Oklahoma News Report - Archives

Archive for the Week of April 26, 2009 - May 2, 2009

Female offenders continue to fill state prisons

5/1/09, 5:35 p.m.

MCLOUD, Okla. (AP) - Women continue to arrive every week at the sprawling Mabel Bassett Correctional Center in north Pottawatomie County. Prison officials say about 125 female offenders are processed at the facility each month as Oklahoma maintains its dubious distinction of putting a greater percentage of its women behind bars than any other state in the nation.

Oklahoma locks up 131 female offenders per 100,000 residents, a staggering percentage that nearly doubles the national average of 69 per 100,000 and dwarfs the rate of surrounding states. Texas' rate is 97 per 100,000, followed by Colorado (96), Missouri (83), Arkansas (73), New Mexico (54) and Kansas (44), according to statistics from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Oklahoma's female prison population is overwhelmingly made up of nonviolent offenders. More than 40 percent of women in prison in Oklahoma are convicted of drug possession (22 percent) or distribution (19
percent). According to the Department of Corrections, forgery and larceny crimes account for another nearly 14 percent of female inmates.

Henry vetoes bill restricting insurance mandates

4/30/09, 5:54 p.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Gov. Brad Henry has vetoed a bill to place tight restrictions on legislation dealing with insurance mandates in Oklahoma. Henry said Thursday that the bill would hinder the state's ability to respond to emergencies.

Under the measure, legislation to require insurance companies to cover certain disorders could only be introduced in odd-number years and approved in even-numbered years of a session of the Legislature.

The governor says House Bill 1975 unreasonably ties the hands of state policy makers on an important issue.

Hospital employee doesn't have swine flu

4/30/09, 5:50 p.m.

MUSKOGEE, Okla. (AP) - A Muskogee hospital employee who returned from a trip to Mexico with flu-like symptoms does not have the swine flu. Veterans Administration Hospital spokeswoman Nita McClellan says
tests performed on the worker have come back negative for influenza. She said the employee is doing well and will be returning to work. There have not yet been any confirmed cases of swine flu in Oklahoma. The worker's recent trip to Mexico, combined with his symptoms, had led to concern he might have the illness.

State sends tests to CDC

4/30/09, 9:03 a.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Oklahoma health officials have sent samples from people with flu-like symptoms to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to see if any are positive for swine flu. Department of Health spokeswoman Leslea Bennett-Webb says the agency would not be releasing day-by-day numbers of samples being processed. She does say doctors are sending in more and more samples in response to state requests to be vigilant to the disease.

State health officials review the throat and nasal cultures and those with the potential for being positive for swine flu are then sent on to the CDC for final determination. There have been no confirmed cases of swine flu in Oklahoma but tests are pending for a Muskogee hospital employee who reported flu-like symptoms after a visit to Mexico.

Henry vetoes bill transferring testing authority

4/30/09, 8:55 a.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Gov. Brad Henry vetoes a bill transferring state school testing programs from the Department of Education to a new board controlled by the legislative leadership. Henry said today the measure, pushed by Republican leaders of the Senate and House, is unconstitutional. The Democratic governor questioned whether moving the testing program from one agency to another would actually lead to any educational improvements as sponsors of the bill suggested.

Henry said the proposed transfer would increase state testing costs and violate the separation of powers doctrine. He says lawmakers cannot both make policy and implement and carry out policy. Henry commended Edmond Sen. Clark Jolley, who introduced the bill, for trying to make schools better but he said the measure has constitutional defects. Jolley says he's disappointed in the veto, but is willing to work on a compromise.

Stolen state laptop includes client data

4/30/09, 8:36 a.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Another state laptop computer containing the names and personal information of Oklahomans has been stolen. The Oklahoma Housing Finance Agency said Wednesday it has notified clients of its Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program that their names and personal information were on an agency laptop stolen from an OHFA employee's home. The laptop along with a personal computer, jewelry and other personal belongings were stolen during a burglary on April 22.

Letters were sent last weekend to 90,000 families whose information may have been on the laptop. The information included names, Social Security numbers, tax identification numbers, dates of birth and home and business addresses of clients. Earlier this month, a Department of Human Services laptop computer also containing personal information was stolen.

