Families can request remains after stillbirth, fetal death
Legislation was signed April 22 to better protect the rights of grieving families after the loss of a pregnancy.
Sen. Adam Pugh, R-Edmond, and Rep. Marilyn Stark, R-Bethany, are the authors of Senate Bill 647. Lily’s Law extends to all families, regardless of when a stillbirth or fetal death occurs, the right to request their child’s remains for private burial.
Pugh said the legislation was requested by a mother, who after losing two children to miscarriage, discovered through her work for a pregnancy and infant loss ministry that many families are not aware of their right to request their children’s remains.
“Under current law, health care providers only have to let those families who suffer a loss after 12 weeks of their right to request their child’s remains. Losing a child at any stage of pregnancy is heartbreaking for families, but can be even worse when medical facilities dispose of the infant’s remains without first checking with the parents,” Pugh said. “Given that around 80% of pregnancy losses occur within the first trimester, Lily’s Law will ensure that families experiencing a loss have the opportunity to properly grieve and honor their child however they choose.”
Lily’s Law defines fetal death and stillbirth and subjects birthing centers and medical facilities to the same requirement to maintain a written policy for the disposition of a child’s remains from such an event as licensed hospitals.
The bill is named in honor of an Oklahoma family who lost their daughter, Lily Gianna, early in the first trimester in 2012. The couple was unaware they could ask for their daughter’s remains and the facility did not offer the option. Had they known, they said they would have chosen to recover Lily’s remains and bury her. The new law will go into effect November 1, 2021.
New law requires civility at public meetings
A bill aimed at promoting civility during local government meetings has been signed into law.
Senate Bill 403, by Sen. Brenda Stanley, R-Midwest City, and Rep. Robert Manger, R-Oklahoma City, was approved by Gov. Kevin Stitt on April 21.
SB 403 expands existing law which makes it illegal for anyone to willfully disturb, interfere or disrupt state business to include local government meetings held by school boards, county and municipal governments.
“While people have a right and even a responsibility to participate in their government, that doesn’t include disrupting those meetings so that the business of the people cannot be conducted,” Stanley said. “I want to thank my fellow members, my House author, Representative Manger, and Governor Stitt for their support of this legislation.”
Under SB 403, those convicted of violating this statute would be guilty of a misdemeanor and would face up to a year in the county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.
SB 403 took effect immediately after the governor signed the measure.
Bill passes Senate to aid domestic violence victims
Legislation to help law enforcement better aid victims of domestic violence has now been approved by both chambers and will next be considered by Gov. Kevin Stitt.
Senate Bill 17, by Sen. Kay Floyd, D-Oklahoma City, and Rep. Carol Bush, R-Tulsa, received overwhelming bipartisan support from legislators. The measure enhances Oklahoma’s Lethality Assessment Protocol (LAP) used by law enforcement investigating domestic violence crimes.
The Lethality Assessment is a series of questions officers use to determine how dangerous the situation is for victims of domestic violence. Depending on the results of the assessment, the protocol also ensures victims receive information about available resources, including shelters and other assistance.
Floyd said the assessment was created a few years ago by Janet Wilson of the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. It was the first in the country and considered groundbreaking. In 2014, Floyd, then a member of the House of Representatives, passed the first legislation in the nation enacting the use of LAP statewide, along with her coauthor, former Sen. David Holt, now Mayor of Oklahoma City.
SB 17 was approved unanimously by the Senate in February and was approved by the House on April 22 on a vote of 93-1.
Bill would protect victims from social media harassment
A measure to better protect victims of domestic violence from harassment through social media was approved April 22 in the Senate.
Sen. Jessica Garvin, R-Duncan, is the principal Senate author of the measure and said House Bill 1007 is needed to bring victim protection laws in line with new technologies and communication platforms.
“Sadly, domestic violence is all-too-common in our state, and those who prey on others will use whatever means they can to break down their victims — be it physical, emotional or mental,” Garvin said. “While, for the most part, our laws address the physical and emotional abuse victims face, this update is needed to stop the harassment and mental games being played on social media to further terrorize and hurt victims.”
HB 1007 expands “harassment” as it relates to the Domestic Abuse Reporting Act to include social media postings or other electronic communications that includes abusive and threatening messages, impersonating another person, posting sensitive or embarrassing information without a person’s consent, and the creation of fake accounts to acquire private information with the intent to threaten or cause humiliation to someone.
HB 1007 further provides that there will be a rebuttable presumption that a statement appearing on a social media posting or other electronic communication attributed to someone testifying is the statement of that individual.
The presumption may be rebutted by a credible denial under oath. The measure will now return to the House for consideration of Senate amendments.
Bills protecting state worker leave signed into law
Two bills protecting the leave of state employees during governor-declared state emergencies are now law.
Sen. Frank Simpson, R-Springer, authored the bills after learning of the hundreds of hours of annual and compensatory leave accrued during the pandemic, and state employees not being able or allowed to take it by the end of the year.
SB 282 allows, during an emergency declaration, a temporary increase in accumulation limits for state employee annual leave, which may carry over to the end of the fiscal year in which the emergency declaration ends. Under current law, state employees can accrue a set amount of annual leave based on their years of service. Once the cap is surpassed, the employee has until December 31 to use any excess annual leave or it is lost. For state employees with less than five years of service, the limit is 240 hours. Those with five or more years of service can accrue up to 480 hours.
SB 333 allows for the same increase and carry over for state employee compensatory time. Rules for comp time are set by each state agency in line with the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. Both bills will go into effect November 1, 2021.
—Compiled by Tim Farley, Southwest Ledger