The Oklahoma Senate

(Most of the work in the Legislature occurred behind the scenes in budget meetings or conference committee. House and Senate budget writers are trying to reach agreement on the distribution of funding allocations to various agencies. Budget leaders are also meeting with members of the Governor's staff, trying to reach agreements with him. Three weeks remain in the legislative session. Lawmakers must adjourn by 5pm Friday, May 29th)

• Governor Keating and legislative Republicans unveiled a counter-proposal to a budget agreement inked by House and Senate Democrats. The GOP plans calls for increased spending on a variety of government initiatives including:

  - $144 million for education;
  - $8.6 million for law enforcement pay;
  - $31.5 million for OSEEGIB subsidy;
  - $6.9 million for water quality management;
  - $34.5 million for public safety;
  - $40 million for state employee pay;
  
  The Governor's proposal would spend more general revenue than is currently available for appropriations. He apparently plans to free up more funds through improved tax collections and a raid on state pension accounts which he claims are fully funded. Those initiatives were proposed in his executive budget.

  In addition to those spending proposals, Governor Keating said his first priority is tax cuts.

• The Senate overrode Governor Keating's veto of SB 973, the bill which would head off an expected increase in state health insurance premiums. The vote split along party lines, with all Democratic Senators voting for the override. Senator Owen Laughlin was the only Republican to join them. The bill expresses intent to pump an additional $25 million into the OSEEGIB reserves. The next stop for the override effort is the House where Republicans hold a veto-proof minority.
  
  
• Govenor Keating signed a bill into law which will require teenagers to pass an eight-grade reading proficiency test to get a drivers license. Under HB 2889, the first test for teens is free, but if they fail, follow-up exams cost $25 each.
  
  
• The Senate voted to rejected the conference committee report from HB 2083, effectively killing the bill would have allowed advertising on the sides of public school buses. The measure now returns to conference committee.
  
  
• Governor Keating sidestepped the question of whether the Confederate flag should be flown in the State Capitol flag plaza, saying the courts will decide the issue. A chapter of the Sons of Confederate Veterans has filed a lawsuit, seeking to have the flag raised at the Capitol again. It was removed during the Bellmon administration after complaints from black legislators and others.

• The Senate voted to override Governor Keating's veto of a bill which would require insurance companies to cover treatable mental illnesses. The Governor vetoed SB 1059, claiming it would unnecessarily increase the costs of insurance companies. Supporters, however, cited a recent Rand Corporation study which indicated costs increased by only one dollar per insurance policy. The legislation now goes to the House where a veto override must be executed as well. It is expected to be more difficult to override the veto there because Governor Keating has urged Republican legislators to uphold his action. Republicans have a veto-proof majority in the House.
  
  
• The Oklahoma Supreme Court sided with Governor Frank Keating in his case against the State Ethics Commission. In a 6-3 decision, the high court ruled Keating did not violate a state ethics rule which forbids the use of public property on campaigns when he used state vehicles to travel to and from fund-raisers during the 1996 elections. A dissenting opinion decried the ruling, saying it placed the Governor above the laws of the state. Last week, Governor Keating signed a new law into effect that makes it illegal for the state chief executive to use the state airplane to transport himself to partisan political events.

• House Republicans successfully blocked the veto override of a bill which would have offset a large health insurance increase for state employees, retirees and teachers. SB 973 expressed legislative intent to appropriate $25 million from the rainy day fund to OSEEGIB, the state health insurance board. Although two House Republicans Rep. Tony Kouba and Rep. Doug Miller voted for the override, Democrats came up one vote short. The action keeps Governor Keating's perfect streak of vetoes upheld alive.
  
  
• Following the lead of Governor Keating, House Speaker Loyd Bensen unveiled a tax cut program that would cost the state an additional $142 million over the next 5 years. The main components of the program include:

  - Reducing the state sales tax on groceries from 4.5% to 2.25% by Oct 1, 2000.
  - Increasing the estate tax exemption from $175,000 to $600,000 over the next four years;
  - Exempting $1,000 of the value of a non-commercial car or truck when calculating the vehicles's annual registration fee;
  - Enacting an Oklahoma College Savings Plan that would exempt from state income tax interest earned on an account set up to finance a student's expenses while attending a public or private college in Oklahoma;
  - Authorizing a Small Business Administration guaranty fee credit that would allow small companies to obtain an income-tax credit when they pay a guaranty fee to acquire an SBA-backed loan.

  The tax program is a turnaround for Speaker Benson, who has previously advocated nothing more than a tax rebate, saying anything else would be irresponsible. Senate President Pro Tempore Stratton Taylor labeled the latest initiative "election-year posturing" and questioned the impact such a program would have on education.

• House members broke off negotiations on truth-in-sentencing, claiming their Senate counterparts weren't giving their proposals the proper deliberation they deserved. House Speaker Loyd Bensen has indicated that he would like to delay the implementation of truth-in-sentencing for at least another year. It is scheduled to go into effect on July 1st of this year.
  
  
• The House approved a measure which would make all 4-year old children eligible to particpate in an early childhood education program. Rep. Joe Eddins, author of HB 1657, said the programs are optional for school districts to offer and optional for children to attend. The measure now goes to the Senate.

• The Senate approved HB 1657 (see above).
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• The Senate adjourned for the weekend to continue budget negotiations and conference committee work. It will reconvene at 10:30 a.m. on Monday.

• According to the Oklahoma Department of Human Services, the number of welfare recipients has fallen to its lowest level in 16 years. In March, the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) caseload dropped to 25,000. Officials are attributing the decline to Oklahoma's improved economy and the welfare reform initiative enacted by the 1995 Legislature.
  
  
• The majority of Oklahoma college and university graduates are staying in Oklahoma to work and advance their education, according to a new report from the State Regents. The study indicates approximately 75 percent remain in Oklahoma, despite concerns that Oklahoma has been undergoing a "brain drain" with masses leaving the state to find opportunities elsewhere.

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