FAIR AND BIASED

2012-01-23T11:33:00.000-08:00

Weekly Opinion EditorialLEAVE INCOME TAX INTACT!
by Steve Fair

State Representative Randy McDaniel, (R-OKC), who is chairman of the House Pension Oversight Committee, has announced he intends to run a Joint Resolution/Legislative Referendum in the upcoming legislative session. If approved by the legislature, it would place a state question on the ballot in November. If voters approve McDaniel’s proposal it would amend the state constitution to require more accountability in future government pension system decisions. “The constitutional amendment contains the fundamental principles of proper pension oversight. We need a higher law that takes into consideration the future generations of Oklahomans,” McDaniel said.

*****
Last year, the legislature tackled Oklahoma’s unfunded pension issues by dealing with the teachers, state employees and judiciary pensions. This year they will try to improve the stability of the firefighter and law enforcement systems.

*****
“The goal is to put all our systems on a sustainable path, which would be a notable accomplishment for public workers and taxpayers alike. We have negotiated with representatives from both the firefighter and law enforcement organizations. I think we have come to an agreement that is fair to our public safety employees and fair to taxpayers,” McDaniel, R-Oklahoma City, said. “Employees and employers will both pay a little more into the system in order to ensure the pension plans are financially strong over the long run.”
*****

McDaniel’s proposed constitutional amendment has four tenets: (1) Protect plan assets by prohibiting diversion of pension funds to other uses; (2) Institute a prudent investor rule to ensure wise investments of pension funds; (3) Reduce future debts by directing adequate funding to pension systems; (4) Require funding standards and practices to be established before additional benefits are authorized. McDaniel’s proposed amendment is needed for the future, but that still leaves the underfunding issue unresolved.

*****
Make no mistake- Oklahoma’s unfunded pensions are a problem. Oklahoma Council of Public Affair’s Steve Anderson wrote an article back in October 2010 entitled, “The Coming Explosion of Oklahoma’s Pension Bomb.” http://www.ocpathink.org/articles/274.%20%20Anderson which correctly pointed out the unfunded pension issue was one that could bankrupt Oklahoma government in the next few years if it wasn’t dealt with.

*****
In a March 2011 article (http://www.ocpathink.org/articles/953), the OCPA pointed out Moodys(the bond rating company) was using the state government’s unfunded pensions as a factor in calculating Oklahoma’s credit rating- and not in a good way They pointed out that Oklahoma state government’s ‘debt load’ was substantially higher as a percent of GDP than neighboring states and the national average.

*****
We got to this point because past Oklahoma legislatures were reckless and irresponsible when they promised benefits to teachers and state employees and then didn’t fund them.

*****

It is important to understand the current Republican led legislature didn’t create this pension crisis- they inherited it. That said, the way they fix the pension systems is important.
Currently, there is a lot of talk about phasing out Oklahoma’s state income tax. Several Republican legislators are planning to introduce bills in the next session to phase out the state income tax over the next decade. They claim eliminating the state income tax would help recruit jobs and industry to Oklahoma, but before elimination of the state income tax happens, it should be carefully vetted.
*****

For example, currently the teacher’s pension system, the state’s largest system, gets five (5) percent of the state income tax. If the income tax is eliminated, how will the teacher’s system get funded? That is something that has not been addressed.

*****
Oklahoma’s individual state income tax is 5.5%. It represents about 20% of state government revenue- second only to state sales tax. Phasing out this revenue stream and letting Oklahomans keep more of their own money is a good thing and would result in economical growth in the state. But it’s not the phasing out of the state income tax that worries me; it’s how the legislature will deal with the possible loss of revenue. Will they hide taxes and fees or will they cut government in direct proportion to the loss of revenue. The second action is not a normal characteristic of government.

*****
I understand supply side economics and believe in the Laffer curve. It is likely the growth projections are feasible, but it’s still a risk to state government (and taxpayers) to eliminate the state income tax without a fail safe plan. If projections fell short, what would state government do?

