By Constitution Staff

A proposed controversial change to Oklahoma's Code of Judicial Conduct has been shelved -- at least for now. Former state Rep. Kevin Calvey told the Oklahoma Constitution that the President of the Oklahoma Bar Association (OBA) confirmed to him that the Bar will NOT be addressing any revisions to the code this year, including the proposed Canon 3.6. OBA President Jon Parsley has the sole authority to put items on the agenda to consider. The proposed changes were approved by a OBA committee and had been scheduled for approval by the OBA Board of Governors on March 20.

The controversial Canon 3.6 would have prevented judges from affiliating with organizations which "invidiously discriminate." Judges and potentially dozens of groups, including the Boy Scouts, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and veterans' organizations could have been negatively affected. Calvey penned an article in our Winter issue warning of the proposed change and urged our readers to take action. Former state Rep. Bill Graves, who is now a judge in Oklahoma County, also publically opposed the code change.

FRIVOLOUS LAWSUIT REFORM VETO

Although Gov. Brad Henry continues to claim he supports efforts to rein in frivolous lawsuits, his continued vetoes of reform legislation undercut that rhetoric, state Rep. Colby Schwartz (R-Yukon). "It seems Governor Henry supports reducing frivolous lawsuits until the moment an actual bill reaches his desk to do that -- and then he immediately vetoes it," said Schwartz. House Bill 1570, by Schwartz, would have simply required an expert opinion confirming professional negligence before a lawsuit can be filed. Henry vetoed the bill even though he signed similar legislation applying only to medical malpractice cases in 2004. That law was later thrown out by the state Supreme Court in 2006 because it was too narrowly tailored and applied to just one industry.

To resolve that problem, HB1570 would require an expert opinion in all cases, regardless of industry."This legislation was clearly constitutional and would have been successful in driving down junk lawsuits based on the results of the 2004 law," Schwartz said. "The governor knew this and still chose to side with special interests instead of working Oklahomans." Schwartz noted the 2004 law resulted in a significant decline in lawsuits. In 2007, officials with Oklahoma City-based Physicians Liability Insurance Company (PLICO) said the number of lawsuits filed against physicians in Oklahoma dropped roughly 40 percent after the law went into effect, according to The Journal Record.

FOLLOW THE SUPREME COURT

Legislation to address conflicts between the recent rulings of district courts and the Oklahoma Supreme Court was passed by the Oklahoma House of Representatives. Senate Bill 1115 by state Sen. Anthony Sykes (R-Moore) and state Rep. Mark McCullough (R-Sapulpa) creates a new law that states that local rules and administrative orders of a district court shall not conflict with any statutes of the state or any rules of the superior court. It also requires that the local rules be posted on the Oklahoma Supreme Court Network to be valid and enforceable.

"It was brought to my attention that a few district judges were essentially ignoring the Supreme Court rules," McCullough said. "Senator Sykes' legislation would clarify what should already be understood -- that the rules of a superior court cannot be ignored by district judges."

The requirement that local rules be posted to the Oklahoma Supreme Court Network was included to ensure that the superior courts are aware of what district judges are ruling, McCullough said. "My hope is that the district judges who have stepped away from the rulings of the superior court will now fall in line," McCullough said.

FENT WINS CASE

Retired Oklahoma City Attorney Jerry Fent called a February 26 Oklahoma Supreme Court ruling a victory for taxpayers. In their near unanimous 8 - 1 ruling, the court declared two bond issues "unconstitutional and void, because the enactment violates the one-subject rule." Last year, the Legislature passed Senate Bill 1374 which contained three bond sale proposals. The two bond sales affected by the ruling pertained to $25 million of flood control projects for the Oklahoma Conservation Commission and $25 million in bridge and dam work by the Tulsa River Parks Authority. Bonds for a third $25 million bond project involving the Native American Cultural Center had already been sold and was not included in the ruling.

Fent, who has been successful in two previous cases challenging bills on the same grounds, commented that he hopes the Legislature gets the message this time. It's the third time in two years that the high court ordered the Legislature to follow the one-subject rule. After the two bond issues were invalidated, they were reintroduced in the current legislative session in separate bills. Both passed the Legislature and were signed by the governor on April 28.

In over a dozen cases in the last decade, Fent has challenged actions by state government as violations of the state Constitution. Fent says that by his count, he has been successful in stopping over $470 million in unconstitutional spending by the state, and still has several cases pending with the courts. Fent insists that he is only trying to protect the taxpayers by making state government follow the rule of law.

