OKPOLICY.ORG
Steve Lewis served as Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1989-1991. He currently practices law in Tulsa and represents clients at the Capitol.
State Senate Republicans, who hold 42 of the 48 seats in the Senate, held a press conference this week and outlined their agenda for the 2017 legislative session in a press release. President Pro Tempore Mike Schulz, R-Altus said “Senate Republicans are united in our desire to implement ideas and policies that will help our state’s economy grow and put us on a long-term path to prosperity. Helping our economy grow means more good paying jobs for Oklahoma families and more resources to fund core government services without raising taxes.”
To support education the Senate Republican plan includes respecting and supporting teachers by removing obstacles to a teachers’ ability to help students learn and achieve; reducing administrative costs to increase teacher salaries; allowing parents, taxpayers and local school boards to more closely direct and increase the quality of classroom education; and ensuring accountability measures to provide parents and taxpayers a useful and accurate reflection of school performance and student achievement.
To keep citizens safe, senators plan to support both law enforcement officers and the citizens they are sworn to protect; monitor the implementation of criminal justice reforms and provide oversight of law enforcement agencies and promote cooperation to eliminate duplication. To protect children and support families, senators say they will improve foster care and adoption services and strengthen support for foster families; reform social services to offer economic mobility and end dependency governmental assistance; eliminate restrictions on non-profits and faith based organizations that perform social services and continue their commitment to defending the sanctity of life.
Finally, to support veterans and military families senators will work to minimize licensing challenges for military spouses due to relocation in Oklahoma; support public-private partnerships to develop a comprehensive health care system; ensure veterans are connected with existing mental health and social services and increase protection of service members’ financial and contractual rights when mobilized or deployed.
If this agenda were accomplished it could be a watershed session, but most of the “how” for accomplishing these goals is still to be figured out during the legislative session. For example, what administrative costs can be reduced enough to give public school teachers a pay raise; and how will local schools more closely direct and increase the quality of classroom education? What does it mean to both support law enforcement officers and the citizens they are sworn to protect? How will social services be reformed, and what regulations will be removed from non-profits and faith based providers? And, how can you provide more resources to fund core government services in a year with an $868 million budget hole without a tax increase? These are questions with no easy answers.
