related foundation funds. A. All state higher educational institutions, constituent agencies or other entities are hereby authorized to accept and receive any and all grants or contracts of all kinds, gifts, devises and bequests of money or property, either real or personal, which may be, or which may heretofore have been tendered to them by grant or contract, will or gift, conditionally or unconditionally; and the Board of Regents of said institutions, constituent agencies or other entities are hereby directed, authorized and empowered to hold such funds or property in trust, or invest or sell them and use either principal or interest or the proceeds of sale for the benefit of such institutions or entities or the students or others for whose benefit such institutions or entities are conducted; all in any manner which is consistent with the terms of the gift as stipulated by the donor and with the provisions of any applicable laws. Money donated to a college- or university-related foundation for student scholarships or grants to students of an institution of The Oklahoma State System of Higher Education shall not be loaned or given to any regent, officer, director, or employee of such foundation or institution or to any relative of such person within the third degree of affinity or consanguinity. The following, however, shall not be prohibited: 1. Students in the employ of such foundation or institution may be given scholarships; and 2. Scholarships may be awarded to an otherwise disqualified relative of any faculty member, staff employee, foundation or institution officer or maintenance worker of such foundation or institution if such relative is meritoriously qualified. B. Any person willfully violating the prohibitions of subsection A of this section shall be guilty of a Class D1 felony offense punishable by imprisonment as provided for in subsections B through F of Section 20N of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes, or by a fine of not more than Twenty Thousand Dollars ($20,000.00), or by both such fine and imprisonment. Any person found guilty of said violations shall also be subject to immediate removal from office or employment where applicable. C. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, any institution or agency of The Oklahoma State System of Higher Education or the regents or governing board of such institution or agency shall not directly or indirectly transfer any funds to any college- or university-related foundation or render services or provide any thing of value to any such foundation without receiving documented adequate payment or reimbursement therefor according to written contract; provided, nothing herein shall be construed as prohibiting payment by the institution or agency of claims for expenses of fund raising for the benefit of the institution or agency by state employees if such fund raising activities are approved in advance by the governing board of regents responsible for such institution or agency and made a part of the minutes of the meeting of the board. D. Neither the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education nor any institution or agency of The Oklahoma State System of Higher Education shall receive any funds, services, or thing of value from any college- or university-related foundation which has any officers or employees who are officers or employees of any institution or agency of the State System or State Regents unless such foundation makes all its financial records and documents, including work papers, except for names of donors, available to auditors who are performing audits of the institution or agency. Added by Laws 1965, c. 396, § 1306. Amended by Laws 1987, c. 229, § 4, eff. July 1, 1987; Laws 1997, c. 133, § 578, eff. July 1, 1999; Laws 1999, 1st Ex.Sess., c. 5, § 418, eff. July 1, 1999; Laws 2004, c. 134, § 2, eff. July 1, 2004; Laws 2025, c. 486, § 576, eff. Jan. 1, 2026.
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