The Senate approved a measure on Tuesday to give municipalities local control to adopt policies allowing their employees to carry concealed firearms.

The Senate gave approval to the Second Amendment Sanctuary State Act on Tuesday, which would preempt the entire field of legislation by any agency or political subdivision of the state to infringe upon the Second Amendment rights of Oklahoma citizens.  

Sen. Kim David, R-Porter, authored Senate Bill 848 to better address the unique mental health needs of law enforcement officers and other first responders who have witnessed and experienced traumatic events. The bill, which was unanimously approved late Monday by the Senate, came about after listening to public safety officers’ stories in an interim study last September she hosted with Sen. Roger Thompson to learn how the state could improve crisis intervention services for Oklahoma’s heroes.  

The full Senate gave approval to Senate Bill 312 on Monday, which would create harsher penalties for those who steal the identity of a person under the age of 18. The measure is authored by Sen. George Burns, R-Pollard.

A bill to modernize the process for filing and storing vehicle titles and liens has cleared the full Senate.  Senate Bill 998, by Sen. Rob Standridge, R-Norman, was approved Monday.

“This is going to speed up the process for titles and liens by moving these records online,” Standridge said.  “It’s going to make buying and selling vehicles more convenient and will even help owners get their permanent tags more quickly.  It’s time to bring our state into the 21^st century, and this is a part of that effort.”

Businesses that host blood drives for their employees could soon qualify for a tax incentive for helping address the state’s blood shortage.  The Senate approved Senate Bill 905 Monday by Sen. David Bullard, R-Durant.

The Senate has given approval to a bill clarifying and strengthening penalties for people who commit crimes during riots. Senate Bill 806, creating the Oklahoma Citizens’ Protection Act, by Sen. Darrell Weaver, R-Moore, was approved Monday.

Sen. Darrell Weaver, R-Moore, has won unanimous Senate approval for legislation to give law enforcement another tool to fight child predators. Senate Bill 980 would amend state law for obtaining a court order for a wiretap to include crimes related to child sexual exploitation.

The full Senate voted to prioritize child safety on Monday by passing Senate Bill 339, which would require any child 17 years old and younger riding in the back seat of a passenger vehicle to properly wear a seatbelt. The measure is authored by Sen. Roland Pederson, R-Burlington.

The bill was one of many approved by the Senate last year, but stalled in the House due to the shortened session caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Pederson re-introduced the bill this legislative session.

The full Senate has given its approval to a measure to make sure local governments don’t ignore the will of their citizens when cutting police department budgets.  Sen. Rob Standridge, R-Norman, is the author of Senate Bill 825 which was approved on Monday.

Standridge said the concept is straightforward—if the citizens had previously approved a tax increase to fund public safety, the local government cannot redirect or reduce those funds without a second vote of the people.