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Capitol News Update     

 

January 14, 2013


 

               Looking at what legislative leaders and the governor are saying in advance of the upcoming session, you can see what the main theme will be.  Oklahoma continues its quest to be a "business friendly" state.  Well, that's not quite accurate.  We want to be the "business friendliest" state.  Business friendly is generally defined by our leaders as taking as much cost as possible out of doing business.  So, anything state government can do to make it cheaper to do business in Oklahoma is considered "business friendly."

 

                  As in the recent past, the two cost items that will get attention this year are taxes and workers' compensation premiums.  As I've said before, I've been watching, and sometimes participating in, workers' comp. reform for a long time.  Since I've been watching it the legislature has worked with medical costs, attorney costs, benefits and process.  But they have kept the basic structure the same.  That is, we have a workers' comp. court appointed by the governor to adjudicate contested cases.   The effort this year will be to change the structure to an administrative system with cases being resolved through an administrative process reserving court as a last resort.  Proponents say the administrative system is less costly. 

 

                  The other item you can look for is some sort of tax cut.  It's been difficult the past couple of years to do much with tax cuts because of the bad economy.  But with a small revenue increase in the offing, and the economy looking better, it will be almost impossible to get through the year without some sort of tax cut.  The theory is that businesses like to locate in low tax states.  Our models seem to be Kansas that had a large tax cut in its last session pushed by Governor Sam Brownback and Texas that has no income tax. 

                  There are plenty of other issues, but the two the legislature will likely not adjourn without addressing are workers' comp. and taxes.  Those are the priorities.    

Forging a new path: Shannon calls for reforms, conservative policy

By M. Scott Carter

The Journal Record

OKLAHOMA CITY - The new speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives said Tuesday he would push for more changes to the state's workers' compensation system, new tax reform and a conservative policy that would make Oklahoma prosperous.

Speaking from the well of the House, Lawton Republican T.W. Shannon said he cared deeply about the future of Oklahoma. Shannon, 34, was chosen as House speaker in a 69-28 vote over Del City Democrat Scott Inman.

"It all comes down to one thing and one thing only," Shannon said. "Will our children inherit a more prosperous and civilized Oklahoma or one that is less? That one single issue drives me more than any other."

Dependence on government, he said, leads to poverty, addiction and human failure.

"If I am committed to anything in my life, I am on a passionate quest to see people rise to a new level of prosperity, success and dignity," Shannon said. "But it will only come when individuals rise to the challenge of personal responsibility and hard work, and replace an attitude of entitlement with an attitude of gratitude."

Oklahoma, Shannon said, was one of the top states in the country for job growth and more Oklahomans are working, he said.

"The best social program in the world is a high-paying job," he said.

Shannon said state leaders need to continue to focus on pro-business incentives that will boost the economy, create jobs and foster strong families. He said the first way to do that was with additional changes to the workers' compensation system.

"We must have a system that heals injured workers so they can get back on the job without punishing the businesses that provide those very same jobs," he said.

The speaker also called for new changes to the state tax code.

Citing the state's low overall tax burden, Shannon said the state should bring its tax code in line with bordering states that have lower income tax rates.

"And that doesn't take into account corporate income taxes, nor the franchise tax, both of which cost us jobs," he said. "It's time for a responsible tax reform package that helps families keep more of their hard-earned money and helps business create more jobs."

Shannon also called for continued efforts to reform the state's pension system, reducing regulation on small businesses and an investment in state infrastructure.

While most of his speech centered on state policy, Shannon also had harsh word for federal lawmakers. He said Americans today live in a country that has an out-of-control federal government that is bankrupt both financially and morally.

"As a result, we have few freedoms and we pay more in taxes than we should," he said. "There is little hope that these will change under our president and our current Congress."

With legislative leaders now in place, lawmakers will return to the Capitol on Feb. 5 for the first session of the 54th Oklahoma Legislature.

Lawmakers study Arkansas workers' comp system

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Two Republican state senators from Oklahoma are visiting Arkansas this week to study that state's administrative workers' compensation system.

