ELGIN - At noon on Monday, Feb. 3, the second session of the 57th legislature is scheduled to begin in the House Chamber with a State of State address from Governor Stitt. Information released from the Oklahoma State Legislature states, "A total of 1,361 House Bills, 16 House Joint Resolutions and four House Concurrent Resolutions were filed." The filing deadline for the upcoming session was Thursday, Jan. 16. Republican Representative, District 65, Toni Hasenbeck, said she filed a handful of bills by the deadline, hoping they will all move forward in the legislature to one day be signed into law by the governor.
HB 10704 MEAT CONSUMER BILL
Oklahoma agriculture producers may be pleased to discover that HB 10704 has been filed for upcoming review in the new session. The meat consumer bill is said to address concerns by keeping "our food supply safe" and letting consumers know that they are eating what is listed on the label. "Basically, only meat, on a hoof, that was once alive, will be labeled as meat in Oklahoma," Toni explained. "It is to protect farmers, but mostly to protect consumers." "People criticize antibiotics or hormones used in livestock, but the truth is, meat created in a lab is not meat. With lab-created meat, those cells have to be bathed in an antimicrobial solution and it's far from being considered healthy, I would say." As the spouse of a veterinarian, Toni said colleagues turned toward her when it came time to update the Veterinary Practice Act. Every 10- 12 years the VPA expires and must be reviewed and re-established, she said. Filed HB 9415 is intended to do just that.
HB 9420 COMPUTER SCIENCE REQUIRED FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS BILL
If HB 9420 ends up as a success, computer science would become a required high school course in Oklahoma. "A lot of jobs coming into Oklahoma are based on aerospace technology. They're STEM-based jobs; they're engineering jobs," said Toni. "We're about to design it so it will be heavy in practical math and applied math. Ideally, kids taking the course would then discover a career path that they'd like to follow."
HB 9421 ADVANCED CAREER TRACK FOR OUTSTANDING TEACHERS BILL
Touching on education even further, HB 9421 would be used to create an advanced career track for "outstanding teachers." It's subject that has been talked about before with the current education system, said Toni, but the language needs to be expanded. "If teachers want to advance and want to move up the career ladder, this bill will build the framework to create more working leadership opportunities inside schools," she said.
HB 9414 DHS CHILDCARE COMPENSATION BILL
Differences in how the Department of Human Services pays for childcare compensation will be addressed in HB 9414. Toni said those who qualify for government assistance with childcare only pay for days that their child is actually with the childcare provider. All other customers have to pay for the entire week regardless. According to Toni, this makes it difficult for childcare providers to assist families who need care and they'd like to be "fairly compensated" for "holding the doors open."
HB 10246 INCREASE WAGES FOR COURT REPORTERS BILL
HB 10246 would increase wages for court reporters. Toni explained that Oklahoma is in a situation where court reporters are in high demand. Between facilities offering more educational opportunities to pursue a career in the field, as well as the bill's potential to increase pay, Toni said she believes the changes will be beneficial.
BILL FILING PROCESS
"Bill filing is kind of hectic because I always have all these ideas of what we can do," said Toni. "Then we have to study it to see if it could work, then check into what it would cost Oklahoma, then weigh it all out." "If it's a good idea then I need to tell the legislature about it. If it's a bad idea, I just hope no one ever finds out about it," she joked. "It's hectic, exciting and promising. If you have a really good idea and the governor signs it, then you get to watch the positive changes." "I'm looking forward to see what we can get done. Last session was so positive, and I think we're really on the bubble of moving our state forward."