OKLAHOMA STATE SENATE / From the desk of Sen. Jessica Garvin
Last week, we celebrated National Police Week to recognize those in our communities who keep us safe, protect us from danger, uphold law and order, and help when emergency strikes — our brave law enforcement men and women.
Monday, May 15 was also Peace Officers Memorial Day in Oklahoma, and our hearts go out to those families who have lost loved ones in the line of duty. There is no greater service one can do for their fellow man than to serve and protect, but I can’t imagine the horrible pain of losing a loved one who was simply doing their job. We must all do our part to support these families and honor the legacy of our fallen heroes.
Every year, the Legislature works to provide additional resources, training, and other necessary supports to Oklahoma’s peace officers. In 2021, the Unified State Law Enforcement Commission was created to share their community’s greatest needs with us. Lack of proper mental health support, needing access to better training at all levels, and improving pay were some of the main reasons given for why our law enforcement agencies struggle with recruitment and retention.
These public servants face dangerous situations on a regular basis and the trauma they’re exposed to is unfathomable. Last year, we created the Mental Wellness Division at the state Department of Public Safety to provide mental wellness services and programs to all of Oklahoma’s public safety personnel and their families. The division utilizes public/ private partnerships to provide high quality, proven services, like peerto- peer mental health programs, which have been shown to have the highest success rate in suicide prevention and addressing other issues, like addiction, depression, and anxiety. I was proud to support this critical reform to show these brave men and women that we’ll always have their backs, just as they do ours.
We also boosted pay for our highway patrol troopers, agents at the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) and other public safety agencies. Major investments were made to provide more law enforcement education, training, and academies statewide, and we’ve also been working to unify training to provide more employment flexibility and opportunities for peace officers. If a city police officer or county deputy wants to become an OSBI agent or state trooper, we want to make sure they’ve had the training to make that career move. It’s important, regardless of who they work for or where, that all law enforcement officers have the same high-quality training statewide.
Having uncles, cousins, and a father-in-law who have dedicated their lives to public service through law enforcement, I’m proud to support our officers through my work at the Capitol. I ran a bill this year that would increase their retirement pension.
We need to find ways to offer competitive benefit packages to help recruit qualified candidates into the field and properly recognize and reward their careers.
I want to encourage everyone to take the time to stop a police officer, county agent or state trooper, and thank them for their service and sacrifice. Please consider showing them a kindness like picking up their meal at a local restaurant, buying them a bottle of water or soda, leaving them a note of encouragement on their windshield, or giving them a simple handshake and thank you. They put their lives in danger every time they put on their uniform, and we are blessed that these men and women choose to do so every day.
If I can be of any assistance, please email me at Jessica.Garvin@oksenate. gov or call 405-521-5522.
