Okla. Stat. tit. 11, § 11-49-113.2

A. Upon the death of an active or retired member, the System

shall pay to the surviving spouse of the member if the surviving

spouse has been married to the firefighter for thirty (30)

continuous months preceding the member's death provided a surviving

spouse of a member who died while in, or as a consequence of, the

performance of the member's duty for a participating municipality

shall not be subject to the marriage limitation for survivor

benefits, or if there is no surviving spouse or no surviving spouse

meeting the requirements of this section, the System shall pay to

the designated recipient or recipients of the member, or if there is

no designated recipient or if the designated recipient predeceases

the member, to the estate of the member, the sum of Four Thousand

Dollars ($4,000.00) for those active or retired members who died

prior to July 1, 1999. For those active or retired members who die

on or after July 1, 1999, the sum shall be Five Thousand Dollars

($5,000.00).

B. Upon the death of a member who dies leaving no living

designated recipient or having designated the member's estate as

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 11. Cities and Towns Page 572

recipient, the System may pay any applicable death benefit which may

be subject to probate, in an amount of Five Thousand Dollars

($5,000.00), to the heir or heirs of the member without the

intervention of a probate court or probate procedures.

C. Before any applicable probate procedure may be waived, the

System must be in receipt of the member's proof of death and the

following documents from those persons claiming to be the legal

heirs of the deceased member:

1. The member's last will and testament if available;

2. An affidavit or affidavits of heirship which must contain:

a. the names and signatures of all claiming heirs to the

deceased member's estate including the claiming heirs'

names, relationship to the deceased member, current

addresses and current telephone numbers,

b. a statement or statements by the claiming heirs that

no application or petition for the appointment of a

personal representative is pending or has been granted

in any jurisdiction,

c. a statement that the value of the deceased member's

entire probate estate, less liens and encumbrances,

does not exceed the dollar limit pursuant to Section

393 of Title 58 of the Oklahoma Statutes, including

the payment of benefits from the System, and

d. a statement by each individual claiming heir

identifying the amount of personal property that the

heir is claiming from the System or the amount the

heir agrees to be paid to another person, and that the

heir has been notified of, is aware of and consents to

the identified claims of all the other claiming heirs

of the deceased member pending with the System;

3. A written agreement or agreements signed by all claiming

heirs of the deceased member which provides that the claiming heirs

release, discharge and hold harmless the System from any and all

liability, obligations and costs which it may incur as a result of

making a payment to any of the deceased member's heirs;

4. A corroborating affidavit from an individual other than a

claiming heir, who was familiar with the affairs of the deceased

member; and

5. Proof that funeral and burial expenses of the deceased

member have been paid or provided for.

D. The System shall retain complete discretion in determining

which requests for probate waiver may be granted or denied, for any

reason. Should the System have any questions as to the validity of

any document presented by the claiming heirs, or as to any statement

or assertion contained therein, the probate requirements provided

for in Section 1 et seq. of Title 58 of the Oklahoma Statutes shall

not be waived.

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E. After paying any death benefits to any claiming heirs as

provided pursuant to this section, the System is discharged and
document presented by the claiming heirs, or as to any statement

or assertion contained therein, the probate requirements provided

for in Section 1 et seq. of Title 58 of the Oklahoma Statutes shall

not be waived.

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E. After paying any death benefits to any claiming heirs as

provided pursuant to this section, the System is discharged and

released from any and all liability, obligation and costs to the

same extent as if the System had paid a personal representative

holding valid letters testamentary issued by a court of competent

jurisdiction. The System is not required to inquire into the truth

of any matter specified in this section or into the payment of any

estate tax liability.

F. The provisions of this section shall not be subject to

qualified domestic orders as provided in subsection B of Section 49-

126 of this title.

G. 1. For purposes of this section, if a person makes a

qualified disclaimer with respect to the death benefit provided for

in subsection A of this section, this section shall apply with

respect to such death benefit as if the death benefit had never been

transferred to such person.

2. For purposes of this subsection, the term "qualified

disclaimer" means an irrevocable and unqualified refusal by a

person, including but not limited to the surviving spouse of the

deceased member, to accept an interest in the death benefit provided

for in subsection A of this section, but only if:

a. such refusal is in writing,

b. such writing is received by the System not later than

the date which is nine (9) months after the date of

death of the deceased member,

c. such person has not accepted the death benefit

provided for in subsection A of this section, and

d. as a result of such refusal, the death benefit

provided for in subsection A of this section passes

without any direction on the part of the person making

the disclaimer and passes first, to the organization

providing funeral and burial services for the deceased

member or, if the cost of the funeral and burial

services for the deceased member has already been

paid, to the person or persons other than the person

making the disclaimer as further provided for in this

section.