*****
A more prudent plan would be one that reduces state government spending in direct proportion to the amount of revenue lost by the phasing out of the state income tax. Until that is done leave the state income tax intact.

2012-01-16T09:28:00.000-08:00

Weekly Opinion EditorialCRIME IN OKLAHOMA
by Steve Fair

Last week a bipartisan group of Oklahoma leaders released a report with ideas they claim will reduce violent crime in Oklahoma by ten percent in the next five years. The report recommendations fell under three categories: fight crime and enhance public safety, increase supervision and contain prison costs. The twenty member group recommended the following be done in the Sooner state to reduce crime:

*****
· Help local law enforcement prevent violent crime with state grant funding for technology, overtime, crime analysis, and community partnerships. Unstable funding and increased demand has forced many agencies to simply triage calls for service rather than working proactively to prevent crime.

*****
· Require supervision for all felony offenders following their prison sentences. Currently, 51 percent of people exiting prison do so with no supervision.

*****
· Increase availability of substance abuse treatment. There is inadequate access to programs for people on supervision who are determined to be at a high-risk of reoffending and who have acute substance abuse problems.

*****
· Improve support provided to crime victims and witnesses through district attorneys’ offices. Victim-witness coordinators are key service providers that assist crime victims through the judicial process, but fluctuations in federal funding and local cuts have strained capacity in some jurisdictions.

*****
House Speaker Kris Steele, (R-Shawnee), who co-chaired the Oklahoma’s Justice Reinvestment Working Group, plans to carry legislation next session based on the group’s findings.

*****
The report is a product of the Justice Reinvestment Initiative, a data-driven analysis of the state’s criminal justice system led by the Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center The CSG is a national nonprofit organization that serves policymakers at the local, state, and federal levels. Justin Jones, Oklahoma’s Department of Corrections Director, is on CSG’s board of directors. You can read more about this group at http://justicereinvestment.org/

*****
Governor Mary Fallin was among the state leaders who requested that Oklahoma conduct a justice reinvestment analysis of its criminal justice system.“Increasing public safety is a top priority of this administration. Protecting our citizens and keeping Oklahoma safe is a core function of government and a key component to bringing growth, jobs and families to Oklahoma. For that reason, I am looking forward to reviewing the report and seeing what policy recommendations come out of it,” Fallin said.
*****
First, Oklahoma prisons are overcrowded and a large majority of those in the prison system are non-violent. Oklahoma leads the nation in the percentage of females incarcerated and rank fourth in the number of males in prison per capita. According to the Oklahoma DOC, a total of 24,000 people are currently housed in Oklahoma’s twelve prison facilities. It makes little sense to feed, cloth and provide health care for years to inmates who are able bodied and pose no violent threat to the general public. The DOC says the average cost of incarceration for one offender per year is $16,539. That said, lawbreakers should pay their debt to society. If we can have them pay their debt to by busting rocks while incarcerated or by making restitution under supervision, that seems prudent. It was very disturbing to learn that over half of the felons released on parole go unsupervised. That must be improved.
*****
Second, the recommendation to help addicts get off dope is a worthy goal, but getting them off and keeping them off are two different things. Oklahoma taxpayers have spent millions on a number of rehabilitation programs through the years and yet drug use in the state continues to climb. Violent crimes associated with drug use are at an all time high. Until state government recognizes the real problem is not physiological, but spiritual, these rehab programs will fail. The most successful drug prevention programs are ones ran by churches and faith based organizations because they deal with the root problem- the heart. Oklahoma state government should partner with them to help addicts. That would be a good spend of taxpayer dollars.
*****
One of the proponents of prison reform in Oklahoma is the liberal Kaiser Foundation. They have invested $2.6 million in a program to help women in Oklahoma. Women who face prison time can go through an intense, year long program that provides therapy, parenting skills, sober housing, reunification with children and drug/alcohol treatment.
*****
Reduction of crime in our state can only be achieved by a change of behavior sparked by a change of the heart. No government program can do that- only God can change a heart. Until state leaders recognize that fact, this will be just another waste of taxpayer dollars.

