For Immediate Release: May 9, 2006

Rural Landowners Score Victory With Passage of House Bill 2984

Lawler, Shurden say the Bill Provides Protections against Trespassing

Rural landowners won a huge victory this week with the passage of House Bill 2984, authored by Senator Frank Shurden and Representative Shane Jett. An amendment to the bill by State Senators Daisy Lawler and Frank Shurden increases the penalties for trespassing on private land.

“Landowners deserve the common sense protections this amendment provides them,” Lawler (D-Comanche) said. “The problems of trespassing have increasing threatened those rights and that is why this bill is such an important victory for rural Oklahoma.”

Lawler, who serves as the chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee said the bill is a longtime legislative priority for the Oklahoma Farm Bureau, a group that advocates for legislation affecting farmers, ranchers and rural landowners.

“It has been a long, hard-fought battle to ensure that landowners in rural Oklahoma have the protection they deserve when it comes to trespassing,” Lori Peterson, Vice President of Public Policy at Farm Bureau, said. “Our group would like to express our thanks to Senator Lawler and Senator Shurden for working hard to make certain this bill made it through the legislative process this session.”

Senator Shurden, a Democrat from Henryetta, said passage of the bill proves that the legislature is doing their part to protect the rights of private property owners in Oklahoma.

“We have an obligation to take care of those that invest in the future of our state,” Shurden said. “That includes the landowners in rural Oklahoma. They invest significant time and financial resources to grow rural Oklahoma, and ensuring their property is protected against invasion from trespassers is simply the right thing to do.”

For more information, contact:
Senator Gumm's Office: (405) 521-5586
Senator Lawler's Office: (405) 521-5569