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Capitol News Update     

 

September 2, 2013


 

                  Last week I happened to watch a complete, no interruptions, re-play of the "I have a dream" speech by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  I don't recall ever having watched it in its entirety before.  It was given on the centennial of the emancipation proclamation.  Early in the speech Dr. King declared the condition of Black America in 1963:

 

But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. So we have come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

 

                  Today, as many commentators have said, there's been remarkable progress for black Americans.  But for many Americans, regardless of race, little has changed.  America is still a vast ocean of material prosperity.  And there are still a growing number of people who are "languishing in the corners of American society" and who "find themselves an exile in their own land."  The litany of reasons is familiar, and solutions remain elusive. 

 

                  Well-intentioned people can reasonably disagree on the best way to bring these folks into the mainstream, or in the current political lexicon into "the middle class."  But one popular tendency is to look at those who find themselves left out of the American Dream and blame the victim.  Most of these folks didn't get a good start in life.  For those who did, it's hard to realize what those who didn't are up against.  I ran into another quote by author Piers Anthony that seems to apply:

 

One thing you who had secure or happy childhoods should understand about those of us who did not. We who control our feelings, who avoid conflicts at all costs, or seem to seek them. Who are hypersensitive, self-critical, compulsive, workaholic, and above all survivors. We are not that way from perversity, and we cannot just relax and let it go. We've learned to cope in ways you never had to.

 

                  But there are many who never learned to cope.  It's true that some who got a bad start in life, like Piers, made it anyway.  But as he makes clear, there's an internal price to pay that others don't see.  Reasonable, well-intentioned people with that experience don't want it for others.  Whatever our state can invest-which is a lot more than we're investing-to give kids a chance in life will pay off with fewer people languishing in the corners of society, exiled in their own land.  It's a matter of justice, and it's even good for business.

OBA exec defends JNC system

By M. Scott Carter

The Journal Record

OKLAHOMA CITY - Though a new poll, funded by a conservative think tank, said Oklahomans in large numbers support the direct election of appellate judges, the executive director of the Oklahoma Bar Association said the state's present system better protects the integrity of the judiciary.

Announced via a conference call, the new poll conducted by Republican pollster North Star Opinion Research said Oklahomans overwhelmingly support term limits for judges as well as the direct election of appellate judges.

"It's pretty remarkable there is such overwhelming support to set term limits for justices," said pollster Dan Judy. "The intensity is very strong."

According to the poll, which was conducted between June 17 and 19, 74 percent of Oklahoma's registered voters prefer election for members of the judiciary, while only 22 percent oppose the election. Four percent were undecided. The poll sampled 500 registered voters. Judy said researchers used live interviews and half of the sample included Oklahomans who used cellphones. He said the poll had a margin of error of 4.38 percent.

The survey comes on the heels of an opinion issued by the Oklahoma Supreme Court that overturned a 4-year-old law that made massive changes to the state's tort system. Following the ruling, some conservative groups, including the State Chamber of Oklahoma, complained that the high court had overstepped its authority in making the ruling.

"A clear majority of the court has shown an activist judicial mentality of expanding their role in determining the social, moral and legal norms for our state, rather than allowing the duly-elected representatives of the people to exercise that power," State Chamber CEO and President Fred Morgan wrote in an op-ed piece distributed by the chamber. "We should not allow legislating from the judicial bench."

Chris Bonneau, an associate professor of political science at the University of Pittsburgh, said the poll shows that judges and justices who are elected have more legitimacy with voters.

"In terms of our judicial system where justices are appointed then retained by election, the incumbents win overwhelmingly," he said. "These types of elections deprive voters of meaningful choice."

Having judges and justices identify with an ideology, he said, gives voters information about the judge. He said using a commission-style system, such as the one in Oklahoma, puts justices on the bench who are to the left of the governor and the voters.

"Currently the bench is composed with ideological outliers," he said.

By changing to direct election, Bonneau said the state would likely get justices on the bench who were more aligned with the governor and the general electorate. Although some experts had expressed concerns about injecting campaign money into the judiciary, Bonneau said he could find no examples of cases where campaign contributions influenced judicial decisions.

