for domestic violence victims. A. Money in the municipal treasury which has been acquired as a utility deposit from a customer of a municipal utility shall be refunded or credited to the customer upon termination of the utility service and payment of all charges due and connected with the service, or at an earlier date as may be allowed by the municipality. Refunds to the customer shall be made in accordance with the procedures set forth in this section. B. If a utility deposit is to be refunded to the customer instead of being credited to the account of the customer, a refund check or warrant payable to the customer shall be issued by the municipal utility within thirty (30) days following the termination of the utility service. C. Utility deposit refund checks or warrants of Five Dollars ($5.00) or less shall be cashed by the customer within one (1) year of the termination of the utility service. Any such refund check or warrant not cashed by the customer within one (1) year of termination of the utility service shall be canceled and the amount of the deposit shall be paid into the fund of the municipal utility for which the deposit was collected, or into the general fund as may be determined by the municipal governing body. No municipal utility customer shall have the right to any claim or refund on the deposit following the expiration of the one-year time period as set forth in this subsection. D. If a utility deposit refund check or warrant in excess of Five Dollars ($5.00) has not been cashed by a customer within one (1) year following termination of the utility service to the customer, the municipality shall send written notice to the customer at the last-known address of the customer stating that the refund check or warrant shall be canceled and the deposit will be paid over to the municipality unless it is cashed by the customer within ninety (90) days of the date the notice is mailed by the municipality. If the check or warrant is not cashed within the ninety (90) days, the check or warrant shall be canceled and the amount of the deposit shall be paid into the fund of the municipal utility for which the deposit was collected, or into the general fund as may be determined by the governing body. No municipal utility customer shall have a right to any claim or refund on the deposit after written notice and expiration of the ninety-day period in accordance with this subsection. E. Provided, notwithstanding other provisions of law, a municipally owned public utility shall waive any initial credit and deposit requirements for a customer or applicant that has been determined to be a victim of domestic violence, stalking, or harassment, as defined in Section 109 of Title 43 of the Oklahoma Statutes or Section 644 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes, by providing proof of any of the following: 1. An existing protective order; 2. Law enforcement personnel statement; or 3. A statement of a designated representative of a certified domestic violence shelter or certified domestic violence program pursuant to Section 18p-6 of Title 74 of the Oklahoma Statutes. This determination shall be evidenced by submission of a certification letter to the utility. The municipality may accept the certification letter provided for in Section 1 of this act, or a certification letter on a form created by the municipality so long as the contents are substantially the same as the certification letter, as provided for in Section 1 of this act. The certification letter expires after ninety (90) days. The municipally owned public utility shall deem the certification letter and the contents thereof as confidential and exempt from disclosure, pursuant to subsection D of Section 24A.10 of Title 51 of the Oklahoma Statutes. Added by Laws 1980, c. 253, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 1980. Amended by Laws 1991, c. 124, § 17, eff. July 1, 1991; Laws 1998, c. 234, § 4, eff. Nov. 1, 1998; Laws 2000, c. 104, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2000; Laws 2023, c. 171, § 2, emerg. eff. May 2, 2023.
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