Taylor, a liberal Democrat, talked about her special openness to unions during a mayoral debate broadcast on KTUL Channel 8 and sponsored by the Tulsa League of Women Voters, a liberal group that historically was nonpartisan. Republicans Bill Christiansen and Dewey Bartlett and Taylor were invited to a debate by the Tulsa County Republican Men’s Club on May 8.

Taylor declined while Bartlett said he would attend but then cancelled his appointment. Bartlett has not attended a TCRMC meeting since the club was restarted a few years ago. Christiansen and two candidates for Tulsa County Commission spoke at the luncheon (which is always open to the public).

“When I was mayor, we opened the doors to City Hall to unions,” Taylor said. “We enabled every one of the seven unions that represent workers in our city to attend our management meetings. All work, no secrets.”

Despite Taylor’s embrace of union politics, the police union will not endorse her or any candidate in this race.

When Taylor sought tens of millions of dollars to buy a new City Hall, she paid $100,000 for a feasibility study from the Roger Staubach Company in Dallas. Taylor forced all nine city councilors to sign a confidentiality statement concerning the contents of that secret report – a clear circumvention of the intent of the Open Records Law – and then forced a Council vote before details of that report could be fully vetted with the public.

“I think it is important to develop a sense of trust and important that our city employees be paid a fair wage and that we not discriminate among employees,” Taylor said.

Taylor agrees with a city policy that treats homosexual “partners” on the same level as legally married heterosexual couples. That policy was approved while Bartlett was mayor.

In announcing her decision to not run for re-election three years ago, Taylor said “a partisan political agenda” kept her from “doing what is best for Tulsa.”

She said that she would not be effective in running the city should she run a second campaign for mayor. The city was in such dire shape that “there won’t be time for politics.” She said she would leave office with a Tulsa government “leaner” and “more transparent” than what she inherited from Bill LaFortune.

Christiansen, who served 10 years on the Council with three different mayors, said that Taylor’s management style was contentious.

“The thing I learned is that you have to work with the other elected officials,” Christiansen said during the debate. “You have to listen to the citizens and you have to work with the city employees.

“The 10 years I was on the Council, I worked very closely with the other councilors. The only way we, and I use the word we because I don’t want to say I – I didn’t do this, I didn’t do that – we did this. It’s a team effort.”

Christiansen said Tulsa needs to be proactive and creative in terms of attracting new businesses and jobs. He believes that Tulsa should be spending some of the economic development money in recruiting areas like California, where businesses are fleeing high taxation and over-regulation.

“We need to sell Tulsa,” Christiansen said. “We are in this rut. We do the same thing over and over again with economic development and we need to start thinking outside the box.

“You need to lay out the red carpet instead of the red tape.”

While mayor, Taylor and Bartlett have approved giving the Tulsa Regional Chamber of Commerce millions of dollars in taxpayer funds for “tourism” and “economic development” with little oversight and questionable results.

Christiansen said Tulsans keep telling him that businesses have too much regulation.

Christiansen has run his own aviation business for more than 40 years and he said he understands the challenges entrepreneurs face in trying to start a firm in Tulsa.

In response to four murders in an apartment complex in South Tulsa, Bartlett has suggested that Tulsa apartment complexes and even private rental houses should be licensed and regulated by city inspectors.

Bartlett said he inherited a tough economic set of circumstances when he took over from Taylor’s administration. That forced some “tough decisions,” he said.

“We did it without a tax increase,” Bartlett said. “Raising taxes to me is not an answer.”

Bartlett did not increase taxes but he has raised utility fees in water, sewer, ambulance and trash service every year in office. Plus, he promoted passage of the Vision2 county sales tax, which would have cost Tulsa residents hundreds of millions of dollars in new taxation. It was a county sales tax for municipal projects.

Bartlett inherited a disintegrating relationship between Taylor and Tulsa County elected officials.

“We re-established relationships that had been burned between Tulsa and our suburbs – our friends our neighbors in Tulsa County,” Bartlett said.  “We also re-established relationships with elected officials in county government that had not been kept in good play.”

Bartlett has advocated the eventual combination of city and county functions and government.

The “nonpartisan” election is June 11. The other two candidates are Lawrence Kirkpatrick and Jerry Dewayne Branch.

Also on June 11, there is a special election to replace District 3 Tulsa County Commissioner Fred Perry, who is retiring.

The Republican candidates are John Wright, a former state representative; Ron Peters, also a former legislator; Bixby businessman Don Crall and Tulsa builder Brandon Perkins. The lone Democrat is John Bomar.

In the race for city auditor, incumbent Clift Richards faces Joshua Steven Lewis and Cathy Ann Criswell.