State records, however, counter Bonneau's claim.

In 1965 two justices of the Oklahoma Supreme Court, Napoleon Bonaparte Johnson and N.S. Corn, were impeached and removed from office after stories surfaced that the justices had accepted bribes in exchange for favorable rulings. A third justice, Earl Welch, resigned in the wake of charges that he, too, took bribes.

The scandal set the stage for a rewrite of the Oklahoma Constitution and sparked the creation of the Judicial Nominating Commission, a 15-member board charged with vetting judicial candidates and making recommendations to the governor. The commission was approved by voters during a statewide election.

Since that time, Oklahoma Bar Association Executive Director John Williams said, the state judiciary has remained scandal-free.

"Democracy only survives when you have a fair, stable system in place," Williams said.

Williams said changing from the current commission system to a system where justices were elected could bring in large amounts of outside money and political influence to the state's judiciary.

"The members of the bar and the public at large should always be concerned that we have a full, fair and independent judiciary," he said. "We must look at what brings the best results over time."

Members of the judiciary, Williams said, expect that sometimes their rulings will be controversial.

"It's an adversarial system, there are winners and there are losers," he said. "The framers of our constitution knew that judges would make individual decisions that could bring about unpopularity for the moment. But our judges, to have the best system possible, need to be free of those political whims."

Wilson tapped to head workers' comp commission

By M. Scott Carter

The Journal Record

OKLAHOMA CITY - The former CEO of Montgomery Bank has been named by Republican Gov. Mary Fallin as the first appointee to the commission designed to oversee the state workers' compensation system, the governor's office said this week.

Troy Wilson Sr., the retired CEO of Montgomery Bancorporation Inc., was chosen by Fallin to chair the Oklahoma Workers' Compensation Commission.

The commission was created by the Legislature this year under Senate Bill 1062, a landmark rewrite of the Oklahoma workers' compensation system. Under the bill, the state will move from a judicial-based system to an administrative system. The system would be overseen by three commissioners appointed by Fallin and subject to Senate approval. Each member of the commission would serve a six-year term. The terms would be staggered.

In addition to oversight of the system, the commission would appoint administrative law judges to hear all workers' compensation claims.

Republican legislative leaders said the new system will reduce the cost of workers' compensation insurance in Oklahoma and aid the state's economic development efforts.

"The biggest roadblock to a stronger economy in Oklahoma is our adversarial workers' compensation system," Senate President Pro Tempore Brian Bingman, R-Sapulpa, said this spring as legislation was being developed. "Worse yet, our adversarial system doesn't do a very good job of helping injured workers get the care they need to get healed and back to work. The system is designed to reward trial lawyers for dragging cases out and delaying outcomes as long as possible."

Fallin said Wilson would help bring balance to the system.

"Troy Wilson is a successful business owner and entrepreneur," the governor said in a media release announcing the appointment. "He knows that good businesses treat their workers - especially injured workers - fairly. He's also seen firsthand how skyrocketing workers' compensation costs can cut into a company's bottom line and stifle growth. These lessons will help to make Troy a balanced and experienced voice on the new Oklahoma Workers' Compensation Commission."

A graduate of the University of Oklahoma and a member of Leadership Oklahoma City's inaugural class in 1981, Wilson is a native of Blackwell.

Wilson worked from 1967 to 1980 for the Xerox Corp., serving as the Oklahoma branch manager for the company from 1972 to 1980. From 1980 to 1985, he was the president and owner of Business Unlimited Inc, a business brokerage organization with offices in Oklahoma City and Tulsa.

In 1985, Wilson left Oklahoma to head Montgomery Bank, a community bank with $900 million in assets. In 2006, he retired as CEO and became chairman of the board of Montgomery Bancorporation Inc.

Wilson was appointed by former Missouri Gov. John Ashcroft to serve on the White House Conference on Small Business. He also served as chairman of the Missouri Bankers Association, president of the United Methodist Men's Organization, and as a member of the board of directors for the Graduate School of Banking at Louisiana State University.

Fallin appoints press secretary

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Michael McNutt, a longtime Capitol reporter with The Oklahoman, will be joining Gov. Mary Fallin's staff as press secretary.

