Media release
By Representative John Talley, District 33
(Oklahoma City, OK) —
Our next legislative session starts in less than two months, and legislators and staff are working hard to ensure we are well-prepared.
Friday, Dec. 8 is our deadline to request the drafting of bills. Once we request a bill, we work with our legal staff throughout December to develop substantive language for each piece of legislation, which must be formally filed by Jan. 18.
House members are limited on how many bills we can file, which helps guarantee that the bills we work on are the most important and most viable. Members can request as many bills as they want, but the majority of House members can only run eight bills every year, with exceptions for certain members of leadership.
We often request more than our eight bills because we have several ideas we want to explore, and as we work on the language for bills, we may find that there’s a better solution outside of legislation or the issue is too complex to address this year.
I am still working to finalize my bills ahead of this deadline, but I do plan to pursue House Bill 1028 again. You may recall this is my bill from last year that prohibited the use of corporal punishment against students with an individualized education plan, or IEP. In state statute, “corporal punishment” is defined as “the deliberate infliction of physical pain by hitting, paddling, spanking, slapping or any other physical force used as a means of discipline.”
The bill was amended in the House to prohibit corporal punishment against students with the most severe cognitive disabilities, but the bill has not been heard in the Senate. I am working with my coauthor, Sen. Kay Floyd, to adjust the wording of the bill before we run it next year.
Throughout January, House members will spend the month hearing from the heads of Oklahoma’s 10 biggest state agencies in preparation for budget negotiations for Fiscal Year 2024. Agency heads will present their requested budget and explain their reasoning for any budget increases, and legislators have the opportunity to question them about how they’ve spent their funds in past years.
While we continue to work with agency heads during session as we develop the budget, these early meetings allow us much more time to learn about their requests and ask any questions we may have.
Session officially kicks off on Monday, Feb. 5, with the State of the State address by the governor. He will detail his priorities and outline his budget hopes, but it is ultimately up to the Legislature to determine the actual appropriations to deliver programs and services to all Oklahomans.
Throughout February, members will consider bills in committee meetings before the bills move to the House floor, where they’re voted on by the whole chamber. In mid-March, we’ll send all our approved House bills to the Senate and begin considering Senate bills. Once a bill has received approval from both chambers, it’s sent to the Governor’s desk, where he decides whether to sign it, veto it or let it become law without his signature.
Through all this, we’re working with our fellow legislators, agency heads and the Governor to develop a budget for the upcoming fiscal year. The Legislature must approve a budget and adjourn by the last Friday in May, according to the Oklahoma Constitution.
As always, please call my office at (405) 557-7304 or email me at [email protected] if you have any questions about the legislative process or anything else I can help with. Thank you for the honor of representing our district!