TRIBAL CHARTER SCHOOLS

Legislation allowing tribal governments to sponsor charter schools in metropolitan areas passed the Oklahoma House of Representatives with overwhelming support. Senate Bill 586, by state Sen. John Ford and state Rep. Jabar Shumate (D-Tulsa), would allow any of Oklahoma's 39 federally recognized Native American tribes to sponsor a charter school located in a district with more than 5,000 students in a major metropolitan area. "Our tribal governments want to play a major role in this fight and this legislation will allow them to become more involved. I am very pleased this measure has received wide bipartisan support," said Shumate. Charter schools operate free of most state mandates, providing increased local control. Those schools have been largely successful in increasing the educational outcomes for many low-income students in the state's urban areas. Shumate said the Cherokee Nation, in particular, has expressed interest in sponsoring a charter school. The bill passed the Oklahoma House by 78-18 April 15. It was returned to the state Senate for consideration of House amendments. The Senate approved the original version of the bill 27-19 on March 10.

TULSA CHARTER SCHOOL CASE

State Rep. Jabar Shumate (D-Tulsa) responded to a April 23rd court ruling upholding the constitutionality of Oklahoma's charter school law. "Today's ruling is a victory for families in Tulsa and a loss for bureaucrats who would condemn the poor to a substandard education because of the circumstances of their birth. I believe education is the civil rights struggle of 21st Century America and have actively supported the efforts of charter schools, which are proving that all children can learn and achieve, regardless of poverty or family background. If the Tulsa schools had succeeded in their lawsuit, they would have effectively turned their back on the neediest children in our state." Shumate is author of legislation that has expanded the Oklahoma Charter School Act to allow more groups to sponsor the innovative and highly successful schools.

There are currently 12 charter schools in Oklahoma City and three in Tulsa. In the case, the Tulsa Public Schools had challenged the constitutionality of the law. They are expected to appeal the ruling. The Oklahoma Charter School Association, which intervened in the case, has asserted that Tulsa Public School officials have been hostile to the charter schools. Charter schools receive the same funding per student as other public schools, but are usually more successful than the regular public schools due to their innovative approaches and reduced state mandates. The charter schools take students and their funding from the regular schools.

HANNA TEACHERS CHOOSE POE

The trend away from teachers unions continues with Hanna teachers unanimously selecting the Professional Educators of Hanna (PEH), an independent teachers association, to represent them. The Hanna election in April was the fifth teachers union decertification in Oklahoma since Bridge Creek Public School teachers pioneered the movement in 2005. PEH will eliminate the confrontational collective bargaining tactics typical of unions in favor of the Collaborative Communication Model supported by the Professional Oklahoma Educators (POE), a statewide independent professional association serving more than 4,000 teachers across the state.

POE Executive Director Ginger Tinney co-wrote the model in response to teachers' concerns. "The success of Collaborative Communication over the past four years proves that the entire school community can benefit from bringing these meetings into the light," Tinney explained. Tinney said she expects the decertification trend to continue as "more and more educators choose independence, collaboration and professionalism over the divisive models of the past."

POE has experienced a more than 30 percent leap in membership during the current school year alone. Tinney attributes the growth to an increased demand from teachers for greater professionalism and higher accountability in their association. "Many educators are not content with the union, and they're making a change," Tinney said. "Professional Oklahoma Educators provides superior protections and incredible benefits to teachers at less than half the cost of the union, and without compromising the values that Oklahoma teachers hold dear." Officers of the Hanna group are Larry Watts, President, Lynn Scrutchfield, Vice President and Johnna Skinner, Secretary/Treasurer.

WORKERS COMP CONTRIBUTIONS

State Rep. Dan Sullivan (R-Tulsa), author of House Bill 1601, commented on Governor Brad Henry's veto of the legislation that would have banned political contributions from unknowingly being deducted from worker's compensation checks: "If the governor isn't careful, he is going to run out of ink in his veto pen. Gov. Henry clearly wants to take advantage of the sick and injured for political purposes," said Sullivan. "Once again, Gov. Henry sided with lawyers instead of doing what is right for the citizens of Oklahoma. This legislation would have prevented injured workers from being forced into the political process without their knowledge through the deceptive withholding of political donations from their worker's compensation checks. The legislation did nothing to prevent Oklahomans from knowingly donating to political campaigns if they chose to do so."

Last August, The Oklahoman uncovered that roughly $1 million had been donated to the Working Oklahomans Alliance PAC over the last decade with most of that money coming from injured Oklahoma workers, including several who told the paper they did not know they had "donated" the money to the PAC. "Apparently the governor doesn't agree that a decision to donate to political activities is one that must be made by each individual, not a group of lawyers seeking to take advantage of a worker in a vulnerable position," Sullivan said.

