Two weeks and counting until we gavel out of the 2023 legislative session. While it started out promising with historic revenues to appropriate, the process has gotten bogged down in education funding and policy disagreements.
A budget agreement should have already been announced but until leaders finalize an education plan, session can’t move forward because education receives the largest amount of state dollars. We’ve got to wait and see how much will be left to continue work on the overall state budget.
Despite those disagreements, some incredible legislation has been signed into law. These are important issues that will protect families, along with the health and safety of many Oklahomans. One of the new laws will create the Kasey Alert System for missing adults between the ages of 18 and 59, not covered by Amber or Silver Alerts, who are believed to have been abducted or taken against their will.
Another will ensure victims of domestic violence can secure safe housing faster by waiving the initial credit check and deposit requirements for utilities. Given Oklahoma is one of the worst in the nation for domestic violence and ranked first for women being killed by intimate partners, this bill will help save lives. Victims shouldn’t have to worry about saving up enough money to get away from their abuser — this will get rid of some of the financial roadblocks that keep them in dangerous situations for too long.
Sadly, Oklahoma is the nation’s fifth hungriest state. Even with federal free school lunch programs, senior nutrition programs and all of the local food pantries and charities, more is needed to help fully address hunger in our state. For years, legislators have tried to figure out how to allow restaurants and schools to donate their leftovers to charity. Fear of being sued has always kept most entities from donating food but legislation has been signed to grant civil immunity to any restaurant or school cafeteria that donates prepared foods at no charge. This is an exciting development that will help so many families.
This week, our committees will review many of the governor’s 185 executive nominations to our state’s various boards and commissions. This session, I’m proud to be carrying two of these, including Mandy Haws, of Purcell, to the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Commission; Jonathan Lawson, of Lexington, to the Oklahoma Used Motor Vehicle, Dismantler and Manufactured Housing Commission. I’m so proud of these individuals for being willing to step up and volunteer their time to help our great state in this capacity.
So many wonderful events took place this past week, including honoring our state’s brave sons and daughters, their service and patriotism. Oklahoma is the only state that holds an annual joint session to honor its veterans, and it’s always such a moving event to hear about their sacrifices and continued work to help their colleagues and communities however they can.
We also had Hispanic Cultural Day, Chickasaw Nation Day, welcomed dignitaries from Israel to celebrate the 75th anniversary of their founding, and honored Miss Oklahoma Megan Gold. It was such a pleasure getting to honor all of these great Oklahomans.
If you have any questions or concerns on legislative matters, please contact me at [email protected] or 405-521-5522.