Governor declares state of emergency

4/29/09, 7:45 p.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Gov. Brad Henry today issued a state of emergency for nine counties in western and northwestern Oklahoma that were hit by tornadoes, storms and flooding. Henry says the counties are continuing to have significant damage and the order allows state agencies to make emergency purchases to speed up delivery of needed resources.

The declaration is also a first step toward asking for federal assistance if necessary. Counties included in the declaration are: Alfalfa, Dewey, Ellis, Garfield, Grant, Kay, Major, Woods and Woodward. Other counties may be added as conditions warrant.

State sends tests to CDC

4/29/09, 7:29 p.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Oklahoma health officials have sent samples from people with flu-like symptoms to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to see if any are positive for swine flu. The state Department of Health is not releasing daily numbers of samples being processed, but officials say doctors are responding to state requests and are providing more and more samples.

State health officials review the throat and nasal cultures, and those with the potential for being positive for swine flu are then sent to the CDC for final determination. So far, there has been no confirmation of swine flu in anyone from Oklahoma, but tests are pending for an employee of a Muskogee hospital who reported flu symptoms after a visit to Mexico.

Senate gives final OK to major school bill

4/29/09, 7:03 p.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - The state Senate has given final approval to a bill to deregulate state schools, eliminating many requirements placed in state law by a landmark 1990 school reform act. Senate Bill 834, called the School District Empowerment Program, now goes to Gov. Brad Henry for his consideration.

It was approved Wednesday after lengthy debate on a 25-22 party line vote, with Republicans voting for it and Democrats against it. Sponsors say the bill will lead to improved schools through more local control. Critics say it will eliminate necessary requirements for such things as class size, counselors, librarians and special education. It was introduced by Sen. John Ford, a Bartlesville Republican, and sponsored by Rep. Tad Jones, a Claremore Republican.

Action needed on $75 million federal job plan

4/29/09, 5:40 p.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - With a little more than three weeks before the Oklahoma Legislature's planned adjournment, $75 million in federal stimulus money for unemployment benefits remains on the table.

Gov. Brad Henry is urging lawmakers to enact legislation to free up the money for jobless programs, but legislators have yet to take final action. Texas Gov. Rick Perry recently rejected more $500 million in federal unemployment benefits, rather than follow federal guidelines required to get the money.

Paul Sund, spokesman for Henry, says Oklahoma already has met virtually all the federal requirements and there is no reason to turn down the money. He says it would be a plus for the state's unemployment trust fund.

Flaming Lips tune named state song

4/29/09, 10:00 a.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Gov. Brad Henry has signed an executive order naming "Do You Realize??" by the Flaming Lips as the state's official rock song despite opposition by Republican lawmakers who objected to a band member wearing a T-shirt bearing a Communist symbol. Henry signed the proclamation Tuesday flanked by the four members of the Oklahoma City-based alternative rock band. This time band member Michael Ivins wore a "Ghostbusters" T-shirt. He stirred criticism from some GOP members of the Oklahoma House when he appeared at the Capitol on March 2 wearing a shirt emblazoned with the hammer and sickle symbol of the Communist Party. The House defeated a measure to make "Do You Realize??" the state song, but Henry went ahead with his executive order, saying the public supported the choice.

Tulsa County gets low marks for smog

4/29/09, 9:55 a.m.

TULSA, Okla. (AP) - An annual report from the American Lung Association says Tulsa County has the most polluted air in the state. The county got an F for high ozone and a C for particle pollution. Oklahoma County also received an F for ozone but had an A for particle pollution. The lung association's standards are more stringent than those of the Environmental Protection Agency which still shows Tulsa County in compliance with federal clean air laws. Other Oklahoma counties given an F for ozone are Adair, Canadian, Cleveland, Comanche, Creek, Kay, Mayes and Ottawa. Nationally Los Angeles was rated the dirtiest city for ozone.

No swine flu positives yet in Oklahoma

4/28/09, 3:00 p.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - The Oklahoma Department of Health says samples taken from five patients with flu-like symptoms in the state have all come back negative for swine flu. Many more samples will be evaluated as doctors respond to state requests to be vigilant to the disease.

Samples from nose and throat swabs will be examined by state health officials and then sent on to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention if they show potential for being positive for swine flu. The state is at the end of a mild flu season.

The symptoms for swine flu, which is suspected in more than 150 deaths in Mexico, include fever, body aches, sore throat and cough, and are the same as regular influenza. There have been no confirmed swine flu deaths yet in the United States.

