Legislative Update

Exploitation of COVID

February 3, 2022

Rep. Wendi Stearman, R-Collinsville, filed three bills in support of the rights of Oklahomans against oppression and against the exploitation of the COVID-19 virus. House Bill 4321 would prohibit the State Department of Health, medical facilities and doctors from bribing parents into having their children vaccinated. “No State or private entity should use financial incentives…

Bible as the official state book

February 3, 2022

Rep. Tammy Townley, R-Ardmore, has filed House Bill 3890 to name the Holy Bible as Oklahoma’s official state book. “We are people of great faith,” Townley said. “The Holy Bible is an integral part of numerous faiths and is deeply important to many Oklahomans. Even when we don’t always agree with each other, we always…

End state sales tax on groceries

February 3, 2022

Rep. Sean Roberts, R-Hominy, plans to continue his push for a referendum to remove Oklahoma’s sales tax on groceries. “Currently only six states allow full taxes on groceries, Oklahoma being one,” Roberts said. “We currently have a surplus in funds and revenues are up, so now is the time to bring this much needed relief…

Hofmeister wants giant increase

February 3, 2022 Ray Carter

While State Superintendent of Public Instruction Joy Hofmeister’s budget request includes a modest percentage increase in funding for school districts, it includes a much larger increase of 27 percent for her agency’s budget. The request for increased administrative spending comes even as lawmakers note it appears less money is going to classrooms in Oklahoma than…

Men play a large role during unplanned pregnancies

February 3, 2022 Aaron Earls

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — While much of the discussion surrounding abortion focuses on women, unplanned pregnancies involve both a man and a woman. And the men involved have complicated feelings on the subject. A new Care Net study conducted by Nashville-based Lifeway Research surveyed 1,000 American men whose partners had an abortion after he made her…

Bill would force homeless camps to have proper permits

January 27, 2022

Concerned about unsanitary and unsafe conditions of homeless camps in Oklahoma cities, Sen. Rob Standridge, R-Norman, has filed Senate Bill 1381 which would direct municipalities to require homeless camps to be properly permitted, just as other campgrounds are required to be. Standridge said he filed the legislation after citizens in his district contacted him about…

2nd Amendment bills

January 27, 2022

Sen. Nathan Dahm, R-Broken Arrow, filed five bills to offer greater protection for the Second Amendment rights of the citizens of Oklahoma and push back on federal overreach. “I believe that the Second Amendment is one of the most important, if not the most important provision in the Constitution,” Dahm said. “It’s our means of…

County oversight on marijuana farms

January 27, 2022

Rep. Todd Russ, R-Cordell, has filed legislation for the upcoming session that will give county voters the say over who is licensed to grow marijuana within their counties. House Bill 2989 would require applications to grow marijuana to be filed by June 30 each year in the county where the grow facility is to be…

Bill would end capital punishment

January 27, 2022

Rep. Mauree Turner, D-OKC, has filed legislation for the 2022 Legislative Session that would create a state question on whether the death penalty should exist in Oklahoma. “What I am hearing from my district, and people around the state, is an urgent need to end state-enacted murder in the name of a criminal legal system…

Bills would reform public education

January 27, 2022

Sen. Nathan Dahm, R-Broken Arrow, filed a trio of education reform bills. “Our education system is floundering,” Dahm said. “Parents are upset, teachers are leaving the profession, and students aren’t being taught what they need to know. And yet, the education establishment is very happy with the status quo.” Senate Bill 1420 would provide any…