Oklahoma lawmakers sent a bill that would limit the governor’s power to close businesses in a pandemic to Gov. Kevin Stitt’s desk Monday after over an hour of discussion on the House floor.
Senate Bill 672, authored by Sen. Julie McIntosh, R-Porter, and Rep. Kevin West, R-Moore, would require “scientific evidence” that a business contributes to spreading disease during a declared pandemic before a governor can order businesses closed. The governor would also need to provide notice and an opportunity for a hearing to “nonessential” businesses.
Critics of the bill, all Democrats, said the legislation would prioritize protecting businesses over human life and fails to create clear processes for hearings or define what is considered “scientific evidence.” Supporters said the measure, which passed 74-15 along party lines, was “preventative maintenance” that protected due process for businesses.
“This is not an indictment of what’s happened in the past, but it’s all about what we’re gonna do moving forward … that we’re going to use due process,” West said.
Rep. John Waldron, D-Tulsa, said during the COVID-19 pandemic best practices to mitigate the spread were not known and this measure could prevent “erring on the side of caution.”
But Rep. Chris Sneed, R-Fort Gibson, said this measure will protect small businesses from “government overreach.”
Stitt said Wednesday he supported the measure “on the surface,” but would fully review its contents when it came to his desk.
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