AG CAMPAIGN VIOLATION

In light of a recent Federal Ethics Commission ruling, Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson should be fined by the state Ethics Commission, state Rep. Mike Reynolds (R-Oklahoma City) said. "Rather than exonerate him, the FEC's ruling makes clear that Mister Edmondson violated federal campaign laws, which means he also violated state campaign finance laws," said Reynolds. According to recent news reports, the Federal Election Commission dismissed a complaint alleging Attorney General Drew Edmondson illegally gave money from his own campaign to two federal races because the $350 amount was too small. However, Reynolds noted that dismissal was not an acquittal and effectively indicated the complaint was legitimate, although the FEC felt the amount in violation was not large enough to justify action.

In 2007, Reynolds identified numerous potentially illegal contributions made by Edmondson to other candidates from money in the attorney general's campaign fund. Following Reynolds' publicizing the donations, Edmondson reimbursed his campaign account for $2,750 that had been used for political donations. "The FEC ruling makes clear the $2,750 were illegal contributions," Reynolds said. "Under Oklahoma law, you are not allowed to "reimburse' yourself for illegal contributions to avoid penalties. Mister Edmondson should now be subject to a state ethics fine." Under Oklahoma law, Edmondson could have to pay up to three times the amount of any illegal contributions, Reynolds noted.

FISHER SENTENCED

In February, former state Insurance Commissioner Carroll Fisher was sentenced to serve six months in a private lock-down facility in Tulsa. Appearing before Oklahoma County District Judge Kenneth Watson in Oklahoma County Courthouse in Oklahoma City, Fisher pleaded "no contest" to operating a charity illegally and mishandling continuing education funds. As part of the plea agreement, charges were dropped in his bribery case. Fisher had been scheduled to go on trial February 23rd for receiving gifts and gratuities from Texas businessman Gene Phillips, his family and business associates in exchange for preferential treatment at the Insurance Commission. Fisher spent 14 months in prison for an earlier felony conviction in a campaign-corruption case.

Fisher was ordered to report to the Riverside Intermediate Sanction Facility in Tulsa on March 2nd. During his stay, Fisher can participate in a work-release program. He will be on probation for four years and six months following his release, must complete 150 hours of community service, and pay $5,000 to the state Victims Compensation Fund. The Tulsa Democrat served nearly six years as state Insurance Commissioner before resigning in September 2004.

DISGRACED POLITICIAN PENSIONS

Disgraced and crooked Oklahoma politicians would lose their state pensions under legislation that now awaits the governor's signature. Senate Bill 899, by state Sen. Glenn Coffee (R-Oklahoma City) and state Rep. Jason Nelson (R-Oklahoma City), would force public officials to forgo a state pension if they are convicted of a crime related to abuse of office. The bill applies to any felony for bribery, corruption, forgery, perjury or any other crime related to the duties of office, or related to campaign contributions or campaign financing. "This legislation sends a simple message: Elected officials will be held to a higher standard and crooked politicians who violate the public trust will not have a golden parachute when they get caught," said Nelson.

The bill's provisions would apply to all state, county and municipal elected officials, appointees, and employees. The bill, which is similar to House legislation also authored by Nelson, passed the Oklahoma House on a 91-3 vote. It previously passed the state Senate 46-0. It now proceeds to Gov. Brad Henry to be signed into law.

The legislation is driven in part by the controversy surrounding the outsized pension benefits paid to former state Sen. Gene Stipe, a McAlester Democrat who resigned from office in March 2003 after five decades in office. Shortly after his resignation, Stipe signed a federal plea agreement related to charges that he funneled more than $200,000 in illegal contributions to the unsuccessful 1998 congressional campaign of Walt Roberts. The state Supreme Court has since ruled that Stipe remains eligible for his state retirement benefits because the plea agreement contained a provision saying Stipe's conduct did not relate to his duties as a state senator and were therefore not a violation of his oath of office. Stipe is expected to receive a monthly benefit of more than $7,000.

NATIONAL JOURNAL RATINGS

The National Journal, the weekly magazine known as the "leading source of nonpartisan reporting on the current political environment" recently announced their annual Vote Ratings. Congressman John Sullivan tops the list as the most Conservative member of the Oklahoma's House delegation. The 2008 ratings gave Sullivan a 84.2% composite score, ranking him 68th most conservative of the 435 members of the U.S. House. Dan Boren, Oklahoma's only Democrat in Congress, was the most liberal of the Oklahoma delegation with a score 52.8% and a rank of 197. Congressman Frank Lucas scored 79.2% with a rank of 92. Tom Cole scored 78.8% ranking him 93, and Mary Fallin scored 77.2% with a rank of 99. Oklahoma's two U.S. Senators both were ranked in the top ten of the 100 senators. Sen. Tom Coburn scored 92% with a rank of 6 and Sen. Jim Inhofe scored 90.7% with a rank of 8. Vote rankings for 2008 and previous years are available on the National Journal website:

http://www.nationaljournal.com/2008voteratings/

STATE DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION

After suffering setbacks in the last election, Oklahoma Democrats are hoping for a comeback in 2010. But, less than a month before their May 16 state convention, they still did not have an announced candidate for state chairman. Ivan Holmes, the current chairman admits the party is having difficulty raising money to pay monthly expenses. Holmes lived off his retirement and work for free as executive director, which in the past has been a paid position. Before Holmes took the job, Lisa Pryor and Jay Parmley also served in dual roles, but were paid as executive director. A monthly stipend from Democratic National Committee ended after the November election and contributed to the cash flow problem.

