The Latest in Oklahoma: April 12, 2024 Update
A&A Advocates
Attorneys for Gov. Kevin Stitt doubled down on the governor’s appointive authority last week, with new documents filed in a lawsuit between Stitt and Attorney General Gentner Drummond, regarding the ongoing dispute between Drummond and Stitt over the governor’s authority to appoint sitting agency heads to his Cabinet. However, Drummond answered the governor’s complaints with a terse six-page response that left little to the imagination. While the court case continues, the governor’s office has made several appointments that require the “advise and consent” of the Oklahoma Senate.
Forty-four House members seeking reelection did not draw an opponent after last week’s three-day legislative filing period — resulting in Oklahoma’s third consecutive general election cycle in which most Oklahoma voters won’t elect their state lawmakers in November. Among the 44 House members reelected without opposition is the chamber’s new leader, Speaker Pro Tempore Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow.
Inspired by Texas, House Speaker Charles McCall and Senate President Pro Tem Greg Treat will introduce new legislation next week to address “impermissible occupation,” or “when an individual willfully and without permission enters and remains in the State of Oklahoma without having first obtained legal authorization to enter the United States.” Anyone in the state illegally would face a misdemeanor and a $500 fine on the first offense. The violator would have 72 hours to leave, then following offenses become a felony with a fine of up to $1,000 and up to two years in prison.
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond announced a lawsuit on Wednesday against Texas-based natural gas companies Enable and Symmetry Energy Solutions LLC, alleging the companies helped bid up the price of natural gas to the highest levels in history during a winter storm in February 2021 – reaping billions of dollars in extra profit from their wrongful conduct and the resulting surge in prices during the storm.
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House Rules Committee Chair Tom Cole, R-Okla., was tapped to serve as the House Appropriations Committee chair on Tuesday, replacing Rep. Kay Granger (R-Texas) who recently announced she is relinquishing her gavel early.
The Office of Attorney General Gentner Drummond is reviewing 101 applications for the first distribution of grant funds from the Oklahoma Opioid Abatement Board. The application process for $23 million in funds to fight Oklahoma’s opioid crisis ran from December through March. A list of applicants can be viewed here.
Governor Stitt announced the finalization of a motor vehicle compact with the Choctaw Nation on Monday. The motor vehicle compact with the Choctaw Nation can be read in full here.
“They might seem insignificant, but these definitional changes would transform many businesses—including employers with self-funded health benefit plans and mail-order pharmacy programs—into PBM. This will drive up operating costs that will be passed on to employees and consumers alike. In addition, I have grave concerns about the fact this bill would grant yet another state agency unfettered access to detailed data, including protected health information, held by private Oklahoma businesses.” – Gov. Kevin Stitt about his veto of Senate Bill 1390 on Monday