Archive for the Week of March 29, 2009 - April 4, 2009
Oklahoma food stamp recipients top record
4/3/09, 6:00 p.m.
TULSA, Okla. (AP) - The number of Oklahomans receiving food stamps continues to top record levels. The Department of Human Services says more than 450,000 Oklahomans received food stamps in March. That's up from the previous record of a little more than 444,000 set in February. DHS officials say the number of people using food stamps has steadily increased each month for a year.
The previous record for food-stamp recipients had been in December 2005 when about 443,000 people received aid. On Wednesday food-stamp recipients saw a 13.6 percent increase in their subsidy. The subsidy is put directly on the cards they use to pay for goods. The increase comes from the federal stimulus package and is expected to remain until September.
Rulings keep city's water lawsuit alive
4/3/09, 5:48 p.m.
TULSA, Okla. (AP) - A pair of federal rulings are keeping alive a city's lawsuit challenging Oklahoma's ban on out-of-state water sales. This week, U.S. District Judge Ronald White denied the state's motion to dismiss the complaint brought by the city of Hugo last August. White also granted Hugo's request for a preliminary injunction in the case, finding that the town demonstrated it had a good chance of winning its argument.
The town's lawsuit names the state's water resources board and water conservation storage commission as defendants. Hugo leaders want to sell billions of gallons of water from Hugo Lake to the Dallas-area suburb of Irving each year. In 2002, the Legislature issued a moratorium on selling Oklahoma water to out-of-state interests.
No need for budget reductions seen
4/3/09, 9:15 a.m
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Gov. Brad Henry 's top financial advisor says he does not see a need for agency budget cuts for the current fiscal year. State Senate budget subcommittees have been asking agency directors how they could handle a 1 percent reduction in their budgets this year and cuts of 5 percent to 10 percent next year.
State Treasurer Scott Meacham says despite a big drop in tax collections in February he does not expect a revenue shortfall this year. Meacham says the state still has about a $250 million cushion to meet monthly allocations to agencies for the rest of the fiscal year ending June 30. He said the revenue situation could change and more will be known when officials get new tax collection figures next week.
Education budget cuts warned
4/2/09, 3:06 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - A state senator wants to know how education would handle a 1 percent cut in funding this year and a 5 to 10 percent cut next year. Sen. Jim Halligan wants public school, higher education and CareerTech officials to determine how such cuts would affect them. Lawmakers are currently working to develop a budge for next fiscal year and have as much as $900 million fewer dollars to spend than last year. And Halligan says state officials don't know how $2.6 billion in federal stimulus funds will work into the budget pictures.
Boren, Sullivan trying to encourge CNG vehicle use
4/2/09, 3:00 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Two Oklahoma congressmen are backing a bill that would encourage the use of compressed natural gas as a vehicle fuel. Rep. Dan Boren, a Democrat, and Rep. John Sullivan, a Republican, were joined yesterday at a Washington news conference promoting the bill by billionaire energy magnate and Oklahoma native T. Boone Pickens.
Boren introduced what is dubbed as the "New Alternative Transpiration to Give Americans Solutions Act" and Sullivan co-sponsored it. The bill calls for an 18-year extension of three tax incentives that focus on natural gas as a transportation fuel, the purchase of natural gas-fueled vehicles and the installation of commercial and residential natural gas refueling pumps. The proposal also would modify current tax credits to provide what its authors hope would be more incentive for state and municipal fleet managers to buy natural gas vehicles and engines.
Official English plan clears Senate panel
4/2/09, 2:54 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Legislation for a statewide vote on making English the official language of Oklahoma has cleared a Senate Committee. The vote was 9-6 Wednesday for the Republican-sponsored proposed constitutional amendment over objections that it is not needed and tries to create a political wedge issue.
Sen. Anthony Sykes, a Moore Republican, defended the measure, saying it would save taxpayer dollars. He said he did not see how it could be unconstitutional since it amended the state Constitution.
The Senate has passed rival legislation proposing a law to acknowledge English as the "common language" of Oklahoma.
House sends voter ID to governor
4/2/09, 2:37 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Gov. Brad Henry's desk is the next stop for a bill that will require voters to provide some form of identification at the polls. Without debate, the Oklahoma House Wednesday gave final passage
to the measure in a bipartisan 71-27 vote. It was previously approved by the Senate.
The measure requires voters to present a photo ID issued by the government or an American Indian tribe, including driver's licenses. But it also allows county-issued voter identification cards to be used. The bill's author, Rep. Sue Tibbs of Tulsa, says it will preserve the integrity of the election system and prevent fraud. The bill also expands early voting in general elections by adding Wednesday afternoons and Thursdays to the existing three-day early voting period.
Committee passes school deregulation bill
4/1/09, 3:50 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - A legislative panel has given preliminary approval to legislation that would allow 20 percent of public schools to operate as charter schools free of many current state mandates. The House Common Education Committee voted 9-4 Wednesday to send the bill to the House floor for a vote. It has already been approved by the Senate.
