Legislative filings reveal lawmakers' moods but not necessarily their direction

Those issues are quite conspicuous among the 3,000-plus bills and resolutions offered up this year by the state’s lawmakers. Examples include measures to eliminate voting machines and essentially cancel all current voter registrations, authorize drive-through liquor and medical marijuana sales, and virtually outlaw any of the mandates considered most effective in slowing the spread of COVID-19.

But volume and tone are not always the best gauge of legislative direction. Language requested in December and January often falls silent once the real work of legislating begins in February.

By April and May, when the Legislature is drawing to a close, what seemed important six months earlier may be forgotten entirely.

One overarching issue not likely to go away — because it never does — is the power struggle among lawmakers, the governor and local governments.

The primary field of battle this session, aside from the budget, figures to be public health, including handling of the coronavirus epidemic and the governor’s attempt to push through an overhaul of Medicaid despite many lawmakers’ objections.

Many measures filed for this session would restrict to the point of eliminating the governor and local governments from imposing emergency public health measures, including mask and vaccination mandates and the closing of businesses and places of worship.

Meanwhile, Gov. Kevin Stitt continues his efforts to concentrate more power in the chief executive’s office. In that vein, House Bill 2504, by Rep. Chris Kannady, R-Oklahoma City, would essentially give the governor control of the now-independent Tulsa and Oklahoma County Health Departments.

The Tulsa County Health Department has frequently run afoul of Stitt by not always hewing to the administration’s line on COVID-19.

At the same time, local governments have been fuming for several years about the Legislature’s growing encroachment on their turf, on issues ranging from oil and gas drilling to the minimum wage and now public health.

As is often the case, this year’s filings also reflect the struggle for direction and leadership of the Oklahoma Republican Party. With the party’s control of state government at or near an all-time high, history suggests the GOP’s most intense fights are likely to be internal rather than with the few Democrats left in the Capitol.

Arguably, the divisions can be seen in some of the 70-odd election-related measures. Among Republicans, they range from Sen. Adam Pugh’s proposal to add three days of early voting (SB 440) to Rep. Sean Roberts’ bills to ban voting machines (HB 2846) and require every Oklahoma voter to re-register before the next general election (HB 2847).

The largest block of legislation — more than 800 bills — is literally about nothing. These are House “shell” bills, so-called because they consist of titles and not much else. They are essentially spares, bills that can be pulled off the shelf and amended with substantive language as needed.

Of the remaining 2,200 or so, more than 100 deal with common education. That’s not surprising, since public school spending accounts for around 40% of state appropriated dollars.

Probably the most high-profile common education issue this session is the oversight of virtual charter schools and the alleged misuse of state funds by the largest of them, Epic.

Several bills addressing the matter have been filed, but the language that ultimately advances, if any does, could well show up in a shell bill over the next few weeks.

Many education bills deal with teacher training and accreditation, while some target instruction deemed “divisive” or discriminatory. Roberts is proposing advertising on school buses, an idea shot down several years ago.

Elsewhere, lawmakers continue to deal with the state’s liberalization of alcohol and medical marijuana laws over the past several years.

Most alcohol measures address gaps in the state’s rapidly evolving laws — and its rapidly evolving alcohol industry. This includes the appearance of several small distilleries, a business virtually unknown in the state a decade ago.

Some bills seem to be at least partially motivated by COVID-19 containment measures. These include House Bill 2868, by Rep. Kevin Wallace, R-Wellston, which would allow for drive-through spirits sales under some circumstances, and HB 2122, by Rep. Marcus McEntire, R-Duncan, which provides for take-out mixed drinks.

Medical marijuana proposals include drive-through and home delivery provisions, and transfer of the Medical Marijuana Authority from the Health Department to the Alcoholic Beverage Laws Enforcement Commission.

Perhaps the most ambitious undertaking in this area is HB 1961, by Rep. Scott Fetgatter, R-Okmulgee. It proposes a comprehensive medical marijuana framework to be voted on by the people as a legislative referendum that would not be part of the state constitution.

With Democrats’ bills included, the range of proposed election law reforms is pretty broad, from automatic voter registration to old-fashioned voter suppression.

Most seem to have been inspired by last year’s presidential election, but few appear to address actual issues in Oklahoma’s voting system. One idea that seems to have fairly broad support is modest lengthening of the state’s 2½-day early in-person absentee voting period.

House and Senate committees begin reviewing bills on Tuesday. If history is a guide, more than half the bills and resolutions will never get any further.

At least not this year.

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Upping minimum wage, protecting gun rights among bills filed for Oklahoma’s 2021 legislative session