“President Obama once again demonstrated his disregard for the Second Amendment by having the United States vote for the Arms Trade Treaty at the United Nations General Assembly,” Bridenstine said. “ATT can only take effect if, first, ratified by the Senate and, then if Congress appropriates funding for its implementation.   Along with numerous colleagues, I’ve urged the Appropriations Committee to prohibit any funding for implementing ATT or even conducting any activities related to ATT or similar international gun ban agreements until the Senate has ratified the treaty.

“Though the Senate looks set to reject any ratification effort, no taxpayer money should go toward any preparatory activities associated with a treaty that threatens constitutional rights.”

Bridenstine said there are numerous reasons to resist this treaty.

“The ATT is a disaster for many reasons,” Bridenstine said. “The most egregious includes its provisions that suggest keeping records on private firearms owners and giving them to an ‘international secretariat.’ Beyond this serious constitutional issue, ATT also would impose huge regulatory requirements on U.S. businesses; reporting requirements would harm our defense industrial base at the very time when these companies are suffering from multiple rounds of defense budget cuts and sequestration.

“President Obama famously denied that American exceptionalism exists, placing the United States as equals with other nations.  He proved that point by voting for treaty that puts democracies like the United States on an equal footing with totalitarian regimes and dictatorships.   ATT says that all countries have equal rights and obligations when it comes to arms transfers.  It simply makes no sense to place our country – one that has respect for rule of law and democratic institutions – on par with other nations that routinely ignore treaties and agreements.”

Bridenstine pledged to work hard to defeat the treaty and its ratification.

Bridenstine is one of 135 co-sponsors of a House Resolution 36 to create a Select Committee to investigate the events of September 11, 2012, in Benghazi.

Earlier this month, the president’s press secretary, Jay Carney, said “Benghazi happened a long time ago.” Bridenstine said there are many unresolved questions surrounding Benghazi.

Three State Department whistleblowers have contradicted the Obama Administration’s story before a congressional hearing.

Liberal CBS News reported that the a team of U.S. special operations forces was forbidden from coming to the rescue on the night of the attack.

“Never mind concerns about ‘boots on the ground’ -  the Obama administration was reportedly even opposed to fighter aircraft flyovers that could have potentially scared off the attackers,” Bridenstine said. “During an interview with congressional investigators, Deputy Chief of Mission Gregory Hicks – the No. 2 U.S. official in Libya at the time – reportedly said such a show of force would have ‘scared to death’ the terrorists that were besieging the consulate and annex.

“Despite U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice’s now famously flawed talking points, we know that Beghanzi was a terrorist attack, not just a protest that spiraled out of control.  Rice’s original talking points – that identified the attackers as Islamist terrorists –  were reportedly changed. Even Congressional Democrats are finally admitted that the talking points were ‘scrubbed.’”

“What took place at Gosnell’s clinic is abhorrent, and no one – no matter his or her position on abortion – should sit quietly and allow such unsanitary and dangerous practices to continue in our nation,” Inhofe said. “Gosnell’s careless management and his use of uneducated and unlicensed staff to terminate pregnancies well into the second and third trimester put innumerous lives at risk.

“Our government has a moral and constitutional responsibility to protect the sanctity of life.

“This resolution would require the Senate to look into our current public policies on abortion for any solution to prevent such lack of oversight and unconscionable practices in the future.”

Inhofe recognizes that life begins at conception, and throughout his time in office, Inhofe has authored and cosponsored numerous bills during his time in public service to support the pro-life cause and strengthen opportunities for adoptions both domestically and internationally. In the 113th Congress, Inhofe has cosponsored the following pieces of pro-life legislation:

• S. 154 – Preventing the Offering of Elective Coverage of Taxpayer-Funded Abortion Act (PROTECT Act), legislation to ban any taxpayer dollars in the “Multi-State Plan” plans created under ObamaCare from covering elective abortions, with exceptions for rape, incest, and life of the mother.
• S. 356 – Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act of 2013, legislation to ensure that women who seek an abortion are fully aware and informed of the pain their unborn child will experience during the procedure.
• S. 369 – The Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act, legislation to make it a crime to knowingly transport a minor across a state line with the intent that minor obtain an abortion.

“As with many federal government programs, the lack of proper oversight gives room for programs such as Lifeline to grow into a costly problem riddled with fraud and abuse,” Inhofe said. “It is unfortunate when these programs become so expansive that it no longer addresses its primary mission to help those with the most dire needs. Our legislation will restore Lifeline to its original intent and also protect taxpayers from further excessive government spending.”

