By:
Steve Lewis
February 17, 2020 // Updated: February 17, 2020
After 19 years of advocacy for mental health services, Steve Buck came to the Oklahoma Office of Juvenile Affairs with a strong commitment to serving youth, tempered with an eye toward the most efficient expenditure of taxpayer money. His primary goal was prevention, always seeking to follow the data and make services available to troubled youth as early as possible. He insisted the best chance of success in a young person's life, at the least cost to taxpayers, is early intervention with evidence-based or evidence-informed services.
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By:
Steve Lewis
February 10, 2020 // Updated: February 10, 2020
There is an issue flying under the radar that may surface sometime during the Legislative session. This is the placing of a statutory cap on what are called "non-economic" damages in personal injury cases.
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By:
Steve Lewis
February 3, 2020 // Updated: February 4, 2020
In the run-up to the Legislative session beginning this week, two things happened that could affect mental health services for thousands of Oklahomans.
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During comments in Washington D.C. on Thursday, Gov. Stitt laid out the tenets for his health care plan to counter Medicaid expansion efforts. The plan includes elements that will inevitably draw lawsuits from health care organizations and advocates who fight to protect the rights and coverage of low-income residents.
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By:
Steve Lewis
January 28, 2020 // Updated: January 28, 2020
Most educators will tell you suspension doesn't work for the children. They act out, get suspended then return to school, behind in their work and either embarrassed or pleased by their suspension. Often nothing is offered to the child during suspension but days off from school. Suspension becomes a feeder for the criminal justice system.
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By:
Steve Lewis
January 20, 2020 // Updated: January 31, 2020
The Office of Juvenile Affairs leadership has announced plans to push through amendments to Youthful Offender Act (YOA) in the upcoming session.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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