Legislative Update 2020
We’re still in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic so I hope you are safe and healthy. This update is to let you know how I have been serving you.
An important part of my job is helping constituents with government issues. I love it when we make government work for you! Recently I have focused on unemployment and health concerns. While it certainly feels good to help people, things shouldn’t be this way. Government should work for EVERYONE, not only those who are wealthy, powerful, or connected. You shouldn’t have to “know someone.” I firmly believe it's our responsibility as elected leaders to make it work. Period. I'm frustrated when it doesn't.
Government should work for EVERYONE, not only those who are wealthy, powerful, or connected.
Like most of the state, the Capitol shut down for six weeks due to COVID. When we returned, we initially limited our focus to pandemic and budgetary issues. This common vision helped us work together even when we disagreed. Unfortunately, toward the end we had slipped back into our old ways. But overall, this was a more civil session than in recent years and that’s better for Oklahoma.
COVID and falling oil prices created a $400 million hole in our existing budget and a $1.4 billion hole for next year. In the final budget most cuts were in the 4% range. Education received a 2% cut, but that should be offset by federal stimulus dollars. Although I give my colleagues credit for proposing a budget that minimized cuts to core services, there were two reasons why I ultimately voted against their budget. 1) The Governor was not involved. That’s not right! 2) Just like last year, this budget didn't include additional money for mental health and substance abuse treatment. When Oklahoma passed SQ 780 and SQ 781, the people told us to spend the money we saved in these two areas. I will continue to fight until we finally do as the people voted.
For the long term, we need a more sustainable savings model. That's why I wrote HJR1030 to improve the state’s Rainy Day Fund. With the COVID interruption, the bill died. That's frustrating because I'm told the Governor's staff thought it was innovative. I will propose this again next year.
We passed a Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for our retired public servants. We also passed several criminal justice bills. HB3251 makes domestic abuse a violent crime, HB2777 makes "porch piracy" a crime, and SB1462 makes "revenge porn" a felony. A few changes directly impact our community. SB187 gives cities short-term budget authority and SB661 allows public bodies to hold virtual meetings. These were COVID-related and I supported both. However, I did NOT support SB1713 which removed Del City’s ability to regulate housing design standards. I also did not support SB1682 which removed the ability for Del City and Midwest City to restrict payday lenders from setting up shop right outside Tinker AFB.
It was no surprise he killed his own plan when the economy failed. The Governor's "Oklahoma Plan" placed all the risk on Oklahoma.
I was disappointed by our state’s health care missteps. I served on the Legislative Health Care Task Force last fall. We studied our state’s health outcomes and a variety of solutions. Because of that, I knew the Governor’s block grant plan was the wrong way to expand Medicaid. It was no surprise he killed his own plan when the economy failed. The Governor's "Oklahoma Plan" placed all the risk on Oklahoma. We were 100% responsible when costs increased. Had his plan been in effect, our state budget hole would have been a billion dollars deeper. By contrast, federal dollars cover 90% of any increase under the SQ 802 Medicaid expansion proposal. Yes, those are still taxpayer dollars, but the question isn’t whether they will be spent. The question is where they will be spent. Either we spend our tax dollars here in Oklahoma or we continue to send them to other states. In any case, the people have spoken.
ODOT has approved plans for reconstructing the I-40 bridges in Del City. This multi-year project will replace the six bridges at Crutcho Creek, S.E. 15th St., and Sooner Rd. ODOT has already resurfaced the area to prepare for construction-related lane shifts and traffic. Our new bridges will have 17’ clearance, plus an additional lane each direction. It was a pleasure to work with ODOT Director, Tim Gatz, and Del City Mayor, Floyd Eason, to finally make this happen. For our schools, I am working with the State Department of Education and with Career Tech to restore missing motor vehicle taxes for Mid-Del PS and unfunded teacher pay raises for the Mid-Del Tech Center.
I will close by listing some of the bills I authored and sponsored this session:
HB3334 – Protects consumers by requiring banks and credit unions to transfer deceased account holders’ remaining funds to their heirs without requiring the heirs to open an additional account.
HB3336 – Promotes motorcycle safety by modifying the fee for fatalities and injuries caused by failure to yield. This is a key piece of “Jagger’s Law.”
HB3337 – Protects tax-payer dollars by preventing people from suing for injuries in municipal parks unless it's the result of negligence by the city. This is my “Skateboarder Bill.”
SB1823 – Protects babies through Midwife licensing. I partnered with my colleague and friend, Sen. Brenda Stanley, on this bill.
SB1125 – Addresses our teacher shortage by directing the Board of Education to issue teaching certificates to military spouses and others with valid out-of-state teaching credentials.
SB1779 – Protects the integrity of our elections by making “ballot harvesting” illegal.
HB1905 – Create safer and more orderly schools by adding "trauma-informed instruction practices" to teacher preparation programs.
HB1907 – Provides priority college enrollment for active members of the armed forces.
It is an honor and a privilege to serve as your State Representative. Please contact me at 405-557-7370 or andy.fugate@okhouse.gov with your questions and concerns. I would love to hear from you.
