TRANSCRIPT
Dick Pryor: This is Capitol Insider - taking you inside politics, policy, and government in Oklahoma. I'm Dick Pryor with Quorum Call publisher Shawn Ashley. Shawn, interim studies are continuing at the state Capitol. On Thursday, lawmakers from the House and Senate heard from early childhood and childcare providers about the state of their industry. The testimony reinforced what many parents are saying - finding adequate and affordable childcare is a big problem.
Shawn Ashley: That's right, Cynthia Osborne, executive director of the Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center at Vanderbilt University, told lawmakers she uses the U.S. childcare industry as an example of a failed market. She said a market fails when it cannot provide enough of a good or a service that is beneficial to society at prices customers can afford. And that's exactly the problem parents have been describing in childcare in Oklahoma for several years now.
Dick Pryor: Lawmakers also heard that childcare is not just an issue for parents, but also for the workforce and the state's economy.
Shawn Ashley: Adam Maxley, Vice President of Government Affairs with the Oklahoma State Chamber, said they have heard from business owners and top executives in the state that the lack of affordable and adequate childcare affects their ability to hire staff. Seventy-seven percent of those business leaders name childcare as a major barrier for their workforce in a State Chamber survey. The most recent ReadyNation report from the Council for a Strong America found that every year, the Oklahoma economy loses about $1.2 billion in revenue, productivity, and earnings due to a lack of childcare.
Dick Pryor: In this study and others, once the lawmakers hear testimony, what will they do about it?
Shawn Ashley: Lawmakers will take the information they heard and determine what, if anything, the legislature might be able to do. Then they work with state agencies, House and Senate staff, and draft legislation to address the particular issue. And we'll start seeing some of those proposals in a little over a month when the bill filing period opens.
Dick Pryor: The Oklahoma Supreme Court handed Governor Kevin Stitt a setback in his effort to send a constitutional convention to a vote of the people. What did the justices decide?
Shawn Ashley: The court originally indicated it would not hear oral arguments in former Representative Mark McBride's challenge to Stitt's call for a constitutional convention, but it reversed course and decided to hear oral arguments, setting them for December 7th. Stitt argued in a motion filed October 2nd that his attorney is scheduled to serve as lead counsel in a federal court case set to begin that same day, and he also cited arguments from State Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax, who in a separate filing said that the April 6th vote of the people on whether to hold a constitutional convention would impact local entities' submission of resolutions for special elections on that ballot. The court denied Stitt’s requests without comment.
Dick Pryor: In an unrelated case, the Supreme Court also ruled that a proposed constitutional amendment is unconstitutional.
Shawn Ashley: The proposed state question called for a change in state statute that would eliminate property taxes on homesteads over a three-year period. The court's majority wrote, “the proposed statutory amendment conflicts with Article 10, Subsection 8 of the Oklahoma Constitution,” and the majority added, “this blatant conflict runs afoul of the Oklahoma Constitution, as a homestead would not be assessed in accord with the Constitutional strictures governing ad valorem taxation on real property.” The decision means the proposed state question’s supporters will not even be able to collect signatures on that initiative petition.
Dick Pryor: Now this was a narrow 5-4 decision. What did the dissenting justices argue?
Shawn Ashley: In a series of dissents, the justices in the minority questioned whether it was even appropriate to evaluate a proposed state question before it has been approved by a vote of the people. “The legislature,” Chief Justice Dustin Rowe wrote in a dissent, “gave citizens the right to file a protest against an initiative petition before signatures had been gathered.” But he noted, “striking down petitions before they had been put to a vote diminishes the people's exercise of their inherent power reserved to them by the Constitution to change state laws.”
Dick Pryor: The State Ethics Commission released preliminary findings in its investigation of State Representative Danny Williams, Republican from Seminole. What has the commission determined?
Shawn Ashley: The commission announced Thursday, it found substantial evidence that Williams committed eleven violations of three of its rules. The commission has not yet taken formal action against Williams. He has 20 days to respond to the allegations. And they also said the investigation is continuing.
Dick Pryor: Thank you, Shawn.
Shawn Ashley: You're very welcome.
Dick Pryor: For more information, go to quorumcall.online. You can find video of Capitol Insider segments on the KGOU You Tube channel. Audio and transcripts are at kgou.org and look for Capitol Insider where you get podcasts. Until next time, with Shawn Ashley, I'm Dick Pryor.
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