Governor to hold public bill signing of DHS reforms

Governor Mary Fallin will hold a public bill signing ceremony and press conference tomorrow afternoon to sign DHS reform legislation. I know many of you are interested in these reforms so I wanted to make sure you were aware of the plans and I hope you are able to attend. 

Thursday, May 31

3:30 p.m.  

Governor’s Blue Room

The reform bills include:

• HB3133 – Any individual who knowingly provides false information in a deprived child proceeding commits a felony. 
• HB3134 – DHS to eliminate the Field Operations Division and to vertically integrate all program divisions and staff; field operations and programs shall no longer be separated into different divisions. 
• HB3135 – Allows for DHS to release certain information when a child death has occurred.
• HB3137 – Gives the Governor authority to select the DHS Director, subject to confirmation from the Senate. Creates citizen advisory panels to evaluate core areas of DHS. 
• HJR1092 – Refers to the vote of the people a constitutional amendment which would delete the DHS Commission and allow the department to be administered under the Governor’s purview. (Included in the reform measures is HJR1092 that sends State Questions 765 to a vote of the people this fall. HJR1092 does not require the governor’s signature).

Speaker comments on House passage of DHS governance reforms

House Speaker Kris Steele issued the following statement on House Joint Resolution 1092, which passed the House today, 80-7, and House Bill 3137, which passed the House today, 67-23:

“These measures will make a necessary, positive culture change at DHS. The system has been struggling under an outdated, ineffective governance model that has tended to isolate the agency from any real accountability. Under these reforms, it will be perfectly clear that this agency answers to all the people ofOklahoma. Vulnerable citizens will be far better served as a result.” – House Speaker Kris Steele, R-Shawnee

HJR 1092 would create a state question allowing voters to decide whether to abolish the Commission for Human Services, the constitutionally-mandated, nine-member group of unelected volunteers that has overseen DHS since 1936. HB 3137 would require the DHS director to be appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Senate should the state question pass. HB 3137 would also establish advisory panels that would monitor each of the agency’s divisions to help agency leadership make informed decisions. The measures now go to the Senate.

Speaker Steele Appoints Judicial Nominating Commission Member

OKLAHOMA CITY – House Speaker Kris Steele today named David K. Hill, chief executive officer of Kimray, as his appointee on the Judicial Nominating Commission.

“In November, the citizens of Oklahoma voted to change the membership of the Judicial Nominating Commission to include individuals with broad-based knowledge and experience,” said Steele, R-Shawnee. “David Hill is a proven leader in business, education and government. He clearly has the qualities needed to thoroughly vet nominees for judicial vacancies. I am confident he will serve the state of Oklahoma well and I appreciate his willingness to take on this important duty.”

The Judicial Nominating Commission reviews candidates for judicial vacancies and submits a list of nominees to the governor, who makes the final selection.

Hill is an OSU alumnus and has a degree in International Business from the Advanced Training Institute in Chicago, Ill. He has been with Kimray since 1993.

Hill previously served for six years on the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission, starting in 1998.

In 2004, Hill and his wife Shannon founded Providence Hall, a private school providing classical Christian education to the north Oklahoma City metropolitan area. In addition, Hill is a founding board member of the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon. He and his wife have been married 17 years and have six children.

Location:N Lincoln Blvd,Oklahoma City,United States

Speaker-elect Announces House Leadership Appointments

Speaker-elect Kris Steele

OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma House Speaker Kris Steele today announced key leadership appointments for the 2011 and 2012 legislative sessions.

“Given the significant challenges facing our state, it is critical the Legislature focus on conservative, pro-growth policies that will move Oklahoma forward,” said Steele, R-Shawnee. “I believe that we have chosen a team of effective leaders who will ensure the upcoming legislative session is conducted professionally and efficiently to maximize our accomplishments.”

The leadership appointments for the Oklahoma House of Representatives are as follows:

Assistant Majority Floor Leaders:
Mike Jackson, R-Enid
Gary Banz, R-Midwest city
Dennis Johnson, R-Duncan
Lisa Billy, R-Purcell
George Faught, R-Muskogee
Leslie Osborn, R-Tuttle

Assistant Majority Whips:
Mike Sanders, R-Kingfisher
Steve Martin, R-Bartlesville
Randy McDaniel, R-Edmond
Marian Cooksey, R-Edmond
Fred Jordan, R-Jenks
Dennis Casey, R-Morrison
Corey Holland, R-Marlow
Paul Wesselhoft, R-Moore

Location:NE 23rd St,Oklahoma City,United States

Rep. Nelson named by Speaker-elect Steele to Working Group to Reform House Rules

Reform of conference committee process to increase transparency

OKLAHOMA CITY – House Speaker-elect Kris Steele today announced the creation of a working group to consider procedural reforms that will make the legislative process more transparent.

