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 A brief account of what happened at the Capitol this week. April 19, 2015 DEATH OF REPRESENTATIVE DAVID DANK
The funeral service for State Representative David Dank, who died last week in his
home in Oklahoma City, was held on Thursday. Rep. Dank was 76 years old. He
held the House seat that was previously held by his now-deceased wife, Odilia.
Before being elected to the House, Rep. Dank served as executive vice-president of
the Retail Merchants Association and was instrumental in the passage of the
Consumer Credit Code and the creation of the state’s photo driver’s license system.
He was the publisher of both the Moore Monitor and Oklahoma Conservative Review.
He was owner of Dank Consulting.
As a member of the House, Rep. Dank was the first chairman of the new committee
dealing with senior citizen issues. He was also a tireless worker in bringing greater
accountability to state tax credits.
CARE COORDINATION LEGISLATION PASSES
The State Senate amended then passed a bill on Tuesday that will require the
Oklahoma Health Care Authority to ask for proposals for care coordination models for
dual and non-dual eligible non-institutionalized aged, blind and disabled persons.
House Bill 1566 was amended to say that persons receiving institutional care will be
included in the program two years after the initial phase is operational.
The bill is one of two care coordination bills under consideration this session. The
other bill, Senate Bill 752, is in the House. The authors of that bill have indicated that
now that House Bill 1566 has cleared the Senate SB752 may not be heard.
Oklahoma Senate: http://www.oksenate.gov
US Senate:
http://www.senate.gov
Fallin: http://www.ok.gov/governor
Governor
Oklahoma House: http://www.okhouse.gov
US House: http://www.house.gov
FKG Consulting: http://www.fkgconsulting.com
House Bill 1566 passed unanimously in the Senate and will now go back to the
House for consideration of Senate amendments. If it clears the House it will go to the
Governor who has indicated support for the legislation.
ONLINE VOTING APPROVED BY HOUSE
Eligible citizens will be allowed to register to vote online if a bill that the House
passed on Monday gets the approval of the Governor. Senate Bill 313 is intended to
allow eligible Oklahomans to register online instead of having to do it in person. The
legislation establishes citizens to be eligible if they possess a valid Oklahoma driver’s
license or identification card.
The citizen must register to vote at the address provided on the ID card or driver’s
license and must be a qualified elector and entitled to become a registered voter. A
person providing false information on an electronic voter registration application will
be deemed guilty of a felony.
GOVERNOR SIGNS MORE BILLS
Senator Mary Fallin put her signature on more bills this week. Among them were:
*
House Bill 1721: Establishes the Oklahoma Unborn Child Protection
from Dismemberment Abortion Act.
*
House Bill 1562: Expands the list of licensed health care providers
permitted to determine if mechanical restraint is required by the medical
needs of the consumer.
*
House Bill 1273: Modifies the scope of the definition of “sexual
exploitation”.
*
House Bill 1567: Permits the Health Insurance Plan to provide for the
application of deductibles and copayment or coinsurance provisions
that are based on contracts with providers for specific services based
on levels of outcomes or cost or type of provider.
EDUCATOR LIABILITY BILL CLEARS HOUSE
The State Senate gave its approval to a bill on Tuesday that exempts education
employees from liability for the use of necessary force to control and discipline a
student during the time the student is in attendance at the school or in transit to or
Oklahoma Senate: http://www.oksenate.gov
US Senate:
http://www.senate.gov
Fallin: http://www.ok.gov/governor
Governor
Oklahoma House: http://www.okhouse.gov
US House: http://www.house.gov
FKG Consulting: http://www.fkgconsulting.com
from the school, or any other function authorized by the school district. SB5 passed
with only one dissenting vote.
HOUSE APPROVES TRANSPARENCY LEGISLATION
The Oklahoma House passed Senate Bill 189 this week. It is a bill that creates the
Oklahoma Performance Informed Budget and Transparency Act of 2015.
