Many of the gubernatorial candidates have sounded off on economic development incentives and how they are used in Oklahoma. The Oklahoman’s Chris Casteel collected the stances as they shared them at candidate forums.
Read The Oklahoman story here.
Lawmakers are aiming at ending legislative business by the end of this week. The Oklahoman’s Dale Dewalt writes very little policy legislation is left, with the exception of Senate Bill 1173 setting up Oklahoma’s new liquor laws mandated by voters.
Read The Oklahoman story here.
U.S. Senator James Lankford appeared Sunday on CNN’s State of the Union with Jake Tapper. He discussed the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon, the Russian investigation and North Korea talks.
You can watch the conversation below.
The Oklahoma House worked on a Friday to pass Senate Bill 1600, the next state budget. It totals $7.6 billion dollars in appropriated funds.
According to House leadership, the budget is a $745 million increase over the previous budget, including a 19.8 percent increase for common education. It is the largest appropriation to K-12 education in state history.
The Legislature also appropriated $2 million to fund agency audits by the Agency Performance and Accountability Commission (APAC), which the Legislature created last session, and more than $11 million to help fund numerous criminal justice reforms that Governor Fallin signed into law Thursday.
“I’m proud the Legislature has finally funded a long-overdue pay increase for our dedicated teachers throughout Oklahoma,” said House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka. “This budget proves our commitment to education by setting a new funding baseline for public schools for future years, and we intend to continue investing in students, teachers and schools. This increased budget will provide certainty to our citizens and the agencies that provide them services.
“We are in an extraordinarily better position than we were just one year ago because we have made the hard votes, and we have also benefitted from an improved economy. In fact, we are projected to deposit more than $300 million into the Rainy Day Fund at the end of this fiscal year, which the Constitution requires when revenues exceed the official estimate. The budget also provides resources to fully implement the agency performance audits we put in place last session.”
While the House Republicans are running a victory lap, House Democrats are throwing cold water on celebration. They issued a statement saying the budget was an improvement from previous budgets, but they insist more work can be done.
“Although this budget is an improvement over past Republican budgets, it falls far short of meeting the needs of Oklahomans. When mandated pay raises are excluded from the budget, two-thirds of state agencies will not see increases in their appropriations.
Both Democrats and Republicans agreed today that this budget, built primarily by increasing the tax burden on working-class Oklahomans, isn’t enough. Yet, we are ending session nearly a month early while wasteful corporate tax exemptions like the capital gains exemption are still in place, and irresponsible income tax cuts still haven’t been addressed,” House Democrats said in a statement after the budget was passed by a 63 to 31 vote.
It now awaits the governor’s signature.
Former Representative Charlie Morgan passed away this week at the age of 86. Morgan served in the legislature from 1973 to 1988 as the House District 32 representative. He’s the brother of former Rep. Jim Morgan and father of Rep. Danny Morgan who served as House Minority Leader during his time in office.
Morgan also started Morgan Well Service in 1963 which continues operations today. He has also served as city councilman and mayor of Prague.
A celebration of Morgan’s life is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. Monday, April 30 at the Church of the Servant in northwest Oklahoma City. The family suggests that in lieu of flowers, memorials should be made to either The Martin Project, a non-profit 501(c)3 for multiple sclerosis research that’s based in Colorado, or to Infant Crisis Services of Oklahoma City.
During his six hours in front of two U.S. House Committees on Thursday, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt called out the media for publishing stories on his spending to distract from the EPA’s regulatory roll backs. The Hill’s Miranda Green and Timothy Cama write Pruitt was unapologetic while keeping cool under fire by committee members.
You can read The Hill story here.
U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe asked Secretary of Defense James Mattis, Under Secretary of Defense David Norquist and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Joseph Dunford, Jr. about issues with the Department of Defense budget during the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Thursday.
You can watch Inhofe’s question and answer session below.
Governor Fallin Thursday signed seven criminal justice reform bills that will reduce the flow of nonviolent offenders into prison; establish a more efficient and streamlined parole process; and facilitate successful reentry that reduces recidivism.
“Studies have shown that with our current laws Oklahoma’s prison population will grow 25 percent by 2026 and cost the state an additional $1.9 billion,” said Fallin. “Criminal justice reform has been an incredibly important issue for our state. We can be smart on crime and tough on violent offenders.
“Over a year ago I charged the Oklahoma Justice Reform Task Force with examining our state’s justice system to make efficient use of our limited state resources. Task force members developed these recommendations that were the framework for these bills. I appreciate lawmakers for their bipartisan approval of these vital measures.
“Our state prisons are filled to well over capacity so it is crucial that we make some changes to our criminal justice system,” Fallin said. “These bills will not jeopardize public safety while addressing Oklahoma’s prison population. Too few Oklahomans are getting the treatment they need for substance abuse and mental health issues, and are instead winding up in our criminal justice system. As I said in my State of the State address at the beginning of this legislative session, we need to stop warehousing moms and dads, son and daughters in prison when many just need substance abuse treatment.”
