House Completes Bill-Filing Process

OKLAHOMA CITY (January 18, 2011) – At the conclusion of the filing process on January 17 – the last day for state representatives to file legislation – there were 1,259 bills and 43 joint resolutions filed in the Oklahoma House of Representatives for the 2013 legislative session.

Last year, the House Chief Clerk’s Office reported that 962 bills and 26 joint resolutions were filed in the Oklahoma House of Representatives for the 2012 legislative session.

My 2011 State Capitol Top Ten

These are a few of the top stories of 2011 from the State Capitol:

1. Mary Fallin becomes first female governor of Oklahoma

2. Republicans take control of state government:

• Republicans sworn in to every statewide office for the first time
• The Governor’s Office, State House and State Senate are controlled by Republicans for the first time

3. Pension reforms, led by Rep. Randy McDaniel, R-OKC, passed during the legislative session and have reduced the state’s unfunded pension liabilities by billions of dollars

4. DHS in the headlines:

• The deaths of several children in state custody leads to changes at the DHS Commission including the creation of a committee to study child deaths
• A district attorney calls for an OSBI investigation of DHS over allegations workers at the agency withheld information from the DA
• A settlement agreement appears very likely in the 2008 Children’s Rights class action lawsuit against the OKDHS child welfare program avoiding trial early next year

5. Attorney General Scott Pruitt files a lawsuit on behalf of the State challenging the constitutionality of Obamacare

6. Changes in education:

• State Supt. Janet Barresi and State Board of Education battle during her first board meeting and subsequent changes to the board
• Several historic education reform measures were signed into law such as the repeal of trial de novo, a new A-F grading system for schools and the tax credit scholarship program Oklahoma Equal Opportunity Education Scholarship Act
• State Supt. Janet Barresi selects former OEA lobbyist Joel Robinson as new Chief of Staff

7. Two school districts sue parents of special needs children establishing a troubling new precedent of intimidation of parents by administrators and school boards

8. The untimely deaths of friends hurts and reminds me of what's important:

• Rep. Rusty Farley, R-Haworth, the first Republican elected to a state office from McCurtain County, died July 4 during his first year as a freshman State Representative

• Sen. David Myers, R-Ponca City, Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee died November 11

• Judy Copeland, a long time friend and General Counsel to Governors Fallin and Keating, died November 6 at 42

9. The number and scope of studies during the interim kept legislators and the press busy during the summer and fall months

10. The Capitol facade began crumbling this summer requiring the area near the front of the Capitol to be roped off until repairs are made

This is not an exhaustive list but it does represent some of the topics, events or issues I was involved in, find interesting or that personally had an impact on me this year.

Happy New Year!

2011 Session Review Posted on House Website

The 2011 Session in Review is published online by the great staff at the Oklahoma House of Representatives. The Session in Review is a list of all measures passed by the House of Representatives during the First Session of the 53rd Legislature. The list contains a synopsis of and a hyperlink to each measure.

Session Highlights from Last Week

House Votes to Reduce Taxpayer Cost of Highway Memorial Signs

Lawmakers voted this week to require groups requesting or sponsoring a highway or bridge sign to pay for them.

House Bill 1666 is designed to reduce the added expense to the state during the budget downturn. It passed 88-9.

The measure was amended to exempt situations honoring military heroes killed in action.

According to the Oklahoma Department of Transportation, the state currently spends about $1,600 apiece for large signs on interstates and $400 per sign for those on other highways.

Board of Education Reform Advances

Session Highlights from Last Week

Bill Would Require Criminal Background Checks in DHS Foster Care Cases


Legislation approved by a committee this week would require the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) to conduct criminal background checks on all adults living in a home before a foster child is reunited with a parent.
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The bill was prompted by the case of seven-year-old Aja Johnson, who was found dead in a wooded area in rural Norman roughly a year ago. Aja’s stepfather, Lester Hobbs, had a violent past that ultimately included killing his daughter.

