Oklahoma County Commissioners Press OKC City Council for Swift Action on Rezoning for New Jail
Oklahoma County commissioners are urging the OKC City Council to vote on rezoning plans for 1901 E Grand Blvd. to make way for the new Oklahoma County Jail.
Frustrated by delays, commissioners Wednesday said they need the city council to vote on the rezoning request soon or risk losing funds for the project.
"We need the city council to move as quickly as possible so that we either have a yes or a no on this site, because we are at risk of losing $50 million in federal ARPA money, specifically $40 million for our behavioral health center," said District 1 Commissioner Carrie Blumert.
Commissioners say they feel city council members are dragging their feet due to significant opposition to the site. The city of Del City is preparing to sue Oklahoma County over the proposed location that would border the community.
Commissioners say they are still looking at other possible sites that were previously on the list, however those locations were not disclosed.
Oklahoma House Speaker Proposes Legislation to Mimic Texas Border Law
House Speaker Charles McCall says he wants to secure Oklahoma’s border, and he’s got backing from the state’s attorney general. The Speaker plans to file legislation that imitates a controversial Texas law.
Texas’ Senate Bill 4 empowers local police to arrest and deport people who entered the country illegally.
McCall wants to bring that to Oklahoma.
His decision to copy Texas policymaking follows a ruling by the United State’s Supreme Court allowing Senate Bill 4 to remain in effect despite a challenge by the Biden Administration to stop it.
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond has also issued a call to action nudging state lawmakers to quickly propose similar state-level border enforcement policies, following the decision.
McCall says Oklahoma should “be the last place illegal immigrants want to settle when they cross over the border.”
It’s a sentiment shared by other members of the House Republican caucus, who’ve introduced a slate of bills this session targeting Hispanic Oklahomans as potential terrorists, and limiting their access to government services.
State Parks Are Crumbling. Oklahoma Lawmakers Pitch 8-year Maintenance Plan To Fix It
Oklahoma lawmakers are advancing a plan to make hundreds of millions of dollars in maintenance repairs to state parks.
Oklahoma’s state parks are in an infrastructure crisis.
The nonprofit news outlet Oklahoma Voice reports leaking roofs, failing water systems and even cave-ins are preventing people from using various features of the state’s parks.
House Bill 3972 would fix that. It creates an eight-year maintenance plan and pumps $350 million dollars into fixing the problems across the state.
Lawmakers are also considering a plan to prevent infrastructure issues in the future, by increasing the budget for parks’ capital maintenance funding from $10 million to $50 million, based on available funds.
The bill can now be heard in the Senate after overwhelmingly clearing the House.
Bill to Simplify Hunting and Fishing Licenses Moves Forward
A bill to streamline Oklahoma’s hunting and fishing licenses is headed to the governor’s desk after a multiyear journey through the legislature. The measure also hikes hunting license fees for the first time in two decades.
Republican Sen. David Bullard of Durant says he introduced Senate Bill 941 at the request of the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation.
"We're combining 46 licenses into 14. We're bundling together for they're getting actually more for their money when it comes to those different types of licenses. And it simplifies the code and system, making it easier to purchase a license in the state of Oklahoma," Bullard said.
The bill also calls on the Department of Wildlife Conservation to evaluate licensing fees every 5 years.
The measure passed the Senate and the House Wildlife Committee last year, but the full House of Representatives didn’t vote on it before the end of the legislative session. Now it’s almost crossed the finish line- after the Senate approved their changes, all that awaits is the governor’s signature. The new law would go into effect on July 1.
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