“While we have made tremendous strides towards increased transparency in recent years, I believe we can build on those successes and give citizens greater access to the legislative process,” said Steele, R-Shawnee. “I believe increased public scrutiny and oversight is vital to a healthy democracy, and technological advances now allow us to be more user-friendly than ever. I am serious about bold reform and am confident the members of the working group will develop proposals that significantly change the way things are done at the Oklahoma Capitol.”

Among other things, the working group will consider rule changes that open the conference committee process to allow actual meetings and public votes on conference committee reports. In addition, the group will consider reforms that could end the practice of voting on “shell” appropriation bills that contain no actual budget numbers.

The members of the working group are as follows:

State Rep. Jeff Hickman, R-Dacoma

State Rep. Gary Banz, R-Midwest City

State Rep. Jason Nelson, R-Oklahoma City

State Rep. David Dank, R-Oklahoma City

State Rep. Dan Sullivan, R-Tulsa

The committee will also consider putting in place a hard 24-hour rule that requires a House conference committee report to be filed and posted online for a full day before it can be considered on the House floor. Currently, there is no 24-hour rule during the final two days of session.

As part of that proposal, conference committee reports would also be posted online for member and public review with a link to previous versions of the bill available so changes can be more easily spotted.

Speaker-elect Kris Steele announced top leadership appointments today

State Rep. Dale DeWitt, R-Braman, will serve as House Majority Leader, a new position created to facilitate leadership meetings, assist in communication with the state Senate and Governor’s Office, and help guide the majority agenda through the legislative process.

State Rep. Dan Sullivan, R-Tulsa, will serve as the Majority Floor Leader and will oversee the daily floor activity of the House during. The Floor Leader will also assign bills to appropriate committees.

State Rep. Earl Sears, R-Bartlesville, will serve as chair of the House Appropriations and Budget Committee and will oversee the formation of the state’s budget for various agencies and departments.

State Rep. Skye McNiel, R-Bristow, will serve as Majority Whip and will head a team of assistants whips who will establish effective communication for the Republican caucus on a wide arrange of issues and work to advance legislation on the House floor.

House GOP Majority Caucus Elects Leadership

House GOP Majority Caucus Elects Leadership
Speaker-elect Steele, Speaker Pro Temp Hickman & Caucus Chair Watson Chosen

Speaker Kris Steele

OKLAHOMA CITY – Following on the heels of elections that gave Republicans a historic 70-31 margin of control in the Oklahoma House of Representatives, the House GOP caucus today chose its leadership and re-affirmed state Rep. Kris Steele as their choice for House Speaker-elect.
            “I am honored and humbled by the support of my colleagues,” said Steele, R-Shawnee. “As we face the significant challenges of the coming session, I am committed to a process that utilizes the talents of all 101 members of this chamber to develop and advance pro-growth, conservative policies that will move Oklahoma forward.”
            The GOP caucus elected its three top leadership positions today. In addition to Speaker of the House-elect, Republican lawmakers also selected House Speaker Pro Tempore-elect and Majority Caucus Chair.

Rep. Jeff Hickman

            In addition to electing Steele, the GOP caucus chose state Rep. Jeff Hickman, R-Dacoma, as Speaker Pro Tempore-elect and state Rep. Weldon Watson, R-Tulsa, as Caucus Chairman.
            Over the next several weeks Steele plans to announce additional appointed GOP leadership positions.
            On Tuesday, November 16 at 1:30 p.m., the newly-elected members of the entire House will be sworn in at the Capitol. In early January, the full House will convene for an organizational day to formally elect House leadership.

Steele Expresses Concern Over Schools’ Violation of New Law

OKLAHOMA CITY (October 5, 2010) – House Speaker-designate Kris Steele today said the Jenks and Broken Arrow school systems should comply with a state law granting scholarships to special needs students.

The school boards at both schools voted this week to violate Oklahoma law, which allows students with disabilities, such at autism or Down’s syndrome, to receive scholarships and transfer to schools that specialize in aiding those populations.

