The Senate voted in favor of legislation Wednesday that will help attract retired teachers back to Oklahoma classrooms. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Education Chair and Education Committee Vice Chair, Sen. Dewayne Pemberton, R-Muskogee, is the author of Senate Bill 267 that he says is desperately needed to address Oklahoma’s continuing teacher shortage.

In an ever-growing virtual world, the Senate gave unanimous approval to Senate Bill 97 Tuesday to allow witnesses in jury and bench trials to testify via videoconferencing. Sen. Michael Brooks, D-Oklahoma City, is the bill’s author.

“Last year, we approved legislation authorizing district courts to utilize videoconference technology in civil and criminal proceedings. It was a much-welcomed change especially in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, so we decided to extend usage for all district court cases,” Brooks said.

Oklahoma has been praised as having one of the best and most secure election systems in the country. On Wednesday, the Senate overwhelmingly supported legislation prohibiting any state official, agency or local government from altering election procedures through legal agreements or court settlements that conflict with state election law.

Sen. Lonnie Paxton, R-Tuttle, said he authored Senate Bill 523 to protect the integrity of Oklahoma elections by preventing the questionable and unethical election actions that took place in other states during the 2020 presidential election.

A measure allowing the re-selling of public or private cemeterial burial plots was approved by the Senate on Wednesday.

Senate Bill 335 would provide a mechanism to re-sell burial sites at public or private cemeteries if the plot has been unused for 75 years and a reasonable search to find the owner has been conducted. Authored by Sen. Roland Pederson, R-Burlington, the measure was resurrected and re-filed for consideration after it didn’t make it through the legislative process during the 2020 session due to the COVID-19 pandemic

The full Senate has given approval to a bill to help law enforcement locate kidnap victims faster.  Sen. Darrell Weaver, R-Moore, is the author of Senate Bill 272, the “Kelsey Smith Act,” which would require cell phone companies to provide phone location information to law enforcement in emergency situations, such as an abduction.  

The Senate has approved a measure that would grant a sales tax exemption for the purchase of some forestry equipment.

A bill that will help more nonviolent offenders qualify for the Electronic Monitoring Program passed out of the Senate unanimously late Tuesday. Senate Bill 456’s author, Sen.

Among the many bills stopped during the shortened 2020 legislative session was one to help potentially save lives by providing judicial authorization of certain anatomical gifts. Altus Republican Brent Howard reintroduced his legislation this session, which received approval Tuesday by the Senate.

Legislation to address the issue of unsolved cases of missing and murdered Native American people has been approved unanimously by the full Senate. Sen. Paul Rosino, R-Oklahoma City, is the principal author of Senate Bill 172, known as Ida’s Law. The measure is named for 29-year-old Ida Beard from El Reno. A citizen of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, she went missing in 2015 and has never been found.

Rosino said there are currently more than 220 missing American Indians in Oklahoma, with about 14 of those from his own Senate District.

OKLAHOMA CITY – Sen. Rob Standridge, R-Norman, has won approval from the full Senate for Senate Joint Resolution 23, calling for an Article V Convention of States to propose amendments to the U.S. Constitution.  Standridge has advocated for a Convention of States for several years, and worked closely with his friend, the late U.S. Senator, Tom Coburn, on the issue.