SB 714 Author Disappointed by Senator Laster’s Flip-Flop on Abortion Issue

On Wednesday the evenly divided Oklahoma Senate fell one vote short of the 32 votes needed to override Gov. Brad Henry’s veto of a pro-life bill after Democrat Senator Charles Laster of Shawnee flip-flopped by voting against an override motion after voting 3 previous times in favor of the legislation this session – once in committee and twice on the Senate floor.
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House leaders killed a proposal to create a public umbilical cord blood bank only to reluctantly resurrect the language in a second bill.

Senator Jay Paul Gumm and Rep. Rebecca Hamilton introduced Senate Bill 139. The measure would have created the Oklahoma Public Cord Blood Bank at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center.

House Republican leaders refused to give the bill a hearing. Instead, House Republicans dropped almost identical language creating a public cord blood bank into a second bill that is sponsored by Republican lawmakers.

The bipartisan leadership of the Oklahoma Senate praised the passage of Senate Bill 357 by the House of Representatives, part of a bipartisan legislative agreement that will pump more than $200 million over the next five years into the fiscally-troubled Oklahoma Teachers Retirement System (TRS). When fully implemented in 2010, the plan will infuse $60 million a year into the TRS.

It is estimated that up to 1.5 million Americans have some form of autism, and reports indicate autism is growing at a rate of 10 to 17 percent each year. In an effort to help better educate the public about this neurological disorder, the State Senate voted on Thursday to declare April 2007 as Autism Awareness Month in Oklahoma. Sen. Mike Johnson was the principal author of the measure.
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At a time when Oklahoma is receiving criticism for student performance on the ACT as well as a failing grade from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in academic achievement, State Sen. Kathleen Wilcoxson said a push to weaken Gov. Brad Henry’s Achieving Classroom Excellence (ACE) program with alternative testing couldn’t come at a worse time. The majority of the ACE steering committee supported more than 270 examinations to offer students in place of proficiency tests in core subjects.
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State Senate Co-President Pro Tempore Glenn Coffee, R-Oklahoma City, issued the following statement regarding Gov. Brad Henry’s veto of appropriations bills for 5 state agencies.

“The budget numbers in these non-controversial bills exactly matched the funding levels contained in both the bipartisan general appropriations bill and Gov. Henry’s executive budget,” stated Coffee.

“I am pleased that Governor Henry has vetoed Senate Bill 507. The governor has shown great courage in vetoing this bill and proven once again he is the governor for all of the people of our state.

“Senate Bill 507 would have severely limited access to the courts for most Oklahomans, leaving civil justice as a commodity only the wealthy could afford. It would have tipped the scales heavily in favor of large corporations and against working families and royalty owners.

“Those are my principles, and if you don't like them... well, I have others.” – Groucho Marx

Gov. Brad Henry flip-flopped on the issue of lawsuit reform by vetoing Senate Bill 507, bipartisan legislation that contains most of the areas of lawsuit reform the governor himself called for in 2004.

The state Senate on Monday honored the accomplishments of the University of Oklahoma Women’s Basketball team and head coach Sherri Coale, passing a resolution commending the team on another championship season.

Sen. John Sparks authored Senate Resolution 34 to recognize Coale and the Sooner women, who in 2006-07 became the first Big XII program to win back-to-back regular season and post-season conference championships.

A painting of one of the Oklahoma Panhandle’s historic sites will soon be dedicated at the Oklahoma State Capitol. The painting of “Robber’s Roost” by artist Wayne Cooper was commissioned by the Oklahoma State Senate Historical Preservation Fund and is sponsored by Senator Owen and Charlette Laughlin.
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