HB 2165 Summary

• Amends 27 O.S. Section 11 to require payment of reasonable attorney, appraisal, and engineering fees to property owners when jury awards exceed commissioners' assessments by at least 10% in condemnation proceedings.

• Requires the Attorney General to prepare a "Landowner's Bill of Rights" written in plain language, notifying property owners of their rights during condemnation including notice, good-faith negotiation, damage assessment, hearings, appeals, and the right to demand a jury trial.

• Amends 69 O.S. Section 1203 regarding the Department of Transportation's condemnation authority for highway property acquisition, incorporating the same 10% threshold for attorney fee awards and establishing detailed procedures for commissioners' reports and jury trials.

• Adds the right for property owners to demand a jury trial to appeal damage assessments in condemnation proceedings as long as they hold any interest in the property subject to condemnation.

• Becomes effective November 1, 2015.