Three More of Boles’ Bills Signed by Gov.

May 6th, 2019

Three more of my bills were recently signed by the governor! SB589, SB881 and SB990 were all signed by Gov. Stitt over the last couple of weeks.

SB589 gives the Oklahoma Association of Chiefs of Police the responsibility of conducting compliance reviews for the Municipal Law Enforcement Agencies upon a recipient of complaint or reasonable cause to believe the agency failed to comply with safety and liability policy requirements currently in statute.

SB881 requires telecommunication providers expanding into a new area to notify all political subdivisions with jurisdictional boundaries in the service area. Sometimes broadband internet companies hit water lines when laying fiber, and if municipalities had been notified the company was coming to the area, these inconvenient and costly incidents could have been avoided.

SB990 requires rate increases for Medicare supplement policies occur only during the open enrollment period and cannot be raised throughout the year. This is an important bill to aid our senior citizens so their rates will not increase multiple times throughout a year.

This accounts for a total of seven bills signed into law this session, with one more bill still in the legislative process. HB1911, which amends qualifications to serve as a member of the Oklahoma State Board of Examiners for Long-Term Care Administrators, received a minor amendment in the Senate. I’ll present this bill as amended on the House floor next week.

When a bill receives amendments in the other chamber, it returns to the chamber of origin. If the bill’s author accepts the amendments, all members vote on the bill, and if the amendments pass, the bill goes directly to the governor.

If the bill’s author rejects the amendments, the bill moves into conference committee. The committee is comprised of all members from both chambers’ committees, and they collaborate on final language. Once they reach an agreement, the amended bill is returned to both chambers for another vote before being sent to the governor.

After session on Monday, I returned to Marlow to attend the Marlow Chamber of Commerce Banquet, where I was proud to see my former middle school teacher and Marlow City Council colleague, Jeff Prater, named the Outstanding Citizen of the Year. Over the years I’ve known him, I’ve seen him live out the meaning of “servant leader” with his involvement in the Marlow community. It’s always great seeing deserving people receive recognition!

On Wednesday, the Future Farmers of America (FFA) Chorus preformed on the House floor. The students come from across the state and were in Oklahoma City this week for the annual convention. The chorus preforms several songs for the House and Senate each year, and they did a wonderful job. We have so many talented students in our state.

At the FFA Legislative Dinner that evening, I sat with Marlow FFA Advisor Jon Derek Mitchell and his student Cameron Freeman. FFA is a valuable organization that instills leadership and integrity principles within our students. I appreciate all of the FFA Advisors throughout our state that spend countless hours mentoring our youth. After meeting with many students at the FFA State Convention, I’m very optimistic about the positive impact these students will make in our state one day!

Thursday afternoon, I visited Bridge Creek to meet with Superintendent Morrow to discuss education. I also presented a State Citation of Recognition to Mrs. Ellen Fitzwater, who teaches kindergarten at the school and was named the Bridge Creek Public School Teacher of the Year. Congratulations to Mrs. Fitzwater for her achievement, and thank you to all the educators across the state who invest their time into our young students!

Thursday was also the 67th annual National Day of Prayer, and thousands gathered at locations across the state to pray for our local, state and national leaders. This year’s theme, ‘Love One Another: United in Prayer,’ focused on the importance of loving one another as God loves us. It was a great reminder of the power of prayer.

2 Chronicles says that “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” I truly believe that if we are going to become a Top Ten state, we need to look for guidance from the Bible to learn to humble ourselves, seek God for prayer, repentance and wisdom, and have the courage to follow His direction.

The end of session is in sight, so please reach out with questions or concerns about legislation. You can reach me at (580) 641-3153 or brad@bolesforok.com God bless!

Rep. Brad Boles