McNutt begins Sept. 6, joining a press team that includes Communications Director Alex Weintz and Deputy Press Secretary Alex Gerszewski.

McNutt has worked nearly 30 years for The Oklahoman, including eight years at the Capitol bureau. Before joining the Capitol bureau, he served as assistant news editor and assistant city editor. He has also worked in the newspaper's Enid bureau and for newspapers in Enid and Rolla, Mo.

McNutt is a St. Louis native who graduated from the University of Missouri School of Journalism.

Battle lines being drawn for special session

By M. Scott Carter

The Journal Record

OKLAHOMA CITY - Battle lines over changes in the state's tort system and, indeed, the special session itself, are being drawn this week as Republicans and Democrats return to the Capitol Tuesday.

Republican Gov. Mary Fallin recently issued an executive order calling the 149-member Oklahoma Legislature into special session beginning Tuesday. Republican legislative leaders said they expect to be in session for more than a week. Fallin called for the special session after the Oklahoma Supreme Court overturned a 2009 bill that rewrote the state's tort system.

Republican leaders said the session would be busy and brief.

"We have a great deal to work through," said state Sen. Kyle Loveless, R-Oklahoma City. "I expect it will take more than a week, but probably not two."

Democrats called the session a waste of time.

"Every taxpayer dollar is important," said state Rep. Scott Inman, D-Del City, House Democratic leader. "This Legislature couldn't find the money to give state troopers a pay raise. They couldn't find the money to properly fund our schools, which they knew were facing a shortfall from State Question 766. But they seemed to have no trouble finding the money for this special session, which will cost up to $300,000 for 10 days. That's the yearly salary for 10 starting teachers or 10 correctional officers whose professions face unprecedented funding shortfalls and serve the common good as much as the special interests behind the special session next week."

House Democrats, Inman said, believe that the governor should not have called a special session. However, since the session is a reality, Inman said there are issues more deserving of reconvening the Legislature than changing the tort system.

With the session set to begin Tuesday, legislative leaders said they'll have between 26 and 30 bills for members to review. Drafts of those bills are being circulated now, state Rep. Jeff Hickman, R-Fairview, said.

"We're just now getting the chance to review them," he said.

Early copies of the bills, obtained by The Journal Record, show a broad and diverse range of topics for lawmakers to consider. None of the bills have been filed or have been issued numbers.

However, the legislation does address several different areas of state law. One measure would prevent lawsuits against food handlers from residents diagnosed as obese. The measure, called the Common Sense Consumption Act, was written to prevent frivolous lawsuits against the manufacturers, handlers, sellers, marketers or advertisers of food products that comply with statutory and regulatory requirements.

Although no such lawsuits have been filed in Oklahoma, Loveless said the measure was necessary in case future legal action occurred.

"It puts up a sign that says they can't do that here," Loveless said. "It prevents it from ever occurring."

Other measures would tighten restrictions on class-action lawsuits, address school violence and limit liability for those engaged in agritourism.

Democrats said the entire package of bills was an insult to Oklahomans seeking justice in state courts.

"The process established for the special-interest special session is an insult to the Oklahomans seeking justice through the court system," Inman said in a media statement. "It's an insult to our colleagues here in the House who were not in office yet in 2009. Most importantly, it's an insult to the people of Oklahoma who expect our honesty and fidelity to the democratic process."

Hickman said lawmakers probably wouldn't be in a special session had the original legislation not been successful.

"I would assume, from what I have heard from the medical community, that apparently the original legislation had a positive impact," he said. "From the responses I'm getting and the big push to support the bills, if they hadn't had a positive impact we wouldn't be here. That was their intent."

Lawmakers will open the special legislative session on Tuesday at 1 p.m.

Longtime Democrat to run for superintendent

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - A longtime college professor and former Oklahoma Democratic Party chairman added his name Thursday to the growing list of candidates looking to unseat first-term Republican State Superintendent Janet Barresi.

Retired educator Ivan Holmes, 76, joins at least three other Democrats and a Republican who have announced plans to seek the education post in 2014.