“Oklahoma cannot afford the status quo,” said Senate Majority Floor Leader Greg Treat. “Our prison population is currently at 113 percent of capacity, and is projected to grow 25 percent by 2026. That is an unacceptable trajectory for our state and its people. These reforms will slow the growth in the prison population long-term. The savings Oklahoma will see from reduced corrections’ costs will be substantial, and will allow further investment in areas like education, health care, and mental health services that will further reduce crime and the prison population. The Legislature, criminal justice reform advocates, and law enforcement are in agreement on these reforms after years of work. This is a balanced, smart approach to keep our communities safe, keep more people as productive, taxpaying members of society, and keep more families together.”
“It was an honor to be part of the governor’s Oklahoma Justice Reform Task Force, and I believe we have taken some incredible steps as a state during the last 18 months,” said House Majority Whip Terry O’Donnell. “Nearly all Oklahomans agree that their tax dollars are better spent on core services like education, health care, and roads and bridges than incarcerating too many people for too long. Today marks a new direction for Oklahoma on criminal justice and incarceration. These measures are based upon data-driven, proven solutions that will safely reduce our prison population, save taxpayers millions of dollars each year, and help keep families together.”
The governor signed the following measures:
Senate Bill 650, which authorizes no more than one nonviolent felony to apply for expungement if they have no new convictions or pending charges within the last seven years.
Senate Bill 786, which eliminates the mandatory minimum and allow a judge to sentence up to the current maximum sentence of seven years in prison for burglary in the second degree, and would create a new felony offense, burglary in the third degree (defined as breaking into a vehicle), punishable by up to five years in prison.
Senate Bill 649, which reduces enhanced sentences for certain repeat nonviolent felonies.
Senate Bill 689, which creates risk and needs assessment as a tool for sentencing.
Senate Bill 793, which changes the penalties for commercial drug offenses, and distinguishes conduct by possession with intent to distribute, distribution, and manufacturing.
House Bill 2281, which adjusts penalties for numerous low-level property offenses, including larceny, forgery and other “paper crimes.”
House Bill 2286, which creates an administrative parole process for nonviolent offenders who comply with case plans in prison so that the Pardon and Parole Board can focus on more serious offenders, and would establish a geriatric parole release process for inmates who are 60 and older and who have been determined to not be a public safety risk.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Gary Richardson launched at new radio and TV ad campaign focused on how he would combat illegal immigration if elected governor.
“Oklahoma embraces all cultures and welcomes people from all over the world — as long as they’re obeying the law,” Richardson said. “But no working taxpayer should be expected to foot the bill for people who don’t pay taxes because they’re working here illegally. The data shows this problem costs Oklahomans are an extra $464 million in taxes each year. That ends on my watch. The investigative audits I’ll demand will pinpoint the people exploiting the taxpayers and push them off the government roles. It’s the fair thing to do.”
You can view the Richardson TV ad below.
Republican Jay Steagall announces his candidacy for the open State Representative seat in District 43, being vacated by Rep. John Paul Jordan.
“I am pleased and honored to announce my candidacy to serve House District 43. As a business owner with nearly 22 years of military service, including eight deployments and over 100 combat sorties, I feel it is my duty to continue service to this country in new capacity, elected office.” Jay Steagall, a Major in the US Air Force Reserves, will deploy for a short stint beginning next week, and will continue his campaign digitally, by phone, while overseas. “While I will be serving our country on this short deployment, I also have arranged time to communicate through daily phone calls with voters to discuss the issues that matter to my fellow Oklahomans. It is an honor to have the opportunity to serve Americans abroad and I am equally honored to work to earn your vote to serve my fellow Oklahomans in office.”
In addition to his military service as a senior pilot for the Air Force Reserves, Jay Steagall and his wife Kim own and operate Cloverleaf Precision, LLC, a firearms store in Yukon, and manage Canadian Ranges in El Reno. Steagall also provides defensive and competitive firearms training, as well as providing gunsmithing services.
Jay Steagall grew up just outside of Chickasha, where his family owns and operates Steagall Oil Company. Jay graduated from Alex Public Schools, and also earned his State FFA degree his senior year. In 2002, Steagall graduated from Oklahoma State University with a degree in Agricultural Economics.
“If elected, my first priority will be to defend the lives of the unborn. As a Christian, I believe life begins at conception; as a 22-year veteran, I fight for the rights of all Americans, including the unborn,” Steagall stated.
“My next priority will be to defend Oklahoman’s Constitutional Second Amendment rights. The oath I took, and the promise I made to all Americans, was to defend our Constitution line by line. Every day I fight to defend our way of life as a pilot in the Air Force Reserves. My intimate understanding of the importance of our right to bear arms not only comes from my military service – I also own a gun store, operate a shooting range, and provide firearms instruction to enable gun owners to properly defend themselves.”
“Another central focus of my candidacy is the importance of law and order. As a constitutional republic, we are a nation of laws. To protect and defend the citizens of this community, state, and nation, it is the responsibility of law makers and law enforcement officers to support and carry out justice quickly and decisively. The recent national surge in violence toward our law enforcement agents is disgraceful and should not be tolerated. I will make it a top priority as a representative to support those officers who carry out their duties honorably. I will also support the prohibition of sanctuary city policies in the state of Oklahoma.”
“It’s time for a new direction and proven leadership in our state government that provides accountability for the budget and responsible spending. I’m asking you to join me as I continue the fight to defend life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all Oklahomans.”
For more information, please visit facebook at /VoteSteagall and on the web at www.jaysteagall.com.
