Legislative Update

Rader is GOP caucus chair

February 6, 2020

Senate Republicans have elected Sen. Dave Rader, R-Tulsa, caucus chair and Senator Greg McCortney caucus vice chair, the President Pro Tempore’s Office announced. The elections were necessary due to the resignation of Senator Jason Smalley, who previously served as caucus chair. Rader previously served as caucus vice chair. McCortney, R-Ada, recently was appointed chair of…

State purchasing reforms

February 6, 2020

Senate Appropriations Chair Roger Thompson has filed a bill to reform the Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act. Thompson, R-Okemah, said the legislation will create government efficiencies while modernizing state agency spending. The Central Purchasing Act sets limitations on agency spending. Although this section of the statutes has been amended in fragments over the past 20 years,…

Stitt bans state employee paid travel to California

January 30, 2020

As millions of people across the United States came together for the National March for Life last weekend, Gov. Kevin Stitt announced a ban on state-funded travel to the State of California. “California and its elected officials over the past few years have banned travel to the State of Oklahoma in an effort to politically…

House Bill would make abortion illegal

January 30, 2020

Rep. Justin Humphrey, R-Lane, has filed House Bill 2900 seeking to make abortion murder. State law in Oklahoma already makes abortion illegal unless it is committed by a licensed physician. There were efforts in the Oklahoma Legislature to abolish abortion in the 2019 session but they were blocked from votes in committees by self-proclaimed “pro-life”…

840 bills Senate bills filed

January 30, 2020

The Oklahoma Senate has completed filing bills for the second session of the 57th Legislature. The deadline was January 16 and a total of 840 Senate Bills and 19 Senate Joint Resolutions were filed. In 2019, 1,040 Senate Bills and 22 Senate Joint Resolutions were filed by the deadline. A total of 645 Senate Bills…

1,361 bills filed in the Oklahoma House

January 30, 2020

The Oklahoma House of Representatives has completed bill filing for the second session of the 57th Legislature. A total of 1,361 House Bills, 16 House Joint Resolutions and 4 House Concurrent Resolutions were filed. The full text of the bills, along with additional information including authors and coauthors, can be found online at www.okhouse.gov. Last…

No taxes on textbooks

January 30, 2020

State Sen. Tom Dugger, R-Stillwater, has authored legislation to make college textbooks exempt from sales taxes in Oklahoma. Dugger said after discussing the idea with students from Oklahoma State University, he decided to file Senate Bill 1150. “College textbooks can be extremely expensive, with students easily spending hundreds of dollars each semester on their books,”…

Preference to Oklahoma textbooks

January 30, 2020

Sen. Rob Standridge, R-Norman, has filed legislation aimed at choosing textbooks produced in the state for use in public schools. Senate Bill 1121 would direct the State Textbook Committee to give preference to books that have been produced in Oklahoma if the price, fitness, availability and quality are otherwise equal to textbooks produced out-of-state. “Our…

COLA hike for retirees

January 30, 2020

The last cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) Oklahoma’s state retirees received was in 2008 yet living expenses have continually increased. Sen. Ron Sharp, vice chairman of the Senate Insurance and Retirement Committee, said it’s time to find a funding solution. The Shawnee Republican filed Senate Bill 1817 to re-apportion a percentage of certain new taxes to provide…

Rules for telemarketers

January 30, 2020

The Oklahoma House of Representatives will consider legislation to prevent telemarketers from replicating numbers and misrepresenting the origin of a phone call. Rep. Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow, filed House Bill 3081 to prohibit callers from tampering with information displayed on caller IDs to disguise their identities. This practice is known as “caller ID spoofing” and is…