Oklahoma § 74-85.47 - Short title

§ 74-85.47. Short title

This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Oklahoma Small

Business Surety Bond Guaranty Program Act".

Added by Laws 1990, c. 236, § 1, eff. July 1, 1991.

§74-85.47a. Definitions.

1. "Administrator" means the Small Business Surety Bond

Guaranty Program Administrator;

2. "Fund" means the Small Business Surety Bond Guaranty Fund;

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 74. State Government

3. "Indemnity fund" means a fund established through the Office

of Management and Enterprise Services to underwrite the Small

Business Surety Bond Guaranty Program;

4. "Principal" means a small business entity as defined

pursuant to Section 3 of the Small Business Act, 16 U.S.C. Section

632;

5. "Program" means the Small Business Surety Bond Guaranty

Program; and

6. "Surety" means a corporation granted authority by the

Insurance Commissioner to write bonds or insurance in this state

guaranteeing the performance of contracts.

Added by Laws 1990, c. 236, § 2, eff. July 1, 1991. Amended by Laws

2012, c. 304, § 768.

§74-85.47b. Administrator - Powers and duties.

The Administrator shall be authorized to:

1. Use the services of other governmental agencies and public

trusts which are necessary to carry out the provisions of this act;

2. Contract for and accept, for use in carrying out the

provisions of this program, loans and grants from the federal

government and any of its agencies and instrumentalities and from

public trusts;

3. Acquire, manage, operate, dispose of, or otherwise deal with

property, take assignments of rentals and leases, and make

contracts, leases, agreements and arrangements that are necessary or

incidental to the performance of his duties;

4. Prescribe or approve the form of and terms and conditions in

applications, guarantee agreements or any other documents entered

into by the Administrator, principals or sureties in connection with

the program;

5. Acquire or take assignments of documents executed, obtained

or delivered in connection with any assistance provided under this

program; and

6. Fix, determine, charge and collect any premiums and fees

pursuant to rules promulgated by the Director of the Office of

Management and Enterprise Services.

Added by Laws 1990, c. 236, § 3, eff. July 1, 1991. Amended by Laws

1992, c. 197, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1992; Laws 2012, c. 304, § 769.

§74-85.47c. Small Business Surety Bond Guaranty Fund.

A. There is hereby created in the State Treasury a revolving

fund for the Small Business Surety Bond Guaranty Program to be

designated the "Small Business Surety Bond Guaranty Fund". The fund

shall be a continuing fund, not subject to fiscal year limitations

and shall consist of:

1. Premiums, fees, and any other amounts received with respect

to bonding assistance provided under this program;

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 74. State Government

2. Proceeds from the sale, lease, or other disposition of

property or contracts held or acquired by the Office of Management

and Enterprise Services pursuant to this program;

3. Income from investments that the State Treasurer makes from

monies in the fund; and

4. Any other monies made available under this program.

B. The fund shall be used:

1. For the purposes provided for in this program; and

2. To pay part or all of the expenses of administering the

program.

C. All monies accruing to the credit of the fund shall be

deposited with the State Treasurer and invested and reinvested in

the same manner as other state funds, and any investment earnings

shall be paid into the fund. All monies accruing to the credit of

the fund are hereby appropriated and may be budgeted and expended

for the purposes provided in subsection B of this section.

Expenditures from said fund shall be made upon warrants issued by

the State Treasurer against claims filed as prescribed by law with

the Director of the Office of Management and Enterprise Services for

approval and payment.

Added by Laws 1990, c. 236, § 4, eff. July 1, 1991. Amended by Laws

2012, c. 304, § 770.

§74-85.47d. Guaranty capabilities of program - Terms of guaranty Establishment of indemnity fund.

A. Subject to the restrictions of the Oklahoma Small Business

Surety Bond Guaranty Program Act, the Administrator, on application,

may guarantee any surety which qualifies pursuant to this act for

any losses incurred as a result of a principal's breach of a bid

bond, a payment bond, a defect or maintenance bond, or a performance

bond required for a public construction contract for the state,

federal agencies and political subdivisions of the State of

Oklahoma. Provided, the guaranty shall not be extended to any bond

with a face value in excess of Two Hundred Fifty Thousand Dollars

($250,000.00), nor shall the total face value of the bonds to which

the guaranty is extended for any one principal exceed Five Hundred

Thousand Dollars ($500,000.00). Provided further, the guaranty

shall not be granted to an issuer of a letter of credit used in lieu

of said bonds.

B. The terms of a guaranty under the Oklahoma Small Business

Surety Bond Guaranty Program Act shall not exceed the terms of the

contract for which bonding is obtained.

C. The Office of Management and Enterprise Services shall

establish an indemnity fund for this program using a public trust or

other entity capable of creating a fund which is not subject to the

constitutional prohibitions of Sections 15 and 23 of Article X of

the Oklahoma Constitution.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 74. State Government

Added by Laws 1990, c. 236, § 5, eff. July 1, 1991. Amended by Laws

1992, c. 197, § 2, eff. Sept. 1, 1992; Laws 2012, c. 304, § 771.

