LOFT Committee Holds First Meeting
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The newly established Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency (LOFT) held its first meeting this week in a packed committee room at the State Capitol.
During the 2019 legislative session, there was a huge push for government reform. As the Legislature’s new sub-agency tasked with budget accountability, LOFT will help usher in a new wave of fiscal transparency.
Senate Bill 1, authored by Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat and House Speaker Charles McCall, created LOFT to assist with achieving the Legislature’s duty of creating and establishing a budget each year. LOFT’s primary goal is to gather budgetary information from state agencies, study and investigate that data, and provide budget research to the Legislature. LOFT is also designed to advise budget-making decisions and give the Legislature more tools to analyze all state agency budgets.
LOFT was a priority recommendation of the OK2030 plan, and we thank President Pro Tem Treat and Speaker McCall for authoring this important piece of legislation, as well as Governor Kevin Stitt for his support and approval.
Click here
to learn more about other OK2030 reforms to promote Oklahoma’s fiscal stability and governance.
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OK2030 Holds Regional Forum in Durant; Next Forum Scheduled for August 22 in
Woodward
OK2030, the State Chamber Research Foundation’s business-led, strategic plan to put Oklahoma at the top of national rankings by the year 2030, kicked off their annual regional forums this week in Durant.
The State Chamber Research Foundation presented OK2030 at the Rural Economic Development Conference sponsored by the Choctaw Nation.
The attendees heard from Steve Hahn, President of AT&T Oklahoma and Chairman of the State Chamber’s Board of Directors, as well as Jennifer Lepard, Executive Director of the State Chamber Research Foundation.
As we move forward in 2019, we would love to hear your input and feedback on OK2030 policy goals and priorities. You can
click here
to share your feedback with us. We look forward to hearing from you!
The next regional forum is scheduled for Thursday, August 22 in Woodward. Details below:
Date:
Thursday, August 22, 2019
Location:
3401 Centennial Drive
Woodward, OK 73801
Schedule:
10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. OK2030 Regional Forum
12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. Networking Lunch
Registration:
Registration Deadline: Friday, August 16
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Federal Bill Could Bring Additional Infrastructure Funding
U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe is touting legislation meant to fix roads, highways, and bridges across the country–and in Oklahoma. The bill passed out of a Senate committee Tuesday.
America’s Transportation Infrastructure Act of 2019 would bring an additional $100 million in infrastructure funding for Oklahoma.
“We continue to make strides as a state on our infrastructure and roads and bridges, but there’s obviously still more to be done,” said Cordon DeKock, Vice President of Political Affairs for the State Chamber of Oklahoma.
Get the full story from
Fox 25.
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Fred Morgan: Oklahoma Named a "Judicial Hellhole"
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This month, the American Tort Reform Association (ATRA) named Oklahoma as a "
Judicial Hellhole.
"
That’s painful to read, but the truth sometimes hurts.
In its report, ATRA cited three reasons for the moniker: “the Oklahoma Supreme Court’s liability-expanding decisions,” the attorney general’s “expansive view of the state’s public nuisance law,” and the growing relationship between trial lawyers and Republican legislators.
From the perspective of the business community, this label comes as no surprise when we remember our state’s highest court overturned major legislative victories such as caps on non-economic damages and real tort reform. Plus, let’s not forget the attempts to slowly chip away at major workers’ compensation reforms, thereby increasing liability for businesses and workers’ compensation insurers.
But perhaps most concerning to the business community, and likely at the core of that dreaded nomen, is the inherent conflict of interest in Oklahoma’s broken Judicial Nominating Commission (JNC).
Under the JNC, a nonpartisan commission made up of lawyers and non-lawyers reviews applications to fill vacant judgeships and forwards the names of three applicants to the governor. From these, the governor appoints one person to serve for a six-year term. At the end of the term, the judge faces a retention election.
Created as a reaction to a corruption scandal in the 1960s, the JNC was supposed to create an unbiased way to select fair justices. Instead, we got a system that is predominantly influenced by lawyers who benefit from having justices on the state’s highest court consistently willing to expand business liability.
The Oklahoma Supreme Court’s job is to impartially interpret the state constitution and the laws passed by the Legislature. Unfortunately, the candidates selected by the JNC have become part of an increasingly activist judiciary–usurping the role of the Legislature, striking down laws they don’t like, and overusing the special law and single-subject provisions of the state constitution to fit their own personal biases.
Indeed, both constitutional and legislative reforms to our legal system are imperative. We saw progress this year with
House Bill 2366,
which will increase the pool of qualified candidates eligible for a seat on the state Supreme Court, but it’s obvious more changes are needed if we are going to get rid of this miserable label.
If we want to crawl out of the Judicial Hellhole, lawmakers should prioritize reforming our legal system next session.
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Policy Point: Oklahoma GDP Rises
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In a recent news release from the
Bureau of Economic Analysis
, between Quarter 4 of 2018 and Quarter 1 of 2019, Oklahoma was tied for 6th
across the nation
for the highest percent change in GDP at 3.9%. This is above the national average of 3.1%.
This is a huge accomplishment for the state. And, it helps us move forward to become a top state in the nation in terms of business climate and competitiveness.
To learn more about OK2030 and the different metrics for measuring business climate,
click here
.
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Don't Miss D.C. Fly-In; Registration Closes August 30!
You won’t want to miss this year’s Washington D.C. Fly-In featuring policy experts discussing trade and tariffs, 2020 elections, Medicaid expansion, cybersecurity, and much more! We’ll also hear from our Congressional delegation and enjoy exceptional networking at some of D.C.’s finest venues.
Registration will close on Friday, August 30, 2109. Don't miss out; register today!
Dates:
Monday, September 9 through Wednesday, September 11
Agenda:
Click here
for a sneak peek of this year’s agenda and amazing venues!
Registration:
Members: $150
Non-Members: $200
*Special Dinner: $200
*This optional event is not included in your registration fee and requires purchase of a separate ticket.
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Mark Your Calendars for These Events
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Washington, D.C. Fly-In: September 9-11
Registration for this event will close on Friday, August 30, 2019
Board of Directors Appreciation Golf Classic: September 25
Karsten Creek Golf Club, Stillwater
Event Sponsor Golf Classic: September 26
Karsten Creek Golf Club, Stillwater
Manufacturing Summit: October 28-29
Northeastern State University, Broken Arrow
Public Affairs Forum: December 11
National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, Oklahoma City
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PO Box 53217 | Oklahoma City, OK 73152
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