Supporters say it would remove unfunded state mandates that restrict the ability of local school districts to decide how to use resources to benefit students. The bill's House author, Majority Floor Leader Tad Jones of Claremore, says it would return local control to schools and give them more authority to decide how best to spend education funds. But opponents, including the Oklahoma Education Association, say the measure threatens to gut public education.
Gates to review Army cannon
4/1/09, 3:38 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Sen. Jim Inhofe says he'll do everything he can to save a new U.S. Army cannon that's to be partially assembled in Elgin in southwest Oklahoma. U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says he'll the cannon is among the weapons systems he'll review as he prepares a budget. Congressional auditors recently released a report raising concerns about a lack of progress in the Army's new weapons system.
The report says the cannon has been pushed so far ahead of the rest of the elements it may not be compatible with the final product. There are currently eight prototypes and 12 to 18 cannons are scheduled to be produced in the next three years at a cost of about $500 million. The publication Congress Daily reported this week that Gates is considering several options to reduce spending - including killing the cannon and some of the other ground vehicles.
New tests permitted for graduation
4/1/09, 10:28 a.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - The state Board of Education has approved new ways for students to complete graduation requirements if they don't pass end-of-instruction tests. They will be able to take alternative tests or demonstrate mastery through an end-of-course project.
Kerri White, executive director of high school reform, said Tuesday the first time students fail an end-of-instruction test they can either retake it or an alternative test like the ACT that is applicable to the subject area. The second time a student fails an end-of-instruction exam, the student can retake the exam, use an alternative test or complete a project.
Midwest economy worsening
4/1/09, 10:24 a.m.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - A Nebraska economist says his regional business conditions survey suggests the recession is the worst in the past 25 years. Creighton University professor Ernie Goss says the overall index for the Mid-America Business Conditions Survey has been wallowing in negative territory since October, although it has been rising of late.
The index climbed to 39.7 in March from 34.6 in February and 33.5 in January. The survey's index ranges between 0 and 100, and any score below 50 on the index suggests a contracting economy over the next three to six months. Goss says the March figure indicates a worsening recession at least through September. The survey states are Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota,
Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.
Salvation Army sees increase in requests for help
4/1/09, 10:20 a.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Salvation Army officials say more people are asking them for help but donations are falling with the country in an economic recession. Social services director Toni Sanders in Oklahoma City says about 6,000 food kits were given to the needy in February compared to between 3,000 and 4,000 in February 2008.
And Sanders says she's seeing many people who've moved to Oklahoma because the word is the economy here is better than other parts of the country and they're looking for work. Those getting help receive a kit of frozen food, produce and a bag that includes items such as rice and beans. The specific items vary depending on supplies and supplies are becoming scarce as donations have fallen off.
Civil justice bill moves through committee
3/31/09, 5:04 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Senate President Pro Tem Glenn Coffee has won easy committee approval of his plan designed to curb damages and reduce civil lawsuits. Sponsors say the plan is needed to lower the price companies and doctors pay for liability insurance. They say the state's civil justice system is costing the state jobs.
The bill was sent to the Senate floor on a 6-2 vote Tuesday in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Sen. Charles Laster of Shawnee questioned its constitutionality and said the proposal would make it too difficult for people with legitimate civil claims to get justice. Several doctors held a news conference earlier to call for passage of the bill. They said the state has a physician shortage that will get worse without changes. The bill puts a so-called $300,000 "hard cap" on pain and suffering damages.
Counties placed under fire ant quarantine
3/31/09, 4:59 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - The U.S. Department of Agriculture has added 12 more counties to those under a state and federal Imported Fire Ant quarantine. State Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry officials say the quarantine includes soil, plants with soil attached, grass sod, used soil moving equipment, hay and straw.
Those items can not be shipped out of the counties under quarantine until cleared by state or federal inspectors. The new counties under quarantine are Atoka, Coal, Cotton, Garvin, Jackson, Jefferson, LeFlore, Murray, Pontotoc, Pushmataha, Stephens, and Tillman. Counties previously included in the quarantine are Bryan, Jefferson, McCurtain, Marshall, Carter, Choctaw, Comanche, Johnston and Love.
Prepayments planned by backlogged insurer
3/31/09, 9:38 a.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - A state workers' insurance plan that has more than 200,000 unpaid health insurance claims plans to make prepayments to help out doctors, dentists and hospitals who have not been paid. Bill Crain, administrator of the Oklahoma State and Education Employees Group Insurance Board, said Monday that his staff is working with their claims payment vendor, EDS, to make prepayments.
Crain says it will be at least two weeks before they begin. Crain says the insurance plan, called HealthChoice, owes between $80 million and $100 million in claims filed by some of the 200,000 state workers, educators and retirees who use the plan. EDS took over claims payments for the plan in January.
EDS officials blame the backlog on difficulties in transferring data from the previous vendor.
Bill to place monument at Capitol advances
3/30/09, 5:45 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - A bill to allow the Ten Commandments to be placed on the Capitol grounds has won approval in a Senate committee. The vote was 5-3 for the measure, which opponents argue is unconstitutional.