§74-85.47e. Requirements to obtain surety bond guaranty Applications.

A. To qualify for a surety bond guaranty pursuant to the

program, a surety and principal shall meet the requirements of this

section.

B. A surety shall meet the following requirements:

1. Be a company which writes bid, payment, defect or

maintenance, or performance bonds in its normal course of business;

2. Has not refused to provide said bonds for which the

principal is submitting application to the program; and

3. Has been licensed to do surety business in the State of

Oklahoma prior to July 1, 1991.

C. The principal shall satisfy the Administrator that:

1. As determined from creditors, employers and other

individuals who have personal knowledge of the principal, the

principal has a reputation for financial responsibility;

2. The principal is a resident of this state;

3. The principal is unable to obtain adequate bonding on

reasonable terms and conditions through normal channels and has been

denied such bonding by two sureties that write contract bonds.

4. Bonding is required in order for the principal to bid on

public construction contracts or to serve as a prime contractor or

subcontractor on such contracts.

D. The surety and principal shall submit to the Administrator

an application for each contract on the form that the Administrator

provides. The application for each contract shall include:

1. A detailed description of the project for which the contract

is to be let;

2. An itemization of known and estimated costs;

3. The total amount of investment required to perform the

contract;

4. The funds available to the principal for working capital;

5. The amount of bonding assistance sought from the program;

6. Information that relates to the financial status of the

principal, including:

a.

a current balance sheet,

b.

a profit and loss statement, and

c.

credit references;

7. A schedule of all existing and pending contracts and the

current status of each; and

8. Any other relevant information that the Administrator

requests.

E. After receipt of an application for assistance from the

Oklahoma Small Business Surety Bond Guaranty Program, the

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 74. State Government

Administrator may require that a principal shall provide an audited

balance sheet before the Administrator makes a decision on the

application.

Added by Laws 1990, c. 236, § 6, eff. July 1, 1991.

§74-85.47f. Premiums and fees.

A. The Administrator may set reasonable premiums and fees, not

to exceed limits established by rules promulgated by the Director of

the Office of Management and Enterprise Services, to be paid for the

purpose of providing bonding assistance under this program.

B. The premiums and fees set by the Administrator shall be

payable in the amounts, at the time and in the manner that the

Administrator requires.

C. The premiums and fees need not be uniform among

transactions, and may vary in amount:

1. Among transactions; and

2. At different stages during the terms of transactions.

Added by Laws 1990, c. 236, § 7, eff. July 1, 1991. Amended by Laws

1992, c. 197, § 3, eff. Sept. 1, 1992; Laws 2012, c. 304, § 772.

§74-85.47g. Administration of program.

The Small Business Surety Bond Guaranty Program shall be a

program of the Office of Management and Enterprise Services. The

Director of the Office of Management and Enterprise Services is

authorized to hire a Small Business Surety Bond Guaranty Program

Administrator to administer the Small Business Surety Bond Guaranty

Program. The Administrator shall hold a bachelor's degree or higher

degree in business, accounting, mathematics, economics or

engineering and shall have previous experience as a surety

underwriter. The Administrator shall be in the unclassified service

of this state.

Added by Laws 1990, c. 236, § 8, eff. July 1, 1991. Amended by Laws

2012, c. 304, § 773.

§74-85.47h. Prohibited acts - Penalties.

A. A person shall not knowingly make or cause any false

statement or report to be made in any application or in any document

furnished to the Administrator.

B. A person shall not knowingly make or cause any false

statement or report to be made for the purpose of influencing the

action of the Administrator on an application for assistance or for

the purpose of influencing any action of the Administrator affecting

bonding assistance whether or not such assistance may have already

been extended.

C. Any person who violates any provision of this section shall

be guilty of a Class D1 felony offense and, upon conviction, shall

be subject to a fine not exceeding Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00)

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 74. State Government

or imprisonment as provided for in subsections B through F of

Section 20N of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes, or both such fine

and imprisonment.

Added by Laws 1990, c. 236, § 9, eff. July 1, 1991. Amended by Laws

1997, c. 133, § 586, eff. July 1, 1999; Laws 1999, 1st Ex.Sess., c.

5, § 426, eff. July 1, 1999; Laws 2025, c. 486, § 582, eff. Jan. 1,

2026.

NOTE: Laws 1998, 1st Ex.Sess., c. 2, § 23 amended the effective

date of Laws 1997, c. 133, § 586 from July 1, 1998, to July 1, 1999.

§74-85.47i. Implementation of act - Rules and regulations.

The Director of the Office of Management and Enterprise Services

shall promulgate and adopt rules necessary to carry out the

provisions of the Small Business Surety Bond Guaranty Program Act.

Added by Laws 1990, c. 236, § 10, eff. July 1, 1991. Amended by

Laws 2012, c. 304, § 774.

§74-85.47j. Liability of state limited.

Nothing in this act shall be interpreted to constitute a

financial obligation or general obligation of the state. No state

revenue shall be used to guarantee, nor pay any losses suffered by

any person or firm.

Added by Laws 1990, c. 236, § 11, eff. July 1, 1991.