Just weeks before the convention, a couple of candidates finally stepped forward to fill the top job. Todd Goodman, who recently took over as acting executive director of the party, announced for chairman. A few days later, Christine Byrd, who served the past two years as Political Director joined the race. The party's state convention will at the Oklahoma State Fairgrounds in Oklahoma City.

REDISTRICTING COMMISSION

The people of Oklahoma will have a chance to change the makeup of the state Apportionment Commission. The commission is responsible for drawing new legislative district lines following a federal census if the Legislature is unable within 90 days to agree on the apportionment of the districts. Senate Joint Resolution 25, by House Speaker Chris Benge (R-Tulsa) would change the make-up of the commission to ensure it is made up of equal numbers of Republicans and Democrats. The Apportionment Commission, which would be renamed the Bipartisan Commission on Legislative Apportionment by the bill, is currently comprised of the state Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Attorney General and the state Treasurer.

The resolution passed the Senate by a vote of 25-21 on March 10, and passed the House with a vote of 59-38 on April 2. It will go to a vote of the people in 2010. The change would give the governor, the Speaker of the House and the President Pro Tem of the Senate two appointments to the commission, one Republican and one Democrat each. The lieutenant governor would also serve on the commission as a non-voting member and as chair of the commission. "We want to ensure the redistricting process is bipartisan and this resolution would require that the commission is made up of an equal number of members from each party," said Benge. "It is my hope that the commission is never needed to break a legislative deadlock, but if it is, we want to make sure it is a bipartisan effort."

DRIVING IN PASSING LANE

House Bill 1368, authored by Rep. Glen Bud Smithson (D-Sallisaw), passed the House 87-10 on February 16. The state Senate voted 41-0 on April 22 in favor of the legislation to prohibit motorists from driving for extended periods of time in the left lane. Sen. Kenneth Corn (D-Poteau), who carried the bill in the Senate, said the new law would improve traffic flow and reduce the number of drivers who impede traffic. Under the bill, drivers must use the right-hand lane unless passing. "This prohibits a driver from parking in the far left-hand lane and impeding traffic," said Corn. "We want to add some teeth to the existing statutes and allow Highway Patrol officers to issue tickets to drivers who use passing lanes inappropriately." The legislation was sent to the governor on April 23.

DRIVER'S LICENSE GRACE PERIOD

Legislation to eliminate needless hassle during a driver's license renewal has been signed into law. House Bill 1092, by state Rep. John Trebilcock (R-Broken Arrow) and state Sen. Brian Bingman (R-Sapulpa) allows an expired Oklahoma driver license to be considered a valid form of identification for the purpose of renewing the license up to 30 days past expiration. Under current law, an expired driver's license is not a valid ID and cannot be used to establish identification when seeking to renew the license. "Given the fact that you renew your license only once every four years, it's very easy for many people to forget and let it expire," said Trebilcock,. "Obtaining a separate form of ID is a big hassle for those individuals. I know this problem was cited by more of my constituents than any other when I was campaigning last year. House Bill 1092 will provide a cushion for people to renew their license." House Bill 1092 passed the Oklahoma House of 91-0 and then passed the state Senate 45-0. Gov. Brad Henry signed it into law.

OFFICIAL ROCK SONG

Gov. Brad Henry signed a proclamation to make official a month-long vote selecting the Flaming Lips' "Do You Realize??" as the state's Official Rock Song. The principal authors of a failed resolution recognizing the song were in attendance for the ceremony at the Oklahoma History Center on April 28. After passing the Senate, but when the resolution authored by Rep. Joe Dorman (D-Rush Springs) came before the House on April 23, House Republicans narrowly defeated the measure 48-39. Following the vote, Gov. Henry announced that he would sign an executive order to name the song the Official Rock Song of Oklahoma. Several Republican members objected the resolution saying that they were offended at seeing one band member wearing a t-shirt to the Capitol with the communist "hammer and sickle"insignia.

Out of the 21,061 votes cast in an unscientifically conducted contest involving ten songs, 10,738, or nearly 51 percent, picked "Do You Realize??" by the Flaming Lips from their 2002 album, Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots. When the results were released, many wondered how a song that did not even mention Oklahoma could be selected as Oklahoma's Official Rock Song.