Garvin named OICA Republican Senator of the Year for her support of Oklahoma’s children

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA) named Sen. Jessica Garvin, R-Duncan, the 2022 Republican Senator of the Year for her support of Oklahoma children this session. She received a perfect score on the organization’s legislative scorecard that tracked the votes on more than two dozen bills, including two of hers, to protect and improve the lives of Oklahoma’s youth.

“It’s such an honor to receive this award and be recognized for my work and support of so many critical issues this session for our state’s most vulnerable citizens, our children,” Garvin said. “Often times, young people don’t have a voice and we must do all we can to ensure they are safe, healthy, and able to be their best selves. We approved several bills this session to help accomplish this, but our work is far from done. I’m looking forward to seeing what important issues we tackle next session on behalf of our next generation.”

OICA CEO Joe Dorman applauded Garvin’s support of children’s issues.

“OICA appreciates the work of Senator Garvin when it comes to her pro-child votes, legislation authored and dedication to understanding youth issues,” Dorman said. “Senator Garvin has demonstrated time and again over the past two years of her service that supporting the children of our state has been one of her top priorities.”

Garvin authored Senate Bill 1462, also known as Ava’s Law, which will require anyone licensed to practice medicine and surgery in Oklahoma or duly licensed as Advanced Registered Practice Nurses, like Certified Nurse-Midwives, to provide information to pregnant mothers about infant CPR and basic first aid, including contact information for training programs, and also information about cord blood banking and donation. The new law goes into effect Nov. 1.

She also served as the principal Senate author of HB 1616, also known as the Hope Shaffer Act, but the measure did not make it to the governor’s desk. The bill would have required parental consent for a student to ride in a driver education vehicle with another student.

To learn more about OICA’s 2022 Children’s Legislative Scorecard, visit https://oica.org/2022-childrens-legislative-agenda/#.

Sen. Garvin: (405) 521-5522 or Jessica.Garvin@oksenate.gov