News

Speaker gets re-elected

March 17, 2022

House Speaker Charles McCall was overwhelmingly re-elected speaker-designate for the 59th Oklahoma Legislature by the House Republican Caucus. First elected speaker in 2016 for the 56th Legislature, McCall, R-Atoka, is already Oklahoma’s longest-serving Republican speaker and is now on track to become the longest-serving speaker in state history. The 59th Legislature will be seated after…

Banning Russian oil

March 17, 2022

The chairman of the Senate Energy Committee said he supports a ban on Russian oil and other petroleum products, saying such a prohibition would further hold Vladimir Putin accountable for its illegal and unlawful attack on Ukraine. Sen. Mark Allen, R-Spiro, said the United States is indirectly funding the Putin regime and its ruthless attack…

More teacher assistance

March 17, 2022

The Senate approved Senate Bill 1139 to find may ways to compensate Oklahoma teachers. Sen. David Bullard, R-Durant, said the ongoing teacher shortage is evidence that additional reforms must be made to keep professionals in the classroom. “For almost two decades, I taught in schools where good teachers were shorted on good pay while average…

Planned Parenthood

March 17, 2022

The full Senate has approved Senate Bill 1544, which would prevent public, charter or virtual schools across the state from partnering with an individual or entity that performs, induces, or provides abortions. Authored by Sen. Roland Pederson, R-Burlington, the measure aims to prevent organizations, like Planned Parenthood, from instituting curriculum and normalizing sexual activities, behavior,…

Probing election fraud

March 17, 2022

The House passed bills to empower district attorneys to investigate election fraud. House Bill 2974, authored by Rep. Jim Olsen, R-Roland, requires the State Election Board to perform an annual query to determine how many individuals are registered at the same residential address. If more than ten registered voters share a single residential address, the…

Repealing franchise tax

March 17, 2022

The House approved two bills repealing the franchise tax and updating the interest rate for delinquent taxes. House Bill 3131 repeals the franchise tax and was authored by Rep. Gerrid Kendrix, R-Altus. Corporations pay a tax on retained capital, and the tax is assessed whether the corporation makes a profit or not. Currently, the franchise…

Virtual public meetings

March 17, 2022

The Senate gave unanimous approval to Senate Bill 1547, which would make virtual public meetings a permanent fixture. The bill, authored by Sen. Brent Howard, R-Altus, would modify the Open Meetings Act to require public bodies such as school boards, local municipalities, and state agencies to stream and post all public meetings online if they…

Extended learning bill

March 17, 2022

Senate Education Committee chairman Adam Pugh wants Oklahoma to think outside the box when it comes to students earning credits for graduation. The Edmond Republican wrote Senate Bill 1623, the Learn Everywhere Act, to make public school students eligible for extended learning opportunities outside the classroom. “There are a number of opportunities outside of the…

Tag agency updating

March 17, 2022

The Senate approved to a bill to modernize and standardize services receive at local tag agencies. Sen. Chuck Hall, R-Perry, is the author of Senate Bill 1605. “The pandemic, along with software issues and other challenges implementing the issuance of REAL IDs, underscored the need to modernize and standardize how we deliver services to citizens,”…

Military pay tax cuts

March 17, 2022

Oklahoma could soon join the other 33 states that honor America’s military by not taxing their retirement pay, following the Senate’s unanimous approval of Senate Bill 401. The measure is authored by Air Force veteran Sen. Adam Pugh, R-Edmond, and Sen. Brenda Stanley, vice chair of the Senate Veterans and Military Affairs Committee. Currently, Oklahoma’s…