"It's time for Oklahoma educators to take back its public schools and stop the influx of outside interest groups from discrediting and dismantling our public school system," Holmes said.

Holmes joins longtime education official Jack Herron of Norman, Bennington Superintendent Donna Anderson, and Peggs Superintendent John Cox in the race for the Democratic nomination. Several other Democratic candidates are reportedly eying the race, but have not filed formal paperwork with the Oklahoma Ethics Commission.

Barresi also is facing a primary challenge from fellow Republican Joy Hofmeister of Tulsa, a former state school board member appointed by Gov. Mary Fallin who resigned to run against Barresi.

Barresi, who was elected as part of a Republican wave in Oklahoma in 2010, has had a rocky first term that included highly publicized clashes with the state school board and resistance from local superintendents over several GOP-led education initiatives.

Holmes earned a bachelor's and master's degree in education from Oklahoma State University and a doctorate in education administration from the University of Tulsa. He taught at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah and also served a term on the Board of Regents for the Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical Colleges.

Special session bills to cover several topics

By M. Scott Carter

The Journal Record

OKLAHOMA CITY - Of the 31 bills written for next week's special session of the Oklahoma Legislature, about 15 will originate in the House of Representatives, with the remaining 16 coming from the Oklahoma Senate.

All of the bills carry the Legislature's Republican leaders - Senate President Pro Tempore Brian Bingman, R-Sapulpa, and House Speaker T.W. Shannon, R-Lawton - as their principal sponsors. Although other bills could be filed during the special session, the measures House and Senate members are reviewing now will bypass the normal committee review process and go immediately to floor action.

Spawned by a June ruling from the Oklahoma Supreme Court that threw out the 2009 law because of constitutional violations, the bills represent the Oklahoma Legislature's second run at a massive rewrite of the state's tort system.

In her call for the special session, Republican Gov. Mary Fallin urged lawmakers to write the measures in such a way to comply with the Oklahoma Constitution's single-subject rule.

The bills, which lawmakers saw during a review session on Aug. 30, cover several topics, including school safety, certification for class-action lawsuits, obesity and fast food.

Another measure would change the age requirements for vehicle occupants who were injured in accidents. Existing law allows evidence to be presented in a lawsuit, provided the occupant is under the age of 16. The new bill would remove that language.

Democrats continued to hammer the GOP about the need for the session, saying they haven't had enough time to review the legislation.

"With over a third of the Legislature being new since the overturned tort reform bill was enacted, it's unfortunate that the topics will only be given superficial attention in the five-day legislative session," said state Rep. Ben Sherrer, D-Chouteau. "We should instead wait until February, when the multiple subjects and issues can be fully vetted in the normally accepted legislative process. As a lawyer, I've found it somewhat embarrassing to be scolded by our Supreme Court for this Legislature's propensity to repeatedly pass unconstitutional legislation."

Other measures include the Livestock Activities Liability Act, a measure that would add new restrictions on attorneys involved in due process hearings, modifications to the Governmental Tort Claims Act and a bill that changes the reasons for suspension of public school students.

State Rep. Jeff Hickman, R-Fairview, said lawmakers are just now getting the opportunity to review the bills.

"They only just sent us the drafts of the language," he said. "So we're reading a lot of bills in a short amount of time."

Hickman said he was unclear if the measures would include emergency clauses. Under the Oklahoma Constitution a measure normally goes into effect 90 days after it is signed by the governor. However, bills with emergency clauses go into effect immediately.

Measures with emergency clauses, he said, require two votes: one on the language of the bill and a separate vote on the emergency clause.

"If the bills all have emergency clauses, then the leadership has to have the votes to pass them," Hickman said. "If those votes fail or if the emergency clauses aren't included, you're looking at December for the bills could go into effect. And by then, it's almost time for session again."

The First Extraordinary Session of the 53rd Oklahoma Legislature begins at 1 p.m. Tuesday.

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


 

 

 
This Week's News
OBA Exec Defends JNC System
Wilson Tapped to Head Workers' Comp
Fallin Appoints Press Secretary
Battle Lines Being Drawn
Longtime Democrat to Run for Superintendent
Special Session Bills to Cover Several Topics
 

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