# Oklahoma Oklahoma licenses private investigators and investigative agencies through the Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training (CLEET). Since 2023 the Legislature has eased armed licensing for retired peace officers, reclassified false statements on license applications as a Class D1 felony, and passed a consumer data privacy law that takes effect January 1, 2027. Source: https://uscli.org/licensing-tracker/oklahoma ## At a glance - **Authority:** [Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training (CLEET)](https://oklahoma.gov/cleet/licensing/private-investigator.html), advised by a Private Security Advisory Committee - **Statute:** [Oklahoma Security Guard and Private Investigator Act, 59 O.S. 1750.1 and following](https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os59.pdf) - **Rules:** OAC 390:35. The state rules website blocks automated access, so rule text could not be checked. - **Who is licensed:** Private investigators, armed private investigators, combination licenses with security guard licenses, and investigative agencies. A self-employed investigator who employs no other investigators also needs an agency license (59 O.S. 1750.5(G)(3)). - **Qualifications:** At least 18 and a U.S. citizen or an alien legally residing in the United States, with Council-prescribed training (1750.5(H)), fingerprints, and a national criminal history check (1750.6(A)). Two versions of 59 O.S. 1750.5, both enacted in 2019, appear in the compiled statutes: one (Laws 2019, c. 246) bars any felony and sets a minimum age of 21 for armed investigators and armed guards; the other (Laws 2019, c. 363) bars only a felony that substantially relates to the occupation and poses a reasonable threat to public safety, and sets 21 only for armed security guards. Listed offenses are also disqualifying, though the Council may waive one more than 5 years old that was an isolated incident, where the applicant is rehabilitated, for an unarmed license (1750.5(H)(6) in the c. 246 version, (H)(5) in the c. 363 version). Armed applicants take a psychological evaluation unless exempt (1750.3A). - **Renewal:** Individual licenses run 3 years and agency licenses 5 years (1750.6(C)). Fees: $50 for an unarmed investigator, $100 for an armed investigator, $300 for an agency; late fees of $25 and $100, and no renewal more than 30 days after expiration (1750.6(B)). - **Continuing education:** Required by Council rule, up to 24 hours per licensing period by statute (1750.3(B)(4)); see [CLEET continuing education](https://oklahoma.gov/cleet/licensing/private-investigators-continuing-education.html). - **Bond or insurance:** Liability insurance or a surety bond: $100,000 for agencies; $10,000 for armed investigators; $5,000 for self-employed unarmed investigators who employ no other investigators (1750.5(J)). ## Changes, 2023 to 2026 - Jan 1, 2027 — **Consumer data privacy law** — SB 546 (2026), 75A O.S. 300 and following · Approved March 20, 2026; effective January 1, 2027 — Applies to businesses that control or process personal data of at least 100,000 Oklahoma consumers a year, or at least 25,000 while getting over 50 percent of gross revenue from selling personal data. Publicly available information, including lawfully available government records, is not personal data. The law does not restrict investigating, establishing, exercising, preparing for, or defending legal claims, or responding to fraud, harassment, or illegal activity (75A O.S. 317). The Attorney General enforces it. — **For licensees:** The law reaches an investigator firm only if it meets the consumer thresholds. — [SB 546 enrolled](https://www.oklegislature.gov/cf_pdf/2025-26%20ENR/SB/SB546%20ENR.PDF) - Jan 1, 2026 — **False statements on license applications become a Class D1 felony** — HB 2104, Laws 2025, chapter 486, section 541 · Approved June 10, 2025; effective January 1, 2026 — Willfully making a false statement in, or committing fraud in connection with, an application to CLEET under the Act (59 O.S. 1750.11(B)) was a felony punishable by 2 to 5 years. It is now a Class D1 felony, punishable by up to 5 years for an offender without qualifying prior convictions (longer with them), with a fine of up to $2,000 unchanged. — **For licensees:** Falsifying an application remains a felony; the fixed 2-year minimum no longer applies to first offenders. — [59 O.S. 1750.11](https://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/DeliverDocument.asp?CiteID=96657) - Nov 1, 2024 — **Retired peace officers: longer evaluation exemption, no fingerprints** — HB 3786, Laws 2024, chapter 55 · Approved April 22, 2024; effective November 1, 2024 — Extends the psychological evaluation exemption for retired full-time CLEET-certified peace officers applying for armed licenses from 1 year to 5 years after retirement (59 O.S. 1750.3A(D)(2)). A retired peace officer applying for an armed investigator or security license need not provide fingerprints if they submit a notarized letter confirming retirement in good standing from an Oklahoma law enforcement agency (1750.6(A)(3)). — **For licensees:** Retired officers within 5 years of retirement skip the psychological evaluation, and with a notarized letter skip fingerprinting. — [HB 3786 enrolled](https://www.oklegislature.gov/cf_pdf/2023-24%20ENR/HB/HB3786%20ENR.PDF) ## Checked and unchanged - No other 2023–2025 law amended the Act’s licensing sections; 2026 session laws could not be checked against the compiled statutes, which predate the 2026 session. - A search of Title 21 and the Act found no separate tracking device crime, and Oklahoma has not enacted a data broker registry.