financial institution pursuant to

subsection A of this section shall comply with Section 2204 of Title

6 of the Oklahoma Statutes. A subpoena to a financial institution

may be enforced under the provisions of subsection G of this section

in lieu of enforcement pursuant to Section 315 of Title 75 of the

Oklahoma Statutes.

E. A subpoena issued pursuant to this section may be served by

any person designated in the subpoena to serve it. Service of a

subpoena upon a person named therein shall be made by delivering or

mailing a copy of the subpoena to such person. Service may be made

upon a domestic or foreign corporation or upon a partnership or

other unincorporated association which is subject to suit under a

common name, by delivering or mailing the subpoena to an officer, to

a managing or general agent, or to any other agent authorized by

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 56. Poor Persons

appointment or by law to receive service of process. The affidavit

of the person serving the subpoena entered on a true copy thereof by

the person serving it shall be proof of service.

F. Service of a subpoena by mail may be accomplished by mailing

a copy thereof by certified mail with return receipt requested and

delivery restricted to the person named in the subpoena. The person

serving the subpoena shall make proof of service thereof to the

Inspector General. If service is by mail, the person serving the

subpoena shall show in the proof of service the date and place of

mailing and attach a copy of the return receipt showing that the

mailing was accepted. Service of a subpoena by mail shall not be

effective if the mailing was not accepted by the person named in the

subpoena.

G. In the case of refusal to obey a subpoena issued to any

person, the Inspector General may invoke the aid of any district

court of the state within the jurisdiction of which the

investigation is conducted or of which the subpoenaed person is an

inhabitant, or in which the person carries on business or may be

found, to compel compliance with the subpoena. The court may issue

an order requiring the subpoenaed person to appear before the

Inspector General to produce records, if so ordered. Any failure to

obey the order of the court may be punished by the court as an

indirect contempt thereof. All process in any such case may be

served in any judicial district in which such person may be found.

H. The district court of the county wherein the subpoena is

served may quash a subpoena issued pursuant to this section, upon a

motion to quash the subpoena filed with the court by the party to

whom the subpoena is issued.

Added by Laws 2017, c. 195, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2017.