Senate Judiciary Chairman Sen. Anthony Sykes and Sen. Josh Brecheen both were in Arkansas on Wednesday to learn how that state successfully lowered its workers' compensation premium rates.

Republican state leaders in Oklahoma have said reforming the state's workers' compensation system will be one of their top goals this year, and lawmakers are considering shifting from the current court-based system to an administrative model like the system in Arkansas.

Sykes says Oklahoma has one of the costliest workers' compensation systems in the country, while Arkansas' premium rates are below the national median. Brecheen says Oklahoma is one of only three states that use a legal system for work-related injuries.

Hearing reset in ex-Okla. lawmakers' bribery case

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - A court hearing for two former Oklahoma lawmakers charged with bribery has been postponed.

Former state Rep. Randy Terrill of Moore and former state Sen. Debbe Leftwich of Oklahoma City were scheduled to be in Oklahoma County District Court Wednesday to be formally bound over for trial. But an online court docket said the hearing has been postponed until Feb. 22.

Prosecutors say Terrill, a Republican, offered Leftwich, a Democrat, an $80,000-a-year job at the state medical examiner's office in 2010 in exchange for Leftwich's promise not to seek re-election so a Republican member of the House could run for the seat.

Terrill was chairman of a House subcommittee responsible for the agency's budget at the time. Officials testified that they felt pressured to hire Leftwich although they felt she was not qualified.

School safety commission appointed

By M. Scott Carter

The Journal Record

OKLAHOMA CITY - Twenty-two people - including Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater and the former president of the University of Central Oklahoma - have been named as members of the Oklahoma Commission on School Security.

Chaired by Lt. Gov. Todd Lamb, a former Secret Service agent, the commission has been charged with developing better school safety procedures. The group was created after the December shootings of 26 people in Newtown, Conn. Twenty of those shot and killed were elementary school children.

In a media statement announcing the commission, Lamb said the group wants to ensure a safe learning environment for children.

"Partnering with legislative leaders to create the Oklahoma Commission on School Security was a much-needed, proactive decision," Lamb said.  "Our children deserve safe and secure learning environments and this commission is committed to doing just that. Each commission member brings experience from their respective field that will generate ideas and solutions to enhance school security."

The announcement for the group came as one state lawmaker said he would host a summit in Rush Springs to discuss ways to make public schools safer.

On Thursday, state Rep. Joe Dorman issued a statement saying he wanted to see more educators attending the meeting in light of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Connecticut and shooting at Taft Union High School in California.

Dorman said because of the shootings and an incident in Bartlesville where a would-be shooter was apprehended, he would like to see more educators step up and become involved in the discussion about classroom and school safety.

 "I would hope that any educator who is paying attention to the news these days is becoming concerned and would want to participate in Saturday's discussion," Dorman, D-Rush Springs, said. "We cannot ignore the dangers our students and educators face. I have only received RSVPs from a handful of educators and am frankly disappointed."

Dorman said lawmakers would consider several new pieces of legislation on school safety, all sparked by the Newtown shootings.

Other members of the commission include the following:

* Roger Webb, former president, University of Central Oklahoma and former commissioner, state Department of Public Safety.

* Retired Maj. Gen. Lee Baxter, state Board of Education member.

* Ryan Brown, associate professor of psychology, University of Oklahoma.

* Lyn Watson, Oklahoma City School Board, District 1.

* Randy Holley, superintendent, Shattuck Public Schools.

* Gary Quinn, superintendent, Bartlesville Public Schools.

* Kevin Burr, superintendent, Sapulpa Public Schools.

* Mike McClaren, superintendent, Claremore Public Schools.

* Trice Butler, principal, Wilburton Middle School.

* Sharon Brady, assistant director of special education, Lawton Public Schools.

* Tammy Will, teacher, Morrison Public Schools.

* Eleanor Goetzinger, behavior specialist, Oklahoma City Public Schools.