Vitter added, “This phone program has expanded far beyond its original intent, and as so many middle class Americans struggle underneath this economy, it is really offensive for Washington to make taxpayers pay for free cell phones for others.”

The Lifeline Program was created in 1984 to expand landline services for low-income households through the Universal Service Fund (­­­). The program supporting mobile phones was expanded in 2008 to include wireless service providers. The program has grown from $143 million in 2008 to $2.2 billion in 2012.

At this time, there is no precise way of estimating how long it will take to perform and complete any investigation, the Tulsa County District Attorney announced.

“We are in contact with a variety of state and federal agencies, including the state dental board but the simple fact is that a substantial investigation will need to be conducted and completed before any decision on potential criminal charges will take place,” District Attorney Tim Harris said.

The state Board of Dentistry filed a 17-count complaint against Tulsa dentist, W. Scott Harrington.

Harris said the investigation could take a significant amount of time, in part, because of the number of persons that will need to be interviewed.

He said both federal and state investigators will be involved.

“Once an investigation is complete, the case will be reviewed for potential criminal charges,” Harris said. “Depending on what the investigation reveals, it is possible charges could be filed by the Tulsa County DA’s Office, or by the state Attorney General or by federal prosecutors. Prosecutors for all agencies will objectively look at the evidence and then make those decisions.”

“The goal is to do a thorough investigation and then make some common sense decisions on potential criminal charges and which agency is in the best position to prosecute any case,” Harris said.

On June 11, four Republicans including Perkins, former State Rep. John Wright, former State Rep. Ron Peters and Bixby businessman Don Crall will be on the winner-take-all county ballot. The winner will face Democrat John Bomar in August to win the seat being vacated by Commissioner Fred Perry in District 3 (mostly South Tulsa and Broken Arrow).

Even though a county commissioner has no jurisdiction over public education, Perkins said boosting education would be a priority.

“That’s the most important thing,” Perkins said. “I feel like our legislators have let us down and we need to demand that they do a better job and adequately fund education.”

Education is not part of the “job description” for a county commissioner but Perkins said there are “indirect things to do” and to “work as a team.”

“We need to make sure that the infrastructure is there around the schools and we need to make sure those schools are safe,” Perkins said. “We need to work as a team, not with a bully pulpit, but with teamwork.”

Concerning last November’s failed Vision2 vote to increase county sales tax, Perkins said he voted for one proposition and against the other.

“I didn’t like the options,” Perkins said. “I felt like we were not given good options. It should have been more spelled out. In terms of time frame, I felt like it was crammed down our throats a bit fast. I know the outlying communities especially felt that way.”

Perkins said county government needs to rely less on sales tax because it can go up and down more than property taxes.

Perkins said a “bigger jail” and more “jail beds” is not the answer to the recent overcrowding at the city/county jail.

“We need to focus on education, which is driving our economy,” Perkins said. “That, in turn, lessens the impact of the need for that jail and those jail beds.”

Perkins said people don’t like high property taxes but they are needed for services like the county library system.

“Part of the reason why our property taxes are pretty high is the voters voting on millage for school districts and I believe that is important,” Perkins said. “Property tax is a pretty good way to fund things because it stable and doesn’t go up and down. It’s easier to budget.”

Perkins said he favors a “pay as you go” approach to capital needs but he wouldn’t oppose borrowing with bonds on some projects.

PlaniTulsa is a controversial attempt to rework Tulsa’s comprehensive plan for development. It suggests densification and use of form-based codes for building.

“We do need to rework our comprehensive plan,” Perkins said. He said was against the form-based code.

Perkins said Tulsa needs to start planning for mass transit needs.

“We need to start setting aside right-of-way,” Perkins said. “If we don’t start planning today, we will have nothing in the future.”

Perkins said he would like to explore additional usage of areas at county-owned Expo Square and the area between Downtown Tulsa and Expo Square. And he is open to development of light-rail service.

“If we are able to transport people and goods from   Downtown to Expo Square, that’s when you get the excitement and that’s when you get the 6th Street in-fill plan.”

“We do need to rework our comprehensive plan,” Perkins said. He said he was against the form-based code.

Perkins said development of roads and public safety are two major themes of this special election.

“We need to make those roads the right size because we have the tendency to build roads that are too small or too long and then we go crazy and build roads that are way too big,” Perkins said. “That adds routine maintenance. We have to maintain them in perpetuity.”

Perkins said he opposed the proposed Indian casino that was almost built in Broken Arrow in 2012.

“I am not a fan of casinos myself but it’s not bad if you want to go to Las Vegas – if that’s what you care to do,” Perkins said. “I’m not sure that they are good for the economy of Oklahoma.”

Perkins said he does not believe that Tulsa County will move toward a regional government.

