By Rep. Joe Dorman

I had the opportunity to visit with the folks over in Apache on Friday at the Rattlesnake Festival. I had the opportunity to film a portion of the activities for Wild Oklahoma, a local wildlife show that is broadcast on Sunday mornings. If you get the chance, check it out on their website for the day it will air. Ron Orf put me in the snake pit once again this year and I was able to help him with one of the shows he put on for the public. I cannot begin to tell you how much fun this experience in and I appreciate the Rattlesnake Association for allowing me to participate each year. Read more…

DURANT, Okla. – Hello again, everyone! We have reached the point in the 2009 session where every bill still alive has passed both the Senate and the House of Representatives, albeit in different forms.

Before any bill can go to the governor, it must pass both the Senate and House in identical form. The remaining four weeks of session will be devoted to hammering out those final versions.

The most important job of the Legislature each year – writing the state budget – is largely undone. This, to me, is very strange as we face a significant budget shortfall.

Cuts will be unavoidable; the challenge is to ensure the cuts do not unduly impact state services on which Oklahomans depend. I certainly hope during the final four weeks of session, more attention must be given to what should have been “job number one.” Read more…

Official English Approved – The Final Month of Session

By Rep. Jason Murphey

Last week marked yet another deadline by which the House of Representatives and Senate had to take action on legislation or risk having the legislation not be heard this year.

Much debate centered around whether or not the Senate would approve a bill that would allow the people to vote on making English Oklahoma’s official language. Due to the insistence of the leadership of the House of Representatives, House author Representative Randy Terrill and Senate author Senator Anthony Sykes, House Resolution 1042 was approved shortly before the Senate’s deadline.

It appears there was a significant amount of negotiating between the advocates of a “common English” proposal and those who wanted an “official English” distinction. In the end, the compromise proposal states that all official actions of the state shall be conducted in English, except as required by federal law. The proposal would not limit the use, study or encouragement of American Indian languages and also says that an agency cannot be sued if it cannot provide materials in a language other than English.

The Senate approved the proposal by a vote of 44-2 and it now returns to the House where the House will have the option of accepting the Senate amendments sending the proposal to a vote of the people. I would have preferred a stronger version of the bill. Read more…