The Oklahoma House wants to liberalize state liquor laws by legalizing “bottle service” in “club suites.” Proponents claim it will boost tourism as visitors have more opportunity to drink alcohol. House Bill 2651, authored by Rep. Ajay Pittman, D-Oklahoma City, passed by a 90-9 House vote. It provides a definition of “bottle service” as used…
A bill authorizing local school boards to adopt policies allowing authorized personnel to carry guns on campus passed the Oklahoma House . House Bill 2336 would allow districts to authorize certain personnel to carry a handgun on school property, as long as the personnel holds a valid reserve peace officer certification or possesses a valid…
The Oklahoma Senate approved legislation to encourage more classroom time for students. Senate Bill 441 by Senator Marty Quinn is one of four agenda items of Senate Republicans. The bill passed on a 31-17 vote and now goes to the House for consideration. “What’s best for students is to spend as much time as possible…
The Senate approved legislation to provide the public and legislature with a clearer picture of what federal funds Oklahoma receives and spends. Senate Bill 271, by Sen. Nathan Dahm, will require state agencies that receive federal funds to annually publish a list on their website of the funds, what programs they are used for and…
Passage of five reorganizational bills will give Gov. Kevin Stitt and future governors more authority to hire and fire agency leaders for the Oklahoma Healthcare Authority (SB 456), Oklahoma Department of Transportation (SB 457), Oklahoma Department of Corrections (HB 2480), Oklahoma Office of Juvenile Affairs (HB 2479), and Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance…
The House of Representatives unanimously passed a measure that would provide Oklahoma school teachers some financial relief when they spend money out of pocket for their classrooms. House Bill 2502, by House Speaker Charles McCall, would provide a $1,000 tax credit that teachers can claim for classroom expenditures and fees associated with the teacher certification…
The House of Representatives passed a bill that would grant an increase in retirement benefits to retirees of Oklahoma’s six retirement systems. House Bill 2304, authored by State Rep. Avery Frix, R-Muskogee, would give a permanent 4 percent cost of living adjustment (COLA) to all retirees of the Teachers’ Retirement System of Oklahoma, Oklahoma Firefighters…
A bill to require the same level of transparency from virtual charter schools as other public schools passed the Oklahoma House of Representatives. House Bill 1395 amends language in the Oklahoma Charter Schools Act of 2012 to hold virtual charter schools subject to the same financial reporting requirements and audits as traditional school districts. The…
Rep. Jason Dunningham, D-Oklahoma City, wants to make it a crime for a licensed counselor to tell a client age 18 or younger that they don’t have to be a homosexual. Dunningham authored House Bill 2456 and thank goodness, it looks like it won’t get serious consideration by the Republican-led Legislature. Other states like California…
The Oklahoma Senate overwhelmingly passed two government accountability measures that are a part of a larger deal to give the governor the ability to hire the heads of five of the largest state agencies. Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat’s bills would give the governor the ability to hire and fire the head of the…