Quotes of the Day

“Tribal nations have survived disease, removal from our homelands, termination and other adversities, and still we prospered. However, I fear the opioid epidemic is emerging as the next great challenge of our modern era.”

– Bill John Baker, principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, which has filed a lawsuit in tribal court accusing drug distributors and pharmacies of flooding communities in Oklahoma with highly-addictive pain pills [Source]

“I wish for all of my teachers to get raises, of course, but what concerns me is there is no mechanism to pay that. If they put that burden on us (the schools) … added with all the budget cuts already … it’s really going to cause a struggle for us. The reality becomes this: we’re going to give everyone a pay raise, but at almost $200,000 to afford that the first year, I would have to let at least four teachers go. We’re going to have to make the tough decisions, not the state, and honestly, I haven’t given up hope. There are some good ideas proposed by the Democrats to help pay for this, so I hope good ideas prevail over bipartisan politics.”

– Wagoner Public Schools Superintendent Randy Harris (Source)

“I’ll never forget last fall. I was at a business recruitment trip, talking about all the great things in Oklahoma. But a businessman said to me ‘I can’t come to Oklahoma because you’re so poor you only educate your children four days a week.’ … We have to fix these problems. We have to recognize that it hurts us economic development-wise.”

-Governor Mary Fallin, calling on the Legislature to pass new revenues at an event at the Tulsa Regional Chamber (Source)

“Our staff members do the best they can when it comes to properly securing our facilities. It’s a difficult task we ask of them, because agency wide we have correctional officer staffing shortages. Our (correctional officer) positions don’t pay enough to be competitive in the job market and with the current budget crisis we are experiencing the situation isn’t going to get any better anytime soon when it comes to filling vacancies.”

-Oklahoma Corrections Director Joe Allbaugh, commenting after a fight at a prison in Sayre left seven inmates injured (Source)

“We want to stay and serve our students, but we will no longer feel guilt for wanting to provide for our family. We’re tired of the rhetoric and guilt tactics. Of course, I knew teaching wasn’t a high-paying career, but I should be able to pay my bills. My work and talents are worth more than my salary.”

– 2016 Oklahoma Teacher of the Year Shawn Sheehan reflecting on his recent trip to a career fair in Texas, where he obtained his certification to teach a few months ago (Source)

“Education, like other core services, are being seriously jeopardized by the funding crisis. It’s one devastating blow after another and is only compounded by our severe teacher shortage. Schools have no stability or certainty with their current and future budgets. We are watching the state revenue collections for April and will vigorously advocate for what every student needs.”

– State Superintendent of Schools Joy Hofmeister on the news that April payments to schools have been cut due to low revenue collections, with reductions since January totaling almost $87 million (Source)

“It is basically a slap in the face to voters who soundly voted ‘no’ on State Question 777 and an end run around what the people want. This is the creation of prosperity districts, which is as bad — or worse — than SQ 777.”

-Denise Deason-Toyne, president of Tahlequah-based citizen coalition Save the Illinois River Inc., arguing that “prosperity districts” created under HB 2132 would lead to areas not subject to state environmental regulations that could be exploited by foreign corporations (Source). Read why HB 2132 won’t create prosperity here

“Just because you purchase coverage that doesn’t include cancer treatment because your family doesn’t have a history of cancer, insurance could then prove to be totally useless if, surprise, you develop an actual serious health condition like cancer. At that point, this health coverage might be slightly less expensive but it would also be useless in the case of a medical emergency.”

-OK Policy Analyst Carly Putnam, explaining how loosening health insurance mandates through HB 478 could lead to skimpy coverage that fails to cover important treatments and services (Source)

“I understand the state is struggling, but the county is, too. We can’t afford to keep subsidizing the state.”

– Dennis Semler, Tulsa County Treasurer, on the shifting of the costs of government from the state to counties and cities (Source)

“Keeping the state questions intact and supporting the governor’s task force bills saves taxpayers nearly $2 billion, makes us safer and restores lives. We’re optimistic that when this session ends, legislators will have built on the progress made by Oklahoma voters by enacting more historic reforms that send Oklahoma’s criminal justice system back in the right direction.”

– Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform chairman Kris Steele responding to news that HB 1482, which would have backtracked on criminal justice reforms approved by voters in November, is unlikely to advance in the Legislature (Source)