With a little over two weeks of the legislative session left, the final days are dominated with budget talks, vetoes, and more.
This week also saw the 10th annual Muslim Day at the Capitol on Monday and Wednesday was Hispanic Cultural Day that also featured a rally protesting the recent signing of HB 4156 that will target immigrants with a new law of “impermissible occupation”.
People rally outside the capitol in solidarity against HB 4156.
Capitol days such as these are crucial to get communities involved with local advocacy, and to show them that our capitol is and always will be the “People’s House” no matter how much hateful, targeted legislation is passed every year. Every single person in this state deserves to take up the space they need and deserve so that our democracy truly works for all communities.
Although regular floor hearings and committee meetings are done for this session, there is still plenty of politics left for the final stages of the bill process. Some might be sent to special conference committees if they have amendments or lack a title, and some might make it back on to a floor to get a veto override vote.
Here are some of the final bills floating around that we are tracking:
SB 36, by Sen. Nathan Dahm (SD 33, Broken Arrow) and Rep. Kevin West (HD 54, Moore), this bill aims to permit chaplains to operate as school counselors in schools without any certification requirements. Many interfaith groups have come out opposing this bill, as it continues to push the boundaries of the separation of church and state with funding being paid by the schools. It was passed off the House floor with amendments, so will need to get re-approved with the amendments by the Senate before it can get a review by the governor.
HB 1449 by Rep. Toni Hasenbeck (HD 65, Elgin) and Sen. Jessica Garvin (SD 43, Duncan) is in a similar situation as SB 36 on the House side. This “women’s bill of rights” claims to seek clarity on “both biological sexes and the manner in which they are treated in the state”. Bills of this nature only continue to create more harm and division in our state, while we continue to lead the nation in being the worst state for women. We need more support in healthcare, housing, and domestic violence prevention, not more definitions.
SB 1677 by Sen. Julie Daniels (SD 29, Bartlesville) and Rep. Denise Crosswhite-Hader (HD 41, Yukon) is another discriminatory bill that would prohibit the Department of Human Services from requiring parents to support policies that goes against “sincerely held religious beliefs”. This would put children who do not conform to a family’s (or state’s) ideal at risk of not being adopted or safely cared for. Due to rejected amendments, this bill is set to go to a Senate Conference committee.
HB 1105 by Rep. Charles McCall (HD 22, Atoka) and Sen. Julie Daniels (SD 29, Bartlesville), is another bill set to go through a Senate Conference committee. Conference committees are notoriously unsuccessful for bills to survive out of. This bill would be extremely detrimental to the initiative petition process, one of the last facets for constituents to be directly involved in state democracy. It would raise the filing fee, require background checks for signatures, and increase the window for objections on state questions.
SB 729 by Sen. Darrell Weaver (SD 24, Moore) and Rep. Mark McBride (HD 53, Moore) would re-establish the “Oklahoma-Israel Exchange Commission” with an office in Jerusalem to continue to foster Oklahoma’s connection with Israel. Currently, Israel has spent the last seven months bombing civilians in Gaza and carrying out a genocide against the Palestinian people. Not to mention decades of apartheid policies and ethnic cleansing prior. Oklahomans deserve to have their money serve the people at home and not brutality across the globe. The bill is waiting to be sent to the governor.