The Senate General Government Committee on Tuesday approved legislation that would require contractors to have general liability and workers’ compensation insurance before they can be issued residential building permits.

The Oklahoma City Democrat said the measure would provide protection for homeowners.

State Sen. Johnnie Crutchfield, D-Ardmore, said he will do everything he can to coordinate assistance at the state and federal level after a deadly February storm system left more than two dozen injured or dead in his district. As of 10 a.m., the official death toll stood at 8, but Crutchfield said 30 people were unaccounted for. Multiple homes and buildings were destroyed with the community of Lone Grove hardest hit by the deadly storm.
read more.

The full Senate is the next stop for legislation to ensure disabled vets get a sales tax exemption guaranteed by state law.

Senator Jay Paul Gumm introduced legislation that would put even more teeth in a current state law that entitles Oklahoma veterans with a 100 percent service-connected disability to a sales tax exemption on purchases of up to $25,000 a year. The lawmaker said some retailers have been refusing to honor the exemption.
read more.

Being an Army veteran and living in a military city, Sen. Don Barrington knows all too well the sacrifices made by Oklahoma's military personnel and their families. For this reason, he authored SB 489 to expand the sales tax exemption for 100% disabled veterans to include sales to the surviving spouses of deceased qualified veterans.
read more.

Senate Bill 452 by Senator Mike Schulz, R-Altus, passed out of the Agriculture and Rural Development Committee on Monday, calling for adequate protection of livestock throughout Oklahoma.

The provisions in Senate Bill 452 limit the power of political subdivisions in Oklahoma when dealing with the care and handling of livestock. Local legislation in violation of this bill is void and unenforceable. However, Schulz says the intent of the legislation is not to preempt a city’s ability to zone.

The Senate Appropriations Committee passed two bills which are part of the Senate Republican legislative agenda today. SB646 and SB980, which would form the state Office of Accountability and Innovation; and a state Chief Information Officer respectively, are authored by Senate President Pro Tem Glenn Coffee.

“When passed and signed into law, these two new offices will greatly enhance the efficiency of state government,” said Coffee.

As many as 26,000 Oklahoma veterans are uninsured, but that could soon change thanks to the efforts of State Sen. Andrew Rice. The Oklahoma City Democrat’s legislation, Senate Bill 59, was unanimously approved Wednesday by the Senate Appropriations Committee.
read more.

The Senate Appropriations Committee passed a measure Wednesday that could provide tuition assistance to more Oklahoma students. SB 354, by Sen. David Myers, would expand the OHLAP program by allowing the income requirement to be based on a family’s yearly salary or a three-year average.
read more.

Senator Clark Jolley’s Senate Bill 1111 was approved by the Senate Education Committee today with a bipartisan 8-5 vote.

Jolley is encouraged by the passage of the “Educational Accountability Reform Act” and is pleased the committee saw fit to advance the measure.

The Senate Rules Committee on Monday approved legislation intended to streamline services for state agencies and organizations that serve Oklahoma children. Senate Bill 697 by Sen. Jay Paul Gumm would create Oklahoma’s first-ever Children’s Cabinet to recommend and implement policies to improve the health and well-being of children.

Gumm said the legislation would ensure that state agencies are efficiently implementing resources through a shared vision for Oklahoma’s youth.