Henry, Legislature honors veterans

4/28/09, 12:42 p.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Gov. Brad Henry and the Oklahoma Legislature are honoring the state's 334,000 military veterans. The state House and Senate convened a joint session Tuesday in observance of Veterans Awareness Day. Henry says Oklahomans enlist in the military at higher rates than the national average.

He says 268,000 Oklahomans served in World War II, 112,000 in the Korean War and another 144,000 in Vietnam. The governor says thousands more Oklahomans are serving in the military in ongoing conflicts against terrorism in Afghanistan and Iraq.

House Speaker Chris Benge says lawmakers and citizens owe veterans a debt they can never repay. Benge says that without the sacrifices of veterans, our form of government would not be possible.

Tulsa ballpark funding safe from House bill

4/28/09, 8:58 a.m.

TULSA, Okla. (AP) - Language that would have eliminated some of the funding for a new minor league baseball stadium in downtown Tulsa has been stripped from a bill in the state House. Republican Sen. Randy Brogdon of Owasso had amended a bill earlier this session to exempt county, state and nonprofit property from development district assessments.

That would have done away with the funding mechanism Tulsa had planned to use to pay back $25 million in bonds used for the Tulsa Drillers' planned $60 million stadium.

The state House voted unanimously Monday to remove that amendment. The Drillers, who are the Double-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies, hope to move into the new stadium next season.

Henry signs bills to finance dams

4/28/09, 8:36 a.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Gov. Brad Henry has signed two bills authorizing $50 million in bonds to build low-water dams along the Arkansas River in the Tulsa area and for flood-control projects on streams and rivers in rural areas. The proposals were originally approved by the Legislature last year, but were later struck down by the Oklahoma Supreme Court on a technical issue tied to way the legislation was written. Senate Bill 239 by Sen. Mike Mazzei, R-Tulsa, and Rep. Ken Miller, R-Edmond, authorizes a $25 million bond issue to construct the Tulsa area dams. Senate Bill 238 by Sen. Mike Fisher, R-Kingfisher, and Miller also authorizes $25 million for conservation dams across rural Oklahoma.

State leads nation in road stimulus spending

4/28/09, 8:29 a.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - State transportation officials say Oklahoma leads the nation in the percentage of federal economic stimulus money that has been spent on road and bridge improvements. Oklahoma received $465 million in stimulus money for road and bridge improvements and other transportation projects.

The state has already spent $320 million, including a $75 million project awarded Monday to improve part of Interstate 244 in Tulsa. The director of the Department of Transportation, Gary Ridley, says the project is the single largest project the agency has ever awarded. Ridley says it could not have been accomplished without the federal stimulus money. The project will replace the pavement along three miles of I-244 near downtown Tulsa and will re-deck more than 40 bridges. About 62,000 vehicles use the corridor daily.

Tornadoes hit Oklahoma for 2nd straight day

4/27/09, 9:12 a.m.

CRAWFORD, Okla. (AP) - A mobile home and frame home were damaged when a tornado touched down in far western Oklahoma today, but no one was hurt.

State emergency management spokeswoman Michelann Ooten says the two homes were damaged in Ellis County but no injuries were reported from the second batch of storms in as many days.

Three people were hurt when twisters struck Enid and Kremlin in northwestern Oklahoma overnight Saturday into Sunday morning. Numerous roads and bridges have also been closed due to high water in northwestern Oklahoma, and Oklahoma Gas and Electric Co. reports about 3,000 customers without power in the Shattuck area in northern Ellis County.

Oklahoma's largest universities request $66M in earmarks

4/27/09, 8:54 a.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Oklahoma's two largest public universities have requested more than $66 million in earmarks from the upcoming federal budget, although they may receive only a fraction of that amount.

Oklahoma's five U.S. House members requested more than $43 million in federal earmarks for Oklahoma State University and its medical school for the 2010 fiscal year. Another $23 million was requested for the University of Oklahoma and its Tulsa medical branch. The earmarks were sought for research projects, equipment and partnerships with private industry and nonprofits in areas such as defense, aerospace and energy.

Fixer-up planned for state Capitol building

4/27/09, 8:35 a.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - With Oklahoma's state Capitol building closing in on its 100th birthday, lawmakers are proposing a private fundraising drive to raise up to $100 million and update the building.

