In October of 2007, Oklahoma Governor Brad Henry commissioned a study on the development of a statewide emergency communications plan from L. Robert Kimball and Associates Architects and Engineers. On Monday, Sen. Kenneth Corn said the findings of the recently released study reaffirm the need for the state to implement an interoperable statewide communications system.

Corn said such a system would allow emergency personnel from various agencies to communicate efficiently in times of crisis. Currently, agencies use independent systems that cannot interoperate with each other.

Oklahoma has an official state folk song, a country and western song, and of course an official state song. What it doesn’t have is an official rock and roll song. But a vote in the Senate has brought the state one step closer to choosing one. Sen. John Ford is Senate author of House Concurrent Resolution 1047 which was approved unanimously by the full Senate on Tuesday. The measure has already been approved by the House of Representatives.
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Appropriately timed to coincide with the celebration of Earth Day, a bill by State Senator Susan Paddack and State Rep. Wes Hilliard that enhances the future of the state’s water supply has been signed into law by Governor Brad Henry. Senate Bill 1410 passed both the Senate and the House with overwhelmingly bi-partisan support and is amongst the first bills signed into law this legislative session.

Tuesday the State House of Representatives passed Senate Joint Resolution 38 by Co-President Pro Tem Glenn Coffee that creates a constitutional amendment protecting the inherent right of Oklahoma citizens to hunt and fish. Rep. Randy Terrill, R-Moore, is the bill’s House author.

If approved by a vote of the people, the resolution will add a new section to the State Constitution giving all Oklahomans the right to hunt, trap, fish, and take game and fish. The legislation would not allow state laws to prohibit anyone from engaging in such activities.

A bill that will assist hundreds of thousands of Oklahomans facing hunger passed the Senate on Tuesday in a unanimous, bipartisan vote, according to the bill’s co-author, State Senator Andrew Rice.

“When our neighbors are going hungry, all of us are affected – it’s a moral issue. I’m encouraged that all of my Senate colleagues, from both sides of the aisle, share my views and showed they are willing to take immediate action to combat food insecurity,” Rice said.

A majority of the Senate shot down an attempt by state Sen. Bill Brown to make Oklahoma's lakes safer on Tuesday. Brown said he was extremely disappointed in his colleagues for putting recreation before safety.
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The state could soon be getting a boost in funds dedicated to the construction and maintenance of roads and bridges, following the Senate approval of House Bill 2551 on Wednesday.

The measure would remove language requiring the State Board of Equalization to certify three percent growth in the General Revenue Fund before appropriating $50 million to the Rebuilding Oklahoma Access and Driver Safety (ROADS) Fund.

The Oklahoma State Senate approved legislation Wednesday requiring the State Board of Education to adopt a policy that establishes different levels of content and rigor of subject matter being taught in schools during Veteran’s Day and Celebrate Freedom Week, and that content should be grade-appropriate.

House Bill 2229 is authored by State Senator Earl Garrison, D-Muskogee and Rep. Ed Cannaday, D-Porum. The bill now goes to the House of Representatives for consideration.

The state Senate on Wednesday approved legislation that would close a loophole in the state’s Sex Offender Registration Act. House Bill 2783 would require the Department of Corrections to conduct risk assessments of sex offenders who move into the state of Oklahoma.

Sen. Kenneth Corn, Senate author of the measure, said the legislation was prompted by instances in which sex offenders had moved into the state, yet were not held to the requirements of Oklahoma’s Sex Offender Registration Act.

In late January, just before session began, members of the Senate Democratic caucus announced their intentions to elevate the debate over health care to a new level this legislative session. With several of their health care measures winning approval in the Senate and awaiting action by the House of Representatives, they have made good on that promise, and seem more determined than ever to keep the fight alive.
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