Oklahoma Senate Votes To Override Stitt Veto On Tribal Compacts
The Oklahoma Senate voted Monday to override Gov. Kevin Stitt's veto of two compacts with tribal nations.
That means Oklahoma’s compacts with tribal nations on tobacco and vehicle registration tax collections will extend until the end of 2024.
State senators voted 34-7.
The vote ends a high stakes showdown between the legislature and the Governor, who in recent weeks has been urging senators to vote against it or not show up for the vote.
This is the second time the Senate took up the vote to override Stitt's veto. Last month, Senate President Pro Tem Greg Treat came one vote short.
He says, he knew it was going to be close but in the end, he knew he had the votes
“I don't know what the governor's next move will be. I hope that he turns the page from bitterness to build on that, to actually demonstrate leadership and a willingness to treat our tribal nations with respect and in a mutually beneficial way,” Treat said.
The governor says he wants to negotiate new compacts with the tribes in order to determine where tribal nations can and cannot sell tobacco - which tribal leaders see as an attempt to define what constitutes Indian land.
The state House has already voted to override Stitt’s veto of the vehicle tax sharing agreement, so that goes into effect immediately.
House members are expected to reconvene later this month to also approve the tobacco tax sharing agreement.
Oklahoma UPS Teamsters Practice Picket
Teamsters in Oklahoma are preparing for a potential nationwide UPS strike.
UPS Teamsters in McAlester and Oklahoma City gathered on Friday to practice striking ahead of their union contract expiring at the end of the month.
The practice pickets are not real work stoppages, but Teamsters Local 886 Secretary-Treasurer Jerry Sims says the demonstrations are an example of what will happen if UPS doesn’t come to an agreement with the union.
"We’re showing UPS that we mean business — that come next week, the 31st, if UPS doesn’t come to an agreement with us, we’re just showing them that we mean business and we will do the real thing," said Sims.
Among other things, the Teamsters are asking for wage increases for part-time workers, better hours, and safer working conditions.
Extreme Heat Expected This Week
Health experts are urging people to continue taking heat precautions as temperatures are expected to climb to triple digits again this week.
EMSA has responded to 115 heat-related illness calls and has taken 70 people to the hospital so far this month in and around Oklahoma City and Tulsa.
Adam Paluka, a spokesman for EMSA, said it's important for people to stay in air-conditioned rooms and out of direct sunlight when possible.
“There's really no excuse for somebody not to take advantage of cooling centers this year. They're there for the community to take advantage of and they're there so that we can hopefully avoid any heat-related deaths,” Paluka said.
He also said it’s important for people to stay hydrated and drink between 60 and 80 ounces of water the day before they plan to spend a long time outside.
If people do stay outside for a long time, Paluka said the signs of heat exhaustion include nausea and dizziness and the biggest sign of heat stroke is when a person stops sweating.
Brown Water In Maysville, Boil Advisory Until Further Notice
The City of Maysville in South-Central Oklahoma has issued a precautionary boil advisory while it addresses murky brown water coming out of customers’ taps.
Maysville provides drinking water for a little more than 1,200 people in Garvin and McClain Counties.
The city says those customers should bring tap water to a full boil for at least a minute before drinking it or using it to cook, brush teeth or care for wounds.
This advisory comes from the city itself rather than the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality, according to Erin Hatfield with the DEQ.
However, she says the problem is with the clarifier at the Maysville treatment plant, which removes solid impurities from the water.
Maysville has a history of drinking water violations, mostly from issues with the treatment process.
Earlier this year, the Oklahoma Water Resources Board slated the city to receive $1 million dollars in federal pandemic relief funding to improve the water plant and seek additional sources of water.
OKC Creating Plan To Prevent Traffic Deaths
Oklahoma City received an $800,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation earlier this year to develop a plan to prevent traffic deaths. Now, the city is moving forward in the planning process.
Traffic deaths have been on the rise in OKC, even though collisions and related injuries have declined overall.
Using grant funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation, Oklahoma City is creating a Vision Zero plan with recommendations to make streets safer - for cars, pedestrians and cyclists.
The Oklahoma City Council voted to approve the grant agreement last week, allowing planning to officially begin.
Justin Henry is a transportation planner with the city and involved in the Vision Zero initiative.
“That'll be kind of the key first step is really identifying the high injury network, which will be the streets that are most dangerous and really concentrating a lot of the interventions on those particular streets,” Henry said.
After the city completes its plan, it will be eligible to apply for an implementation grant to enact recommendations.
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