A test of leadership for Speaker McCall (Capitol Update)

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.

With only two weeks of session remaining (one week to pass revenue bills), legislators seem determined to paint themselves into a corner. This week, the logjam needs to be broken. There is nearly unprecedented support, almost demand, for increased revenue. This is not because Oklahomans have suddenly become a population of tax-and-spend liberals. It’s because the combination of tax cuts, the decline in record-high oil prices, and reliance on a hoped-for quick economic recovery have created a crisis. The cupboard is bare, and everyone except the willfully blind can see it.

In our kind of government there are times when each of our leaders must take his turn at leading. This is a genuine test of the nascent administration of House Speaker Charles McCall and his leadership team. Speaker McCall, in his fifth year in the legislature and first year as Speaker, is at the helm of a sinking ship of state. If it’s not apparent now, it will be in a few weeks if the Legislature doesn’t act. It’s not his fault, but it is his turn. The House must start the revenue-raising process, and if they don’t do it, nothing can happen.

There are two ways to get this done. The Speaker can work with the House and Senate Democratic and Republican leadership and find a measure that will pass both chambers with the necessary three-fourths vote required by the Constitution. Or, he can convene the House Democratic and Republican leadership, put a bill together that will pass the House, and ship it over to the Senate. Senate Republicans have more room to maneuver than do House Republicans. By most reckoning, House Republicans need about 15 to 20 of the 26 Democratic votes to pass a revenue bill. The Senate only has 6 Democratic members. So, the Senate should give the Speaker some slack up front.

Like it or not, Governor Fallin has done what she had to do. She put forward a revenue proposal, albeit one that couldn’t pass. She changed the conversation by disposing of the shibboleth that “Oklahoma has a spending problem, not a revenue problem,” and she acknowledged that we need more revenue. She led. While one might have hoped for a better plan, she did what governors do: She set the agenda. Now it’s the Speaker’s turn. Otherwise, we’re likely looking at a budget that cannot pass or will be vetoed and starting over with a special session no one wants.