“It’s concerning for these schools to break the law at the expense of children with special needs, and it’s disturbing for them to ignore the law over a philosophical difference of opinion,” said Steele, R-Shawnee. “If these districts have concerns, they should communicate those issues with the Legislature to bring about positive solutions that would benefit students with special needs.

“We can no more allow schools to violate the law because officials object to it than we can allow drivers to ignore the speed limit in a school zone if it ‘inconveniences’ them,” Steele said.

House Bill 3393, by state Rep. Jason Nelson, created the Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Program Act.

The Oklahoma program is similar to laws in Florida and Georgia that have easily withstood legal challenges. The Florida program has been in place since 1999 and now serves approximately 20,000 students with special needs.

In addition, the scholarship program does not require new spending, but merely redirects existing state funds that are currently spent on the student.

School officials claimed the transfers authorized by the scholarship program would somehow harm their financial standing, but only seven students have applied for the scholarships at Jenks and eight at Broken Arrow, according to the Tulsa World. Both schools are among the largest in the state.

“Our focus should be on helping children with special needs,” Steele said. “It’s clear the parents of these children believe a specialized learning environment will provide greater benefit for their kids.”

House Speaker Designate Announces Proposed Changes to the Conference Committee Process

OKLAHOMA CITY (July 28, 2010) — House Speaker-Designate Kris Steele announced today he intends to make changes to the conference committee process in the House that will make the procedure more transparent and open to the public.
Beginning next legislative session, Steele said he plans to put in place a hard 24-hour rule that will require a House conference committee report to be filed and posted online for a full day before it can be considered on the House floor.

Currently, House rules require House conference committee reports be posted on the calendar at least 24 hours for review. But, that rule is waived in the last two days of session. Keeping the 24-hour rule in place throughout the entire conference process will give members, the public and the press time to read bills and better determine their impact on Oklahomans, said Steele.

Supporters praised Gov. Brad Henry today for signing HB 3393 providing special-needs scholarships

Supporters praised Gov. Brad Henry today for signing a bill providing scholarships to special needs students.

“This is a great day for Oklahoma families with special needs children,” said state Rep. Jason Nelson, R-Oklahoma City. “For those families, this bill is a chance at a better education and a better life.”

House Bill 3393, by Nelson and state Sen. Patrick Anderson, would allow students with disabilities who have an individualized education program (IEP) to qualify for a scholarship to attend any public or private school that meets the accreditation requirements of the State Board of Education.

The legislation had strong support from many families of children with autism.

The legislation has been named the Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Program Act to honor the memory of the governor’s daughter, who died of a rare neuromuscular disease as an infant.

“We are very honored that Governor and Mrs. Henry have allowed us to name this important piece of legislation after their daughter who passed away at seven months of age,” said Wanda Felty, parent of a child with multiple disabilities. “The simple fact is there is often an unspoken bond among parents of special needs children, and although Lindsey Nicole’s life was short, she helped shape the type of people the Henrys are. We appreciate their compassion and understanding of our plight, and we certainly appreciate the Governor’s support of this bill.”

“We want to make it clear, neither the Governor, nor his wife, nor his staff nor anyone connected to him asked for this change. Instead it was suggested to him as a way to honor the memory of his daughter and let it be known for generations to come that she, and her parents, are helping to improve the lives of special needs children across the state,” said state House Speaker Pro Tempore Kris Steele, R-Shawnee. “Especially given that this program was passed in the waning days of the last legislative session of Governor Henry’s tenure, we think this action is both appropriate and warranted. We are pleased that Representative Nelson agreed to amend his Conference Committee Report to include this change.”

Lindsey Nicole was the twin of the Henrys’ oldest daughter, Leah. Lindsey died at seven months of age due to complications from a rare genetic disorder.

The scholarship program created through House Bill 3393 would not require new spending, but would merely redirect existing state funds that are currently spent on the student.

Other states with similar laws include Florida, Georgia, Utah, Ohio and Arizona. The Florida program has been in place since 1999 and now serves approximately 20,000 students with special needs. House Bill 3393 closely mirrors the Florida and Georgia laws.

“Having visited with many families of special-needs students, I know how important this legislation is to ensuring they are able to provide the best future possible for their children,” said Nelson, R-Oklahoma City. “It is only fitting that we honor the Henrys and Lindsey Nicole as part of this process to show that even the worst moments of our lives can have positive repercussions. I appreciate the governor’s support and this opportunity to honor his daughter.”