Steve Lewis served as Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1989-1990. He currently practices law in Tulsa and represents clients at the Capitol.
By: Steve Lewis
January 13, 2020 // Updated: January 14, 2020
The Governor's Criminal Justice RESTORE Task Force issued its initial report last week with some interesting narrative and recommendations. One area the task force commented on was bail and pretrial detention. The report correctly points out the inadequacy and injustice of the current bail system. [More...]
By: Steve Lewis
January 6, 2020 // Updated: January 6, 2020
When they want to, prosecutors will agree that a harsh sentence is not always necessary to achieve justice. The goal of criminal justice reform is to get them to want to more often. [More...]
By: Steve Lewis
December 23, 2019 // Updated: January 6, 2020
Last month, the Oklahoma State Board of Equalization held its first meeting for the purpose of certifying how much money the legislature will have to appropriate for the budget year beginning July 1, 2020, when it convenes in February. The current economy on the current tax rates has produced what amounts to a level budget going forward next year. But with state finance it is never that simple. [More...]
By: Steve Lewis
December 16, 2019 // Updated: December 16, 2019
Instead of a determined effort to fulfill its charge of classifying felonies with an eye toward reducing the prison population, the Council spent the year discussing improvements that should be made everywhere except in court. [More...]
By: Steve Lewis
December 9, 2019 // Updated: December 9, 2019
There's an interesting dynamic emerging between the governor and the legislature regarding next year's budget. Usually state agencies are free to make budget requests based, within realistic limits, on what they feel is needed to accomplish their duties and, if funds are available, to increase services. In preparation for the session, agencies appear before the appropriations committees to explain and justify their budget requests. Depending on available revenue, the legislature will decide which, if any, programs deserve either cuts or additional funding. This is done with input from the governor and his staff because, at the end of the day, the governor has the right to sign or veto the appropriations measures. [More...]
By: Steve Lewis
December 2, 2019 // Updated: December 2, 2019
With the recent widely publicized sentence commutations, one might have the impression that the work of criminal justice reform is done. To the contrary, these commutations only serve to emphasize how much progress can be made with passage of just one reform proposal. But even after the commutations, Oklahoma is still near the top of the world in incarceration. [More...]
By: Steve Lewis
November 25, 2019 // Updated: November 25, 2019
Recently, an initiative petition to create an independent, bipartisan redistricting commission to redraw legislative and congressional districts in Oklahoma was filed by a group called "People Not Politicians." [More...]
By: Steve Lewis
November 11, 2019 // Updated: November 11, 2019
There may indeed be an "Oklahoma plan" for Medicaid worth considering, but hopefully the governor won't propose an ill-advised block grant scheme that will fail legal muster and, without Congressional approval, will almost surely never be implemented. [More...]
By: Steve Lewis
November 4, 2019 // Updated: November 4, 2019
With these recent changes, 462 Oklahomans have a shot at a new life due to the wisdom of their neighbors who voted for SQ 780 and to legislators who voted to make right some wrongheaded war-on-drug policies from the past. [More...]
By: Steve Lewis
October 28, 2019 // Updated: October 28, 2019
Last week the Senate Judiciary Committee, at the request of Chairperson Sen. Julie Daniels (R-Bartlesville), held an interim study on an important criminal justice reform issue: Using the criminal justice system, including incarceration, to collect court-imposed fines, costs, fees, and assessments. [More...]
OKPOLICY.ORG
The Governor's Criminal Justice RESTORE Task Force issued its initial report last week with some interesting narrative and recommendations. One area the task force commented on was bail and pretrial detention. The report correctly points out the inadequacy and injustice of the current bail system. [More...]
When they want to, prosecutors will agree that a harsh sentence is not always necessary to achieve justice. The goal of criminal justice reform is to get them to want to more often. [More...]
Last month, the Oklahoma State Board of Equalization held its first meeting for the purpose of certifying how much money the legislature will have to appropriate for the budget year beginning July 1, 2020, when it convenes in February. The current economy on the current tax rates has produced what amounts to a level budget going forward next year. But with state finance it is never that simple. [More...]
Instead of a determined effort to fulfill its charge of classifying felonies with an eye toward reducing the prison population, the Council spent the year discussing improvements that should be made everywhere except in court. [More...]
There's an interesting dynamic emerging between the governor and the legislature regarding next year's budget. Usually state agencies are free to make budget requests based, within realistic limits, on what they feel is needed to accomplish their duties and, if funds are available, to increase services. In preparation for the session, agencies appear before the appropriations committees to explain and justify their budget requests. Depending on available revenue, the legislature will decide which, if any, programs deserve either cuts or additional funding. This is done with input from the governor and his staff because, at the end of the day, the governor has the right to sign or veto the appropriations measures. [More...]
With the recent widely publicized sentence commutations, one might have the impression that the work of criminal justice reform is done. To the contrary, these commutations only serve to emphasize how much progress can be made with passage of just one reform proposal. But even after the commutations, Oklahoma is still near the top of the world in incarceration. [More...]
Recently, an initiative petition to create an independent, bipartisan redistricting commission to redraw legislative and congressional districts in Oklahoma was filed by a group called "People Not Politicians." [More...]
There may indeed be an "Oklahoma plan" for Medicaid worth considering, but hopefully the governor won't propose an ill-advised block grant scheme that will fail legal muster and, without Congressional approval, will almost surely never be implemented. [More...]
With these recent changes, 462 Oklahomans have a shot at a new life due to the wisdom of their neighbors who voted for SQ 780 and to legislators who voted to make right some wrongheaded war-on-drug policies from the past. [More...]
Last week the Senate Judiciary Committee, at the request of Chairperson Sen. Julie Daniels (R-Bartlesville), held an interim study on an important criminal justice reform issue: Using the criminal justice system, including incarceration, to collect court-imposed fines, costs, fees, and assessments. [More...]
