School board elections would move to November under bill moving through Oklahoma Senate

The Senate Rules Committee passed Senate Bill 762, by Senate Pro Tem Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City, by a vote of 12-1.

Treat said several schools have not been meeting in person due to the COVID-19 pandemic and that he has received constituent complaints indicating people do not know who to contact if they have concerns. He said that often the constituent does not get a return phone call.

“We all have to be accountable,” said Treat, who explained that the measure would let parents hold board members accountable.

“We have experienced unparalleled dissatisfaction with school boards,” he said.

He said voter turnout in school board elections is low, even though school board members should be the closest elected officials to the people.

He said a school board post is the most important office but gets undervalued. He said a shift to a November election, when more elections are on the ballot, would increase voter engagement.  

Shawn Hime, Oklahoma State School Boards Association executive director, noted that school board members are unpaid volunteers.

They worked tirelessly over the last year to ensure that students could continue learning in a safe environment, he said.

“They (school board members) have earned a thank you for their service, not legislation that seeks to punish them for making difficult decisions during a global pandemic,” he said.

Hime does not think changing the timing of school board elections is necessary, adding that a move to November would encourage partisanship for offices that are about children and not politics.

“Just two years ago, we worked collaboratively with legislators to align school board elections with municipal elections, and there’s no legitimate reason to make another change,” Hime said.

The panel also passed a bill that would require those circulating an initiative petition to list the fiscal impact on the state and indicate the source of the funds.

Senate Bill 947, by Sen. Paul Rosino, R-Oklahoma City, passed by a vote of 10-2.

He said backers of a successful state question to expand Medicaid knew there would be a cost, didn't define a funding process and “punted to the Legislature.”

Tulsa World editorial: Don't privatize Oklahoma's Medicaid system