The legislation changes references to “zero-based” budgeting to “performanceinformed budgeting and permits the appropriations committees of both houses or
their subcommittees to perform the duties of the Legislative Oversight Committee on
State Budget Performance.
CHARTER SCHOOL LEGISLATION CLEARS HOUSE
The House gave its approval to Senate Bill 782 on Tuesday. The bill expands the
reach of charter schools in the state. The bill lifts the population cap to authorize
charter schools statewide. Under present law, only Tulsa and Oklahoma City are
authorized to sponsor charter schools.
Proponents of the bill said that the legislation would allow rural areas of the state to
participate in an education system that gives emphasis to parental participation with
students and educators. Opponents contend that the legislation is an infringement
on local control.
Under the provisions of the bill, any school district may sponsor a charter school. In
those districts where charters are denied by the local school board, the State Board
of Education has the authority to step in and sponsor a charter in that district. After
lengthy debate, the bill passed the full House on a 64-31 vote.
ON-SITE INSURANCE INSPECTIONS APPROVED
The House passed Senate Bill 236 this week. The legislation permits the Oklahoma
Insurance Commissioner to conduct on-site inspections of operations of health
insurance navigators and navigator entities and to provide summary reports
requested by the Commissioner that are prohibited from including personally
identifiable information. The bill passed 89-1.
OMES: LOW OIL/GAS PRICES SLOW REVENUE COLLECTIONS
The Office of Management and Enterprise Services (OMES) released its March
revenue report this week that shows how low oil and gas prices are affecting the
Oklahoma Senate: http://www.oksenate.gov
US Senate:
http://www.senate.gov
Fallin: http://www.ok.gov/governor
Governor
Oklahoma House: http://www.okhouse.gov
US House: http://www.house.gov
FKG Consulting: http://www.fkgconsulting.com
collection of state revenues. While General Revenue Fund (GRF) collections
continued to outperform expectations, the level of energy prices is holding down the
amount of revenues that the state uses to fund its budget. The GRF is the key
indicator of state government’s fiscal status.
March GRF collections equaled $424.4 million. That amount was $11.1 million
(2.7%) above the official state estimate upon which the fiscal year 2015 appropriated
state budget is based. It is also $11.5 million (2.8%) more than collections in March
of last year.
RIDE-SHARING REGULATION BILL PASSES SENATE
On Wednesday the Senate passed House Bill 1614. The bill, titled the
Transportation Network Company Services Act, was written to conform to model
legislation that was agreed to by ride-sharing companies and the insurance industry.
The bill establishes a statewide framework that preempts municipality ordinances
regulating ride-sharing services, allowing companies such as Uber to operate
throughout the state regardless of the varying ordinances of individual municipalities.
It also includes insurance requirements that ride sharing companies must meet in
their insurance policies. The bill passed 35-11 and now goes back to the House for
acceptance of Senate amendments.
CANNABIDIOL OIL STUDY GAINS APPROVAL
The Senate on Wednesday gave its approval to a bill that permits clinical trials using
a marihuana derivative for the treatment of certain seizure disorders. House Bill
2154 gives the governor and the Oklahoma State Bureau of Narcotics and
Dangerous Drug Control greater enforcement and control over the trials. The bill
passed unanimously.
ALTERNATIVE EXECUTION METHOD BECOMES LAW
On Friday Governor Fallin put her signature on House Bill 1879, a new law that will
allow the state to use nitrogen hypoxia as a method of execution if lethal injection is
ruled unconstitutional or becomes unavailable.
The Governor released the following statement when she signed the bill: Oklahoma
executes murderers whose crimes are especially heinous. I support that policy, and I
believe capital punishment must be performed effectively and without cruelty. The
bill I signed today gives the state Oklahoma another death penalty option that meets
that standard.”
Oklahoma Senate: http://www.oksenate.gov
US Senate:
http://www.senate.gov
Fallin: http://www.ok.gov/governor
Governor
Oklahoma House: http://www.okhouse.gov
US House: http://www.house.gov
FKG Consulting: http://www.fkgconsulting.com