Sen. Jim Wilson, a Tahlequah Democrat, argued it was a religious display prohibited by the state Constitution. But Sen. Randy Brogdon, an Owasso Republican, said the monument recognized the historical importance of the Ten Commandments and had "nothing to do with religious viewpoints." The bill, which already has passed the House, will be considered next by the full Senate.
Oklahoma City, Tulsa make Forbes' Best Places list
3/30/09, 5:42 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Oklahoma City ranks 12th and Tulsa is 47th on Forbes' list of "Best Places for Businesses and Careers." Forbes ranked 200 metropolitan areas on criteria including cost of doing business, projected job growth and education. Oklahoma City is 12th overall and ranks 23rd in business costs, 31st in expected job growth and 97th in education. Tulsa is No. 47 and ranks 53rd in cost of doing business, 30th
in projected job growth and 128th in education. Raleigh, N.C., is No. 1 on the list. Forbes also rates Lawton 102nd on the list of small metros with Sioux Falls, S.D., No. 1.
School funding deadline nears
3/3/0/09, 11:55 a.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - The Oklahoma Legislature may miss its self-imposed deadline for drawing up an education budget. The April 1st deadline was written into law because lawmakers felt teachers should get maximum warning if their jobs were in jeopardy because of budget cuts, but the deadline hasn't been met
for five years.
School administrators remain uncertain of how much money they can expect from the state and whether they can afford to retain their staffs. Oklahoma State School Boards Association executive director Jeff Mills and Roy Bishop of the Oklahoma Education Association says not knowing how much funding they'll get puts school districts in a bind. The legislative deadline was part of the Fund Education First initiative passed in 2003. The deadline was met the following year and nearly met in 2007.
Critics of the deadline have characterized it as a political stunt because lawmakers face no penalty for not meeting the deadline. But House Appropriations and Budget Committee chairman Ken Miller says the deadline isn't meaningless. The budget process has been slowed by an estimated $900 million budget shortfall and a federal stimulus program that will funnel $2.6 billion to the state.
Roads opened in Panhandle, NW Oklahoma
3/30/09, 11:09 a.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Roads have reopened in the Panhandle and northwestern Oklahoma where up a spring snowstorm dumped up to 25 inches of snow in some areas. Oklahoma Department of Transportation spokeswoman Susan Allison says road clearing crews from around the state that were sent to the region Saturday are heading home today. The snow caused roofs to collapse in Custer, Harper, Texas and
Woodward counties. Thirty-eight residents of a nursing home in Buffalo were moved to a nearby hospital because part of the roof caved in. Schools in Fort Supply and Tyrone also had roofs to collapse.
Oklahoma military bases to get stimulus money
3/30/09, 10:46 a.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - The U.S. Department of Defense plans to spend nearly $74 million from the federal stimulus package on improvements to Oklahoma military bases. About $44 million will be spent on 42 projects at Tinker Air Force Base. The projects range from roof repairs to anti-terrorism protection upgrades for buildings and at base gates.
About $14.5 million will be spent at the McAlester Army Ammunition Plant for family housing, utility repairs, rail line work and road repaving. Just over $9 million will be spent on health care facilities and medical records at Fort Sill, $3 million will be used for taxiway repair at Vance Air Force Base and $1.8 million will be used for sewer repair and other projects at Altus Air Force Base.
4 Oklahoma properties added to National Register of Historic Places
3/30/09, 10:14 a.m.
TULSA, Okla. (AP) - Four Oklahoma properties have been added to the National Register of Historic Places.
The State Historic Preservation Office says the Little Cabin Creek Bridge in Craig County; the Opossum Creek Bridge in Nowata County and the Washington and Huston elementary schools in Kay County are now part of the list.
The National Register is an honorary designation recognizing properties for their architectural or historical significance. The Little Cabin Creek Bridge was built in the 1930s and is 388 feet long. According to Anna Eddings of the Oklahoma Department of Transportation, the bridge is a five-panel, Parker pony truss that was a favorite of the state's highway engineers from the 1920s through the 1950s. The stone-arched Opossum Creek Bridge was built in 1913. The limestone block structure is 44 feet from abutment to abutment and has an arch opening of 35 feet. The Blackwell schools were recognized for their association with mid-20th century improvements in educational facilities and as excellent examples of mid-century modern architecture by the firm of Caudill, Rowlett, Scott and Associates.
Arkansas lottery could hurt Oklahoma game
3/30/09, 9:43 a.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Oklahoma lottery officials say the game could lose as much as $12 million in sales during the first year of the new Arkansas lottery. Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe signed legislation last week to create a lottery. It's expected to be running by early next year.
The Oklahoma game will likely lose business from west Arkansas residents who cross into eastern Oklahoma to buy lottery tickets. Executive Director Jim Scroggins of the Oklahoma Lottery also says the Arkansas game will have an advantage because it will not have the profit restrictions that constrict the size of Oklahoma prize payouts.
