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State Senators approved the creation of new retirement system for public safety employees Tuesday.
Senate Bill 711 offers public safety employees who are now members of the Oklahoma Public Employees Retirement System a retirement plan more in line with the plan to which most police officers and firefighters belong, said State Senator Kenneth Corn, author of the measure.
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Senator Debbe Leftwich announced today that a measure to extend the Oklahoma Quality Investment Act that was signed by the Governor during the last legislative session, has cleared yet another legislative hurdle. Senate Bill 755 also renames the Act, which served as a pilot program for Dayton Tire, to the Oklahoma Specialized Quality Investment Act.
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State Senator Kathleen Wilcoxson said her bill to give assistance to victims of uninsured motorists has made it through a major hurdle in the legislative process. Senate Bill 613 won approval from the full Senate on Tuesday.

Sen. Wilcoxson said her bill is not a new concept. The Oklahoma City Republican said it is modeled after the state’s Victim’s Compensation Fund.
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A measure to ensure that municipal police chiefs receive administrative training to better prepare them for their jobs and reduce employment turnover rates passed the Senate recently.
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State Senators Monday overwhelmingly approved a $2.152 billion budget for public schools two days before the “Fund Education First” deadline of March 16.

Senate Bill 217, which represents a funding increase for K-12 schools of $144.7 million over Fiscal Year 2005, passed on a 43-0 vote.
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A bill to expand a prescription assistance program has passed the Senate in a bi-partisan majority vote and awaits action in the House of Representatives, Senator Susan Paddack, author of the measure said.
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In a show of bipartisan support, the State Senate has approved a measure that could help law enforcement identify suspects in unsolved murder, rape and other criminal cases. Senator Jonathan Nichols is principal author of SB 646. He said the measure would expand the state’s DNA database to include all convicted felons.
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A measure to ensure the safety of Oklahoma’s children received approval from the Senate today. Senate Bill 618, authored by Mary Easley, creates the “Dustin Rhodes CPR Training Act,” which would require two employees at every school to receive cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) instruction each year.

The Democrat from South Tulsa authored the legislation following the tragic death of Dustin Rhodes in the school cafeteria. The boy started choking on a piece of bread, and while teachers and staff tried to help the child; they were not properly trained in CPR.
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A bill to help bring computer child pornographers to justice is now making its way through the House of Representatives. State Senator Cliff Branan, R-OKC, is principal author of SB 513 which has already won unanimous approval in the Senate. He explained the measure is similar to a law requiring photo labs to report child porn pictures they find while processing film.
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The State Senate has given unanimous approval to a measure banning a potentially deadly new way of downing alcohol—Senate Bill 663 would forbid anyone to sell, buy, furnish, manufacture or possess an alcohol inhalation device.

Senator Jonathan Nichols is principal author of the measure. He said the use of devices to inhale alcohol is a fad that’s been seen in bars and clubs in other parts of the nation. He worries people unfamiliar with alcohol inhalers may not realize they can be extremely dangerous.
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