Republican Sen. Harry Coates of Seminole proposed proposed legislation earlier this year to create the Capitol Centennial
Commemoration and Preservation Act. It passed the Senate but didn't get heard by the House and is likely dead for this legislative session. Still, Coates says many of the building's principal components, like electrical wiring and piping, are original from the building's completion in 1917.

Lawmakers report that elevators are regularly out of order, pipes leak and heating and air conditioning systems are inefficient.

Tulsa heightens efforts to monitor for swine flu

4/27/09, 8:26 a.m.

TULSA, Okla. (AP) - The Tulsa Health Department wants citizens to know it is closely monitoring the strain of swine flu that has sickened people in five other states. No cases have been reported in Oklahoma.

Tulsa health officials say they have heightened their disease surveillance activities and are encouraging residents to take precautions and monitor their health. Cases of swine flu have been reported in New York, Ohio, Kansas, Texas and California. No one in the U.S. has died of the disease.

The state Health Department has also asked Oklahomans to use caution when traveling to Mexico, which is thought to be the epicenter of the disease's outbreak.

Lawmaker wants public to rally around band

4/27/09, 8:23 a.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - A southwest Oklahoma legislator wants the public to show support for the "Flaming Lips" as Gov. Brad Henry signs an executive order honoring the song, "Do You Realize??" Most state House members voted for a joint resolution to codify the alternative rock group's wistful song about mortality as
Oklahoma's Official Rock Song, but it failed to get a majority of the 101 members needed for adoption. Some Republican conservatives criticized the group for its language and unconventional attire.

Rush Springs Rep. Joe Dorman says he's proud of Henry for finding a way to ensure an online vote of Oklahomans for "Do You Realize??" won't be squashed in the name of petty politics. The signing of the executive order is set for 2:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Oklahoma History Center. Dorman says all members of the Flaming Lips will attend and legislators who supported the resolution are invited.

For more on this story, go to the ONR blog.

Henry vetoes legislative resolution

4/27/09, 8:15 a.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Gov. Brad Henry has vetoed a legislative resolution that suggests, among other things, that Oklahoma should return federal tax dollars to Washington. Henry said Friday that the resolution also suggests that past and present U.S. leaders had violated the U.S Constitution and committed crimes against the states.

The resolution was billed as an expression of support for the 10th Amendment, which deals with the rights of states. But the governor says it goes much farther and makes a number of allegations without offering explanation or evidence. Henry says the state and its leaders support the Constitution and the rights it guarantees the states and their citizens. But he says there's no need to spend valuable legislative time on a resolution expressing support for any particular amendment or constitutional right.

Henry vetoes certificate of merit

4/27/09, 3:35 p.m.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - For the second straight year, Gov. Brad Henry has vetoed legislation that would require injured Oklahomans to obtain a certificate of merit before filing a lawsuit for damages. Henry said Friday the bill is in direct conflict with an Oklahoma Supreme Court decision and is unconstitutional. He vetoed a similar bill last year.

In an 8-1 decision in 2006, the state's highest court ruled that the cost associated with certificates of merit placed an undue financial burden on citizens seeking access to justice and was a barrier to their constitutional rights. Henry says in his veto message that he support efforts to reduce frivolous lawsuits. But because the high court has already spoken on the issue, enacting the measure would have been a wasteful exercise in futility.

Ex-legislator acquitted of corruption charges

4/27/09, 10:18 a.m.

MUSKOGEE, Okla. (AP) - A federal jury has acquitted a former state legislator of corruption charges.
The panel began deliberating about 2:30 p.m. today after hearing closing arguments in the case against Randall Erwin. Erwin's attorney said tonight that the Nashoba Democrat had been found not guilty.
Erwin faced seven felony counts, including conspiracy, money laundering and failure to provide honest public services.

Prosecutors alleged that he took kickbacks from businessman Steve Phipps in exchange for $1.1 million in taxpayer money Erwin earmarked for Phipps' businesses. Erwin has said he received $6,853 from Phipps in 2004 for legitimate consulting work he performed for a gambling machine company. Phipps and former Democratic legislator Mike Mass have pleaded guilty to conspiracy in the case and are cooperating with prosecutors. U.S. Attorney Sheldon Sperling told the Tulsa World he's disappointed with the verdict but respects the jury system.