A measure to extend Oklahoma's Back to School sales tax holiday to include more items passed its first hurdle this week. Senate Bill 1149, by State Sen. Don Barrington, adds school supplies, school art supplies and school instructional materials used by students to the list of items already exempt from sales tax during the first weekend in August. Barrington also authored SB 861 that created the sales tax holiday.
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The Thursday arrest of a Lawton man who threatened to bomb schools in Lawton and Chickasha underscores the need to make schools safer for children and staff, Sen. Todd Lamb said Friday.

Lamb is the author of Senate Bill 1941, the Oklahoma School Security Act. The measure includes numerous provisions designed to make educational facilities more secure, reduce school violence and bullying and involve administrators in an effort to make their schools safer. The measure also eliminates the use of schools as polling places.

The Senate Agriculture Committee passed a measure this week to give county commissioners the authority to proclaim burn bans in their counties. Currently, the Governor is the only entity with this power, but Senate Bill 1816, by Sen. Don Barrington and Rep. Don Armes, would change that.
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Good Bills Dying as Republicans Lock Up to Protect Powerful Insurance Lobby

A disturbing trend of insurance reform bills dying at the hands of Republican senators locking up to protect powerful insurance companies won’t stop Senate Democrats from continuing to push to make healthcare more affordable for all Oklahomans.

A bill by State Senator John Ford, who represents Craig, Nowata and Washington counties, that will establish a charter school district pilot program passed out of the Senate Appropriations Committee by a 10-6 vote.

Currently, certain school districts are allowed to have individual charter schools within their jurisdiction. Charter schools are supported by state funding, but exempt from many state regulations. Senate Bill 2100 would establish a trial program allowing 10 entire school districts in Oklahoma to become charter districts.

State Senate Democrat Floor Leader Charles Laster attacked Republicans in an after-business-hours news release late Friday, criticizing GOP senators for votes on several bills related to health insurance.

Senate Republican Floor Leader Owen Laughlin responded, saying one criticism in particular made him chuckle.

“Senator Laster criticized Republicans for defeating a bill that would have recreated the State Board for Property and Casualty Rates, insinuating that bringing back this government bureaucracy would somehow reduce insurance costs,” said Laughlin, R-Woodward.

The State Senate on Monday approved legislation that would reduce the minimum age for correctional officers and guards from 21 to 20.

Requested by the Department of Corrections, SB 1468 is intended to broaden the pool of eligible candidates for employment in corrections facilities and assist an agency experiencing a significant labor shortage.

Sen. Mike Schulz, author of the measure, said the Legislature needs to take swift action in addressing the labor shortage, and work toward a comprehensive plan to deal with the many issues currently faced by the agency.

State Senate Co-President Pro Tempore Glenn Coffee, R-Oklahoma City, issued the following statement regarding the first tie vote to occur under the evenly divided Senates power-sharing agreement.

First of all, the process worked as the framers of our constitution intended. There was a tie vote and the lieutenant governor exercised her authority as president of the Senate to break the tie.
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Autism afflicts one in every 150 children, yet there is no requirement that diagnosis and treatment be covered by Oklahoma health insurance policies.

Tuesday, a group of Oklahoma families joined Senator Jay Paul Gumm at a State Capitol news conference to promote “Nick’s Law.” The proposal, initially contained in Senate Bill 1537, would require health insurance policies cover diagnosis, treatment and therapy for autism spectrum disorders. Currently, at least 17 states – including Texas – have similar mandates.

The Oklahoma State Senate has given unanimous approval to legislation creating special vehicle tags for Oklahomans who have served in Operation Iraqi Freedom. The author of Senate Bill 1138 is Sen. Todd Lamb, R-Edmond.

“I was first approached about creating this special license plate by a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom. We’ve lost more than 70 Oklahoma soldiers in this cause, including 19 year-old Pfc. Micheal Phillips of Ardmore just this past weekend,” Lamb said. “It is important for us to honor all of the Oklahomans who have risked their lives for our country in Iraq.”