* Jerry McConnell, director of facility operations, Moore Norman Technology Center.

* Kim Carter, director, Oklahoma Office of Homeland Security.

* Brandon Clabes, Midwest City chief of police.

* Capt. Tim Dorsey, Edmond Police Department.

* Darry Stacy, Cleveland County commissioner, District 2.

* Gary Rudick, chief of police, Tulsa Public Schools Campus Police.

* Maj. James Blocker, director of EMS, Oklahoma City Fire Department.

* Gary Armbruster, principal architect, MA+ Architecture.

* Phil Armstrong, assistant pastor, Metropolitan Baptist Church, Tulsa.

Senator proposes 2.95-pct. income tax rate

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - An Oklahoma lawmaker has filed legislation to replace Oklahoma's income tax structure with a flat tax of 2.95 percent.

The proposal by state Sen. Patrick Anderson, R-Enid, is Senate Bill 240 and would eliminate all income tax deductions, credits and exemptions.

Anderson said his plan is simple, fair and revenue-neutral, and that there would be no loss of revenue to state government. He said the plan would treat all state taxpayers equally and give Oklahoma the lowest income tax rate in the nation among the 43 states that impose an income tax.

Seven states - Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Utah - already have a flat income tax.

A plan supported by Gov. Mary Fallin to cut and eventually eliminate the state's 5.25-percent rate failed last year.

Ex-Okla. Senate leader gets probation for bribery

By Tim Talley

Associated Press

OKLAHOMA CITY - The powerful former leader of the Oklahoma Senate was sentenced to five years' probation Tuesday after being convicted of taking a $12,000 bribe in exchange for his influence on legislation.

Former Senate President Pro Tem Mike Morgan had faced up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He was convicted on a federal bribery charge in March, though jurors acquitted him of related extortion and mail fraud counts and couldn't reach a verdict on other counts.

U.S. District Judge Robin Cauthron issued the sentence and declined to impose a fine on Morgan, 57, a lawyer from Stillwater.

Some of Morgan's family members and friends in the courtroom whispered "Yes" as Cauthron announced the sentence. Afterward, a teary-eyed Morgan embraced them as many wept.

"I love you all," Morgan said. "God bless my family, my friends. They believed in me. They stood by me."

Morgan said he intends to appeal his conviction and repeated assertions he has made since he was indicted by a federal grand jury in 2011 that he did not commit a crime.

"I am very relieved that the judge has granted probation," Morgan said. "She understands the weakness of this case. I am innocent."

In sentencing Morgan, Cauthron noted that he was originally charged with 63 counts but convicted of only one, and she said much of the evidence produced by federal prosecutors was suspect.

"You were charged with a lot. You were convicted of very little," Cauthron told Morgan as he stood at the defense table next to defense attorney Jack Fisher.

The judge also indicated that she was impressed by the more than 400 letters she received requesting leniency for Morgan. Among those writing on Morgan's behalf were three former governors, current and former lawmakers, tribal leaders and other elected officials.

"I think the letters probably spoke volumes," Morgan said afterward.

Prosecutors left the courtroom without comment.

The grand jury indictment accused the Democrat of taking $250,000 from energy development company Tenaska Inc.; $141,000 from Dilworth Development Co., which wanted to build a landfill in northern Oklahoma; and $12,000 from Silver Oak Senior Living, which sought to limit the Health Department's regulation of assisted-living centers.

Morgan insisted that the money was payment for legal fees for work he did for the companies and that he never sacrificed his "independent judgment" when voting on legislation. Prosecutors claimed that Morgan did no legal work for the companies.

Jurors weren't so sure. They convicted Morgan only on a single bribery count that accused him of taking the $12,000 from the assisted-living center in exchange for attempting to influence legislation that would have eased regulations on the state's nursing home industry.

All charges against a co-defendant, lobbyist William Andrew Skeith, were dismissed after prosecutors rested their case. The judge also dismissed half of the counts against another co-defendant, attorney N. Martin Stringer, and the jury acquitted him on the rest.