The recent proposal to put a toll bridge across the Arkansas River in South Tulsa “had a lot of flaws,” Perkins said.

Why did he file for this, his first race for office?

“I have decided I need to take it to the next level,” Perkins said. “My generation needs to get involved and to have our hand on the steering wheel and to have a clear focus for Tulsa County’s future.”

Perkins said he is “team player” who goes out into the field and applies what he learns to county policy.

“What I feel like is not being served adequately is understanding the needs of the people,” Perkins said. “Many of the county commissioners don’t spend the time going into the field and understanding what the people need.”

Eighty percent of the voters in District 3 are registered Republicans.

Perkins has been developing residential neighborhoods for about 20 years.

He is a member of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area Planning Commission. He is on the Stormwater Mitigation Board on the Tulsa Preservation Commission and the Transportation Advisory Board.

Perkins has been endorsed by John-Kelly Warren of the Warren Foundation (Saint Francis Hospital) plus Sanjay D. Meshri, a board member of the Tulsa Community Foundation and on the board of trustees for The University of Tulsa.

“It is becoming clear that it is critical to track abortions,” said Sean Roberts, R-Hominy. “The latest example of an alleged criminal abortionist is a Pennsylvania doctor who is accused of severing the spinal cords of newborns and performing abortions beyond the scope of the 24-week limit allowed by Pennsylvania law.”

Dr. Kermit Gosnell, 72, is on trial for murder in Philadelphia. Testimony from several of Gosnell’s employees alleges Gosnell performed later-term abortions by inducing labor, and then severing the spinal cords of the newly-born babies while they were still alive.

House Bill 2015, by state Rep. Sean Roberts and state Sen. Kyle Loveless, would add additional questions to the Individual Abortion Form completed by the abortion provider and add additional reporting measures to the Annual Abortion Report issued by the Oklahoma State Department of Health.

Roberts said the bill will update reporting requirements to reflect laws passed since the Statistical Abortion Reporting Law took effect in 2010 and will give Oklahoma citizens the ability to require an abortion provider to comply with the reporting law through a “qui tam” legal action.  A “qui tam” action is a legal procedure which allows private citizens to seek enforcement of a law if the government agency responsible for enforcement declines to act.

“Pennsylvania health authorities had not inspected Gosnell’s filthy clinic in 15 years. We don’t want to make that same mistake in Oklahoma,” said Roberts. “If Pennsylvania had given its citizens the ability to file qui tam actions to require reporting of abortions, some of the Gosnell horrors might have been prevented.”

House Bill 2015 requires that an abortion provider report whether or not they complied with several abortion-related laws, for instance the provisions of the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, which lawmakers overwhelmingly enacted two years ago. The Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act includes a provision in that law which requires that if a doctor deems a later-term abortion is necessary to save the mother’s life, that the procedure be done in the manner best conducive to potentially saving the baby’s life after labor is induced.

House Bill 1987, by state Rep. David Brumbaugh, will allow county purchasing officers to make purchases through the state purchase card (P-Card) program.

“This measure will help our counties take advantage of discounts through volume purchasing and will open up a much larger market of vendors for counties to purchase from, which will help them lower costs,” said Brumbaugh, R-Broken Arrow. “Counties will also be able to save on transactions costs, such as paperwork and man hours, and their transaction processes will be much more efficient. We should strive to be as efficient and accountable as possible when using taxpayer dollars to fund government services. This bill gives our counties an added resource so they can be good stewards of the limited taxpayer dollars they have.”

According to the Oklahoma Office of Management and Emergency Services (OMES) website, some of the advantages of participating in the program include “simplification and expediting of purchasing processes, no fees, rebates to participating agencies, reduced transaction times and transaction costs, and merchant acceptance because of faster payment.”

In addition, Brumbaugh said the bill will allow counties to purchase items without a purchase order number, which decreases the cost of paperwork, expedite deliveries, which reduces cycle times, and pay vendors at the point of sale rather than later, which benefits the economy by putting those dollars back into the market more quickly.

The measure requires each county cardholder to sign an agreement and attend training sessions on using the cards.

With a defined contribution plan, the amount of the retirement value provided to an employee depends on the amount of total contribution as well as the gains or losses of the account. Most companies and some states are moving to 401(k) type plans like the one created in HB 2077 because of the improved predictability and other benefits.

There is a cost certainty for the state once the employee decides their own personal contribution level. HB 2077 calls for a dollar-for-dollar match, up to 7 percent of salary.

HB 2077 offers new public employees choices. They can select a new defined contribution plan or the traditional defined benefit plan.

HB 2077 has been sent to the Governor.