A state task force charged with figuring out how Oklahoma can move away from pay systems that allow employers to pay people with disabilities less than minimum wage met for the first time yesterday at the Oklahoma State Capitol in Oklahoma City. The 11-member group is set to collect testimony and data and must deliver a transition plan under a law that took effect in the fall.
Lawmakers opened the first session
Co-chairs Rep. Ellyn Hefner and Senate Democratic Leader Julia Kirt opened the meeting and framed the work as both practical and collaborative. Kirt told attendees the aim is to help every Oklahoman with disabilities to work in the best possible job for them, while Hefner emphasized that any shift needs to be careful and gradual, not rushed. According to OKCFOX, the inaugural session brought business representatives, nonprofits and self-advocates into the same room.
What the new law requires
Under the enrolled text of House Bill 1833, which took effect Nov. 1, 2025, the Rethinking Paying Subminimal Wage to Persons with Disabilities Task Force must study how to transition workers currently paid under Section 14(c) into competitive, integrated employment or into appropriate alternative day programs. The statute sets membership at 11, authorizes the task force through Nov. 1, 2027, and requires a final report to the governor and legislative leaders by Jan. 1, 2028. The Developmental Disabilities Council published the Jan. 29 meeting notice and livestream details in advance.
Families and providers at the table
Family members and providers told the panel that any transition plan must protect existing jobs and supports while opening up more genuine opportunities. As FOX 25 reported, Sue Gill of the Dale Rogers Training Center described her daughter’s struggles to find work that actually fits her interests. Dale Rogers and other provider organizations have pushed for transitions that are careful and properly funded. The center notes it serves hundreds of Oklahomans and that roughly 1,200 people statewide are still earning subminimum wages, according to the Dale Rogers Training Center.
Federal backdrop
All of this is unfolding against a shifting federal backdrop. The U.S. Department of Labor published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in December 2024 that would have phased out Section 14(c) certificates, then pulled that NPRM back in mid-2025. The proposal remains posted on the agency’s website and the formal withdrawal landed in the Federal Register on July 7, 2025, leaving much of the next move in the hands of states and their legislatures.
Next steps and what to watch
The task force is set to continue meeting through its authorization period and can ask for staffing or consultant help from legislative offices if needed. Members serve at the pleasure of whoever appointed them, and the group must deliver its final recommendations by Jan. 1, 2028, as laid out in the enrolled text of House Bill 1833. The Developmental Disabilities Council has noted that meetings are being livestreamed on the Oklahoma House website so the public can watch the process unfold.
Why it matters locally
For families, the task force’s work translates directly into paychecks and access to meaningful, sustainable work. For providers, it raises questions of program viability, funding and staffing. The coming months will test whether Oklahoma can push wages higher while still protecting people who currently rely on existing services and work arrangements.
