Journalist: Colin Udall (OSU)
Senate Bill OSU-003, the “How to Break Up with Your Goldfish” Act, passed in the Senate and
in the House by unanimous votes. The bill was introduced by Senator Friesen (OSU). The bill
seeks to establish multiple measures, including increased education and penalties regarding the
release of goldfish.
Sen. Friesen agreed to an interview on the bill. In response to a question about how the senator
came up with the idea for the bill, Sen. Friesen said, “I am a big pet guy. I am also just a big fish
guy. I have had fish and goldfish my whole life.” Continuing, Sen. Friesen said, “I heard about
Lake Ontario on TikTok. I saw that there are fifty million goldfish in it right now. It also just
sounded fun because I like more complicated bills.”
Sen. Friesen was also asked about his thoughts on the bill’s potential for passing, to which he
said, “I brought it two years ago … objectively, it was just a much worse version of this bill. I
modernized it, I changed up the penalties a little bit, and I added a couple more provisions, such
as the situational review.” Further, Sen. Friesen said, “I was pretty confident going into it. We
have also just been in better spirits today, so I felt pretty good going into it.”
The bill is heavily intertwined with the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation
(ODWC). It instructs the department to create much of the logistical planning, such as
distributing educational resources. The bill states “The primary purpose of this act is to promote
public awareness and voluntary compliance through education.” It further states that the
penalties are reserved only for serious and repeat offenses. The penalties range from
$100-$5,000.
The bill will now be sent to the governor’s desk.