Morgan had asked Cauthron to sentence him to probation, arguing that his years of public service and devotion to the state and its people merited leniency.

Fisher said the case had already cost Morgan, who accumulated more than $200,000 in legal bills and will likely have to surrender his license to practice law.

"His life has been forever changed," Fisher said.

But Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Williams urged Cauthron to impose "a meaningful sentence of imprisonment," arguing that the bribery conviction was "a serious crime" that merited time behind bars.

"This type of arrangement is a serious problem," Williams said.

Governor, others sued over Youth Expo money

By Tim Talley

Associated Press

OKLAHOMA CITY - An Oklahoma lawmaker is suing Gov. Mary Fallin and other state officials demanding that they recover more than $2 million in state tax dollars given to a private, nonprofit livestock show in what the lawmaker says was an "informal" deal that was never approved by the Legislature.

State Rep. Mike Reynolds, R-Oklahoma City, filed the lawsuit more than two months after he hand-delivered letters to Fallin and the other officials demanding that they recover the money. Reynolds' attorney, Andrew Karim, said Thursday that Reynolds filed the lawsuit after he received no response to his letter, which was signed by 146 Oklahoma taxpayers, including Reynolds.

"When the demand letter went out and nothing was done after a period of time, it's up to the taxpayers to assume the position of the state and seek to recover the money that was unlawfully paid out of the state treasury," Karim said.

The letters were delivered on Oct. 31 to the offices of 15 elected and appointed state officials, including legislative leaders and statewide officials, who were involved in the appropriation and distribution of state money to the Youth Expo.

"They determined not to even contact us to tell us if they were or weren't going to do anything," Reynolds said.

The lawsuit is the second Reynolds has filed challenging the Youth Expo money and is part of an effort by Reynolds and other conservative lawmakers to challenge what they claim is the inappropriate allocation of state dollars to private entities. Reynolds and state Rep. Mike Ritze, R-Broken Arrow, filed a separate lawsuit in September that alleges allocations to the Youth Expo are unconstitutional.

The most recent lawsuit, filed in Oklahoma County District Court on Tuesday, demands that the officials recover $2 million allocated to the Youth Expo in August. It also demands recovery of $167,750 in state tax dollars that was allocated to the organization in 2010 and a $175,000 allocation in 2011.

The demand letters and lawsuit were filed under so-called "qui tam" guidelines that allow private citizens to initiate legal action against a person or company that allegedly violates the law in connection with a government contract.

The lawsuit alleges that Fallin and legislative leaders authorized the Youth Expo allocation as part of a "non-public, informal agreement among themselves" in conjunction with a contract between the Youth Expo and the state Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry. The lawsuit alleges that the allocation was never authorized by the Legislature.

"At no time relevant herein did the Oklahoma Legislature make an appropriation of public monies for Youth Expo," it states. "Neither did the Legislature specifically make Youth Expo the object of any appropriation."

The lawsuit states that state tax dollars are constitutionally dedicated for public purposes, not private entities.

"The taxes levied and collected during the times relevant herein were collected for public purposes and not for the private purposes of Youth Expo," the lawsuit states.

Spokespersons for Fallin did not immediately return telephone calls seeking comment, but they have indicated in the past that she supports the Youth Expo appropriation and that the organization's activities support the mission of the Agriculture Department.

Agriculture Secretary Jim Reese has said the allocation was made in accordance with guidelines that authorize a public-private partnership between the state and private entities to help farmers and ranchers promote agriculture-related endeavors.

The Youth Expo's website states that it is the largest youth event in the state. The livestock show is scheduled for March 16-26. 

Have a good week.  Give me a call at 918.671.6860 if I can be of help in any way

                  Steve Lewis

 
This Week's Meetings


 

2012 DEADLINES
 

This Week's News
Speaker Shannon
Lawmakers Study Arkansas Workers' Comp
Hearing Reset in Bribery Case
School Safety Commission
Senator Proposes New Income Tax Rate
Morgan Gets Probation
Governor Sued