Senate Appropriations Chairman Johnnie Crutchfield said Tuesday that he’s fearful that the unwillingness of the House Republican leadership to compromise on any budget issue could be a signal of a potential GOP-led shutdown of state government.

“It could just be a sign of House leadership’s inexperience in writing a state budget, but I’m fearful that Representative Hiett plans to follow the example set a decade ago by the first Republican speaker of the U.S. House in a generation,” Crutchfield said.

Democrat Leaders Suspected of Trying to Engineer Government Shutdown With ‘Unrealistic’ Budget Proposal

Senate Republican leaders Tuesday unveiled a compromise budget proposal in an effort to head off what appears to be an effort by Democrat leaders to engineer a shutdown of state government. Senate Republicans hope to repeat their efforts in 2003, when they helped broker a bipartisan budget agreement during the budget shortfall after proposing their own compromise budget.

Senate Appropriations Chairman Johnnie Crutchfield (D-Ardmore) said today, Speaker Hiett needs to take his own party’s advice and “Fund Education First” rather than point his finger at the State Senate.

“We passed an historic education appropriations bill more than two weeks ago, two days before the ‘Fund Education First’ deadline, while the Speaker played politics and refused to sign on to an agreement that passed unanimously by both parties in the Senate,” Crutchfield said.

The Oklahoma State Senate has unveiled its next phase in the ongoing effort to create more openness in government through greater public access. Just weeks after unveiling its new webcast of the Senate Chamber, Senate President Pro Tem Mike Morgan announced that starting Monday, the media and the public would be able to watch and listen to Senate committee action via an additional webcam.

Recent findings by a U.S. District Judge show both the good and the bad of the state’s Medicaid program and now it is time for the state legislature to respond, the Chairman of the Appropriations Sub-Committee on Health and Social Services said Thursday.

Senator Cal Hobson, a long-time champion of education, has been appointed the Senate Education Committee and the Appropriations Sub-Committee on Education, Senate President Pro Tempore Mike Morgan announced Thursday.

“Education must truly be our first priority as a state. Investing in our school children and our college students is a very real investment in the future of Oklahoma,” Hobson said

Hobson, D-Lexington, has also been assigned to the Judiciary, Energy and Retirement and Group Health Committees.

Senator Johnnie Crutchfield has been promoted to serve as Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee by Senate President Pro Tempore Mike Morgan. The Ardmore Democrat was promoted to the post shortly after Senator Mike Morgan, (D-Stillwater) was elected as President Pro Tempore of the Oklahoma State Senate Wednesday.

Senate Republican Leader Glenn Coffee, R-Oklahoma City, made the following statement regarding the resignation of Sen. Cal Hobson as President Pro Tempore.

“First and foremost, our prayers and thoughts are with Sen. Hobson during this difficult time for him and his family. My disagreements with Sen. Hobson have always been over policy issues – not personal issues.

Stillwater Senator Mike Morgan was elected President Pro Tempore of the Oklahoma State Senate Wednesday.

“I am humbled by the awesome responsibility of this job and the challenges that lay ahead. I’m thankful to my Senate colleagues for their support and I know I can count on each and every one of them – both Democrats and Republicans – to put aside petty political differences in the coming weeks as we seek to move Oklahoma forward,” Morgan said.

The new Senate leader noted that the legislative session is not yet half over and lawmakers have a lot of work left to do.

Having reached an agreement with Governor Henry and House leaders on a $500 million capital investment in Oklahoma’s colleges and universities, Senate President Pro Tempore Cal Hobson said Wednesday he has accomplished his top priority for the legislative session and will resign as the leader of the Oklahoma State Senate.