House Bill 2136 is designed to deter similar tragedies in the future.
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The bill directs DHS to conduct a safety analysis upon receipt of a report that a child may be abused or neglected. The analysis must include a criminal background check of any adult known to be in the home of the child and inquiries into Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and Federal Bureau of Investigation records.

​The measure also requires service provider progress reports submitted to the court be delivered to each party involved in determining the placement of a child. In addition, the measure permits the Oklahoma Commission on Children and Youth to disclose any previous child welfare encounters or investigations involving a child who has died or nearly died.

Legislative Leaders Push Forward with Lawsuit Reforms

Legislative Session Week in Review

Bill Would Grade School Performance

Under legislation approved this week, Oklahoma students won’t be the only ones receiving a grade; their schools will as well.

Under House Bill 1456 Oklahoma’s public schools would be given an annual grade of “A” to “F” based on student performance on state tests.

The legislation is based on a similar plan in Florida.

In 1999, the first year Florida issued letter grades for schools, there were 616 schools that received an A or B, while 877 received Ds or Fs. Performance continually improved until 2,317 schools received As or Bs in 2009, and just 217 received Ds or Fs. Under the legislation, annual reports would be issued giving letter grades to schools based on student performance on the Oklahoma School Testing Program.

The grades would be as follows:

• “A” means schools making excellent progress;
• “B” means schools making above average progress;
• “C” means schools making satisfactory progress;
• “D” means schools making less than satisfactory progress; and
• “F” means schools failing to make adequate progress.

Schools receiving an “A” or those that improve at least two grade levels in a year would be rewarded by granting them greater authority over the allocation of the state-funded portion of the school’s budget.

Each school’s grade would be based on a combination of student test scores on all criterion-referenced tests and end-of-instruction tests, student learning gains in reading and mathematics, and improvement of the lowest twenty-fifth percentile of students in reading and mathematics.

For high schools, 50 percent of the school grade would be based on the above-listed factors and the other half of the grade would be based on

• the district’s high school graduation rate;
• performance and participation of students in College Board Advanced Placement courses, International Baccalaureate courses, concurrent enrollment courses, Advanced International Certificate of Education courses, and national industry certification;
• students’ SAT and ACT scores;
• the high school graduation rate of students who scored as limited or unsatisfactory on eighth-grade criterion-referenced tests in reading and mathematics; and
• student performance on the end-of-instruction tests.

House Bill 1456 passed out of the House Common Education Committee. It will now proceed to the floor of the Oklahoma House of Representatives.

Speaker Names Investigatory Committee Members

Legislative Session Week in Review

The week started with Gov. Mary Fallin’s first State of the State speech where she outlined an ambitious agenda to improve Oklahoma’s economy.


Although the budget shortfall and redistricting will obviously take up much of our time, we still have the opportunity to advance common-sense reforms as well.

At the start of this session, we face 1168 bills and 41 joint resolutions in the Oklahoma House of Representatives while lawmakers in the Senate filed 969 bills and 44 joint resolutions.

At the same time, we face a hole of $500 million to $600 million this year’s budget, which means some tough decisions lie ahead of us. To get a head start on those decisions, we held pre-session budget hearings with state agencies. Those meetings will help us determine where cuts can be made, where duplication exists, and how to best proceed.

Illegal immigration will also be a major issue this year. State House and Senate leaders have formed a special joint committee to develop immigration reform proposals. The group includes four members each from the House and Senate, as well as Attorney General Scott Pruitt.

Among other things, the committee will develop a reform package that addresses public safety issues and targets crimes associated with illegal immigration. As part of the effort, the group will also consider proposals to better protect taxpayer money from subsidizing illegal immigration.

While much work remains ahead of us, the House has already enacted one major reform. Under the rules of operation adopted on opening day, the public will now have greater opportunity to monitor activity at the Oklahoma Capitol.