THE OKLAHOMA BAR JOURNAL 18 | JUNE 2024 Real Property Oklahoma Senate Bill 212 By Kraettli Q. Epperson THIS ARTICLE EXPLORES THE CONSTITUTIONALITY of Oklahoma Senate Bill 212 (SB 212), effective as of Nov. 1, 2023, which bars aliens from acquiring and owning Oklahoma “land” and provides comments on whether – according to Oklahoma Attorney General Opinion 2024-2 (dated Feb. 6, 2024) – such statutory bar covers “oil and gas” and “minerals.” Statements or opinions expressed in the Oklahoma Bar Journal are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Oklahoma Bar Association, its officers, Board of Governors, Board of Editors or staff. BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE SB 212 was enacted by the 2023 Oklahoma Legislature and became effective Nov. 1, 2023. Such legislation amended an existing statute (60 O.S. Section 121) and, for the first time, directed all county clerks in the state of Oklahoma to refuse to accept and record any “deed” conveying “land” that fails to have an affidavit “included as an exhibit to the deed” “attesting” that the grantee is either a citizen of the United States or a noncitizen (an alien) who is or shall become a bona fide resident of Oklahoma. It appears that this statutory amendment was intended to aid in implementing the Oklahoma Constitutional prohibition that provides: No alien or person who is not a citizen of the United States, shall acquire title to or own land in this state, and the Legislature shall enact laws whereby all persons not citizens of the United States, and their heirs, who may hereafter acquire real estate in this state by devise, descent, or otherwise, shall dispose of the same within five years upon condition of escheat or forfeiture to the State: Provided, This shall not apply to Indians born within the United States, nor to aliens or persons not citizens of the United States who may become bona fide residents of this State; And Further, That this section shall not apply to lands now owned by aliens in this State.1 In 1910, the state Legislature enacted 60 O.S. Sections 121-127, titled “Alien Ownership of Land: Ownership of Personal and Real Property by Aliens” (herein the “statutory bar”), to implement this constitutional prohibition. Such legislation was amended in 2023 by SB 212; thereafter, Section 121 provided that no “person who is not a citizen of the United States shall acquire title to or own land in the State of Oklahoma, except as hereafter provided,” with limited specified exceptions found in Sections 121-127. Under the statutory bar, 1) such alien can acquire and hold rights to personal property (Section 121) (see the discussion on personal property below); 2) current owners of land (as of 1910) who are aliens can continue to own such land This Statutory Bar Against Aliens Acquiring ‘Land’ May Be Less Generous Than the Constitution, and the Attorney General Opined That This Bar Does Not Cover ‘Oil and Gas’ or ‘Minerals’
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