OKLAHOMA STATE SENATE / From the desk of Sen. Jessica Garvin
The Senate recently passed its third major deadline of this session, and both chambers will soon begin sending a deluge of bills to the governor’s desk. April 11 was the deadline for House bills to be heard in Senate committees and Senate bills to be heard in House committees. That means both chambers have completed the majority of their committee work for this session. The full Senate will spend the next two weeks voting on bills on the floor.
Many of those bills that pass the House and Senate chambers will go straight to Gov. Kevin Stitt’s desk. Amended bills return to their chamber of origin so lawmakers can vote on the new version. If Senate and House lawmakers disagree on the particulars of a bill, a small group of members will hash out the details in a conference committee.
About 564 bills — 330 from the House and 234 from the Senate — are still eligible to advance in the legislative process. More than 2,070 pieces of legislation were filed before the start of this session. More than 40 House bills, including one I sponsored to make health insurance companies’ prior authorization process more transparent, have stalled in the Senate Appropriations Committee. Senate appropriations leaders refused to hear any House bills that have a fiscal impact until the House unveils its proposed budget for the upcoming year. Although the committee deadline has passed, I’m optimistic those bills will still get a hearing sometime soon.
I want to address some misinformation I’ve seen about House Bill 3098, which I’m cosponsoring. This bill would add chlamydia, hepatitis B, genital herpes, HPV and trichomoniasis to the state’s list of diseases for which a person can face criminal charges for knowingly spreading. I’ve gotten questions about this bill, and I’ve seen some misleading information on social media. Only someone who intentionally and recklessly spreads one of these sexually transmitted infections could be charged with a felony. No one could be charged with a crime for simply having an STI. Oklahomans with one or more of these STIs should seek treatment before pursuing a sexual relationship. Or they should disclose their diagnosis to their partner prior to any intimate activity. State law already criminalizes the intentional spreading of HIV/AIDS, syphilis, gonorrhea and smallpox, so this is not a new concept here in Oklahoma. I firmly believe someone should face consequences for knowingly infecting another person with a disease.
Oklahoma ranks among the worst states for many of these STIs. The state has the fourth-highest rate of syphilis and fifth-highest rate of congenital syphilis, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Oklahoma ranks 13th for its rate of gonorrhea and 20th for its chlamydia rate. This bill is not intended to deter Oklahomans from getting tested for STIs. I’m hopeful this proposal will encourage more Oklahomans to get tested to ensure they aren’t spreading STIs to anyone else. This bill should be heard on the Senate floor sometime in the coming weeks.
If you have any questions or concerns on legislative matters, please contact me at the Capitol by emailing me at Jessica.Garvin@oksenate. gov, calling me at 405-521-5522 or writing to Senator Jessica Garvin, State Capitol, 2300 N. Lincoln Blvd.
