The Senate Education committee advanced House Bill 2753 by President Pro Tem Glenn Coffee (R-OKC) and Representative Lee Denney (R-Cushing), moving the charter school agenda forward.

HB 2753 removes many restrictions that previously prohibited the advancement of charter schools. Coffee says this is a positive stride in giving charter schools the freedom to provide quality choices to parents and students across our state.

Sen. Dan Newberry on Tuesday praised the state Senate’s passage of an Obamacare opt-out measure designed to prohibit the new federal law from forcing citizens and employers to participate in a nationalized health care system.

“I appreciate Commissioner Cline’s work toward determining the pressing issues at the Medical Examiner’s office and presenting his recommendations. We’ve known for some time that there is significant work to be done in bringing this office up to the level the citizens of Oklahoma expect and deserve, and Commissioner Cline’s audit confirms this.

“I look forward to working with the Governor and the Speaker in restoring this office to full effectiveness.”

State Sen. Jay Paul Gumm is continuing his efforts to ensure compliance with a tax break for disabled veterans originally passed in 2005. Gumm said despite widespread publicity about the law and a $500 administrative fine approved in 2006 for noncompliance, there are still retailers in the state refusing to honor the tax exemption.

A long-time advocate of health care reform said any additional cost to the State of Oklahoma as a result of federal health care legislation could be easily offset by eliminating waste, fraud and utilizing better management of medical records.

“The fact is, if we had already addressed these issues, the federal government wouldn’t have needed to step in,” said Senator Jim Wilson, D-Tahlequah. “We already take billions of dollars from the federal government to fund a variety of programs.”

State Sen. Randy Brogdon called Tuesday’s Senate vote on an ObamaCare opt-out measure an important step toward reasserting Oklahoma’s sovereignty as a state. Brogdon, R-Owasso, is Senate author of House Joint Resolution 1054, by Rep. Mike Ritze, R-Broken Arrow, and Rep. Mike Reynolds, R-Oklahoma City. The measure was approved in the Senate on a bipartisan vote of 36 to 11.

“Proponents of Obamacare have mentioned the historic nature of its passage. This indeed is historic. Our federal government has assumed a role it was never meant to possess.

“Bigger government and mandated health care will now put unnecessary burdens on Oklahoma families, small businesses and especially our senior citizens. Tax increases necessary to fund this so-called ‘reform’ will strap families across our state and nation, making economic and job growth more difficult. Billions of dollars will be cut from Medicare, raising premiums yet cutting benefits for seniors.

“Proponents of Obamacare have mentioned the historic nature of its passage. This indeed is historic. Our federal government has assumed a role it was never meant to possess.

“Bigger government and mandated health care will now put unnecessary burdens on Oklahoma families, small businesses and especially our senior citizens. Tax increases necessary to fund this so-called ‘reform’ will strap families across our state and nation, making economic and job growth more difficult. Billions of dollars will be cut from Medicare, raising premiums yet cutting benefits for seniors.

Sen. Joe Sweeden this week said he would continue fighting for expansion of the state’s “Make My Day” legislation, as his proposal to expand the rights of business owners to defend their property advances to the state House.

Sweeden said Senate Bill 2257 would make it lawful for business owners to use force against any person who unlawfully interferes with real or personal property in the owner’s lawful possession, or in defense of a physical threat.

The state Senate on Tuesday approved a resolution designating the “Honor and Remember Flag” to officially recognize and honor fallen members of the United States Armed Forces. Sen. Bill Brown, R-Broken Arrow, author of Senate Concurrent Resolution 48, said the flag was an appropriate unifying symbol for recognizing the nation’s debt to fallen servicepersons.