Statement by Senator Stratton Taylor
Senate President Pro Tempore

"This sounds like another one of the Governor's smoke and mirror pay programs. It looks like all talk with no money included.

"Squeezing money out of school administrators certainly sounds like a good idea on the surface, but when you realize that school lunches, janitors, school bus drivers, security officers and school counselors are also classified as administration, the idea starts to lose some of its luster.

OKLAHOMA CITY - Roadside dumping has increasingly become an unsightly problem in Oklahoma, but if a bill authored by Senator Frank Shurden, D-Henryetta is successful this legislative session, relief may soon be on the way.

"Roadside dumping is a widespread problem in the rural areas of Oklahoma," said Senator Shurden. "Although it's illegal for people to leave garbage anywhere except where the state officially permits it, many people leave their trash on the side of the road because they choose not to make the effort to take their trash to a legal dump."

OKLAHOMA CITY - Senator Carol Martin is proposing legislation to share costs for education administration, resulting in more dollars for the classroom.

"It seems clear to me when only 58 percent of the FY 98 common education funding actually went for instruction, we should take a look at what we can do to get more money into our classrooms," said Martin, R-Comanche.

The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Education recently got a chance to hear some of Senator Martin's ideas on how to do just that.

Statement by Senator Stratton Taylor
Senate President Pro Tempore

"The numbers are encouraging. We have a lot of commitments to meet, but I think there's still room to address some pressing needs, namely teacher pay. I know a lot of other interests will be competing for the new revenue, but I think teachers deserve to be at the top of the priority list. My goal is to make sure our teachers receive a significant pay hike this year."

A controversial, cost-shifting education program drafted by the Governor's office will get a full review from a key legislative committee in the coming weeks, according to the leader of the Oklahoma State Senate.

An educational version of the Rural Economic Action Plan (REAP) launched in 1997 is being introduced by Senator Frank Shurden. The Henryetta Senator has authored a bill aimed at helping smaller and rural school districts in Oklahoma secure funding for capital improvements and updated equipment.

Statement by Senator Stratton Taylor
Senate President Pro Tempore

"No matter what face the Governor's office tries to put on it, I don't know anyone who thinks that cutting school lunches, cramming more kids into classrooms or firing teachers is going to improve our public schools. No other state has taken that approach because it's unbelievably bad policy. The report and its suggestions are just as crazy today as they were
yesterday."

Statement by Senator Stratton Taylor
Senate President Pro Tempore

"This may be Governor Keating's idea of a Christmas present to Oklahoma teachers, but it looks more like an April Fool's joke to me. It's really hard to give any proposal serious consideration that suggests funding teacher pay raises by cutting school lunches, packing more kids into the classroom and firing other teachers. I'd like to think of some charitable way to describe the report, but 'crazy' is about the only word that comes to mind."

The Oklahoma State Chamber of Commerce is apparently endorsing a new regulatory program that could result in higher telephone bills for Oklahoma business customers.

The State Chamber's Richard Rush issued a press release Tuesday touting regulatory changes that Southwestern Bell is currently seeking. It also criticized an independent report commissioned by the Oklahoma State Senate that raised a number of serious concerns about the regulatory plan.

Governor Keating should ask his Republican colleagues in the U.S. Congress to restore funding they cut from Medicaid and Medicare before he attempts to raid Oklahoma's tobacco settlement fund to cover up their mistake, according to State Senator Jeff Rabon.

The Hugo legislator is taking exception to the Governor's plan to spend $42 million in tobacco funds on Medicaid reimbursements, noting that such an action would not be necessary if Governor Keating could convince his Republican colleagues in the nation's capital to address the problem they created.