Following Thursday’s vote in the House to approve all five articles of impeachment, the chairman designate of the Senate Judiciary committee announced the full Senate would convene Tuesday to begin the next phase in the impeachment of State Insurance Commissioner Carroll Fisher.

Grandparents raising grandchildren is the topic of the latest interim study to be conducted in the coming months by the Oklahoma State Senate.

Senator Daisy Lawler, D-Comanche, helped bring awareness to the issue when she requested the study this summer. The Human Resources Committee had their first meeting at the State Capitol on Wednesday to discuss demographics, legal issues and programs offered by the Department of Human Services.

(Oklahoma City) A pair of state senators charged Thursday that an organization claiming to be independently seeking reform of the state’s civil justice system has stepped over the line into partisan politics and its solicitation and use of secret corporate donations could be in violation of the Oklahoma Constitution and state campaign laws.

Senate Republican leaders said they hope Gov. Brad Henry’s pledge to “attack” the problems in Oklahoma’s workers compensation system during the next legislative session is serious, but they have doubts based on the governor’s track record on other lawyer-related issues.

Oklahoma’s expensive workers comp system is widely viewed as a major impediment to retaining and attracting jobs in the state. Henry made his pledge Tuesday at a Tulsa Metro Chamber of Commerce luncheon.

The Oklahoma Transportation Commission Monday approved adding three important highway projects in Norman to the state’s eight-year transportation plan, a pair of Norman area legislative leaders announced today.

Senate President Pro Tempore Cal Hobson and House Speaker Pro Tempore-designate Bill Nations said the projects will ease traffic flow in the state’s third-largest city and enhance Norman’s economic development efforts.

Republicans in the Legislature continue to talk about lawsuit abuse in Oklahoma and yet they still haven’t provided any evidence that such abuse exists, the leader of the Oklahoma State Senate said Thursday.

“The evidence doesn’t support the claims being made by the Republican leadership in the Legislature. They are simply attempting to manufacture a crisis in an effort to gain attention and a political advantage. They are the ones embarrassing Oklahoma,” said Senate President Pro Tempore Cal Hobson.

State Capitol, Oklahoma City – Following news that the Oklahoma Hospital Association’s medical liability insurance company has been placed in receivership, Senate Republican leaders Monday challenged Gov. Brad Henry and the Democrat legislative leadership to ignore the six-year moratorium on future lawsuit reform and allow real reform to be enacted during the next legislative session.

(Oklahoma City) – The Democrat leader of the Oklahoma State Senate challenged his Republican counterparts to stop playing politics with the health care of Oklahomans and give the newly enacted tort reform legislation a chance to work.

“This is politics, pure and simple. The most extensive lawsuit reform measure in our state’s history became law less than two months ago and already Senators Williamson and Coffee are saying it won’t work. As with any measure of this magnitude, we have to give it time to effect change,” the Lexington Democrat said.

House Minority Leader Todd Hiett’s criticism of the state’s workers’ compensation system last week was misdirected, a veteran state senator charged Tuesday.

Senator Ben Robinson, D-Muskogee, said Hiett completely missed the point of the Work Loss Data Institute’s report card which gave Oklahoma and six other states a grade of “F.”

Senate President Pro Tempore Cal Hobson said Friday that a Republican senator who recently claimed that $1 billion could be cut from the state budget needs to produce a list of just where those cuts could be made.