2012-01-09T09:44:00.000-08:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

EXPAND AUDITOR’S REACH!
by Steve Fair

In a poll conducted by Soonerpoll.com last month, seventy five percent of Oklahoma voters believe the Oklahoma State Auditor and Inspector should have the authority to conduct performance audits on state agencies. Currently the State Auditor can only conduct an audit if the Governor, legislature or the agency director requests it. You can read the entire report on the poll at http://soonerpoll.com/legislation-to-give-auditor-authority-to-initiate-audits-popular-with-likely-voters/

*****
Last week, State Representative Jason Murphy, (R-Guthrie), Chairman of the House Government Modernization Committee, said he plans to introduce a Joint Resolution in the next legislative session which would place a state question on the November 2012 ballot amending the State Constitution to allow for the State Auditor to have that authority.

*****
“It is vital for the State Auditor to have the tools to thoroughly expose the inefficient and antiquated processes that are conducive to wasting taxpayer funds and corruption,” Murphey said. “Current policy subjects the ability of the Auditor to conduct performance audits to the whims of state politicians or the very bureaucrats who are being audited. This proposal will allow the Auditor to make the decision to audit based on need, not on political influence, funding or bureaucratic resistance.”

*****
First, it seems perfectly logical the Oklahoma State Auditor should have the authority to audit any Oklahoma state agency, entity or organization that receives taxpayer money. The Auditor’s office should also be able to audit any group benefits from a state tax credit. Actually it is surprising only 75% of Oklahoma voters agreed with that premise. If the proposal to expand the scope of the auditor’s office reaches Oklahoma voters next year, it will pass overwhelmingly.

*****
Second, it seems ridiculous that we have a system that allows state agencies to decide whether or not they want to be audited. Currently state agencies have ‘internal’ auditors who report to the agency head. That violates any general accepted accounting practice. An auditor must maintain independence (in fact and appearance) in all matters related to the audit.

*****
Most privately held companies hire external audit firms to look at their financial records to receive an objective assessment. Public companies listed on stock exchanges in the United States are subject to the Sarbanes- Oxley Act (SOX) which imposes stringent requirements that those companies have ‘external’ auditors evaluate their internal controls and financial reporting. For state agencies to not be as accountable as publicly traded companies is ludicrous. Taxpayers have a right to know where and how their money is being spent.

*****
Third, those critical of making the Auditor’s office more powerful believe it is growing government. That is true- expanding the role of the Auditor’s office will necessitate a larger staff and budget for the agency. But if we truly want accountability of our state tax dollars, this is the right thing to do. Agency heads who oppose expanding the Auditor’s scope and responsibility should explain their reasoning. It raises a red flag when a state agency head doesn’t want outside eyes looking at their books.

*****
In years past, the Oklahoma State Auditor’s office has uncovered hundreds of millions of fraud and corruption in local and state government. In 1980, Tom Daxon was the first Republican to be elected State Auditor in Oklahoma. Daxon cooperated with the FBI in 1981 in its probe of Oklahoma county commissioners. By the end of the federal investigation in 1984, more than 200 people (mostly county commissioners) from 60 of Oklahoma's 77 counties had been convicted of crimes. Most were convicted of taking kickbacks paid by suppliers on orders for county road-building supplies. More than 70 sitting commissioners had to resign in connection with the probe. 69 of Oklahoma’s 77 counties had commissioners resign in the wake of the probe, and 13 counties lost all three of their commissioners in connection with the scandal. There are dozens of other examples of fraud and corruption the Auditor’s office- under both Republican and Democrat leadership- has uncovered through the years.

*****
Expansion of the duties and authority of the Oklahoma State Auditor’s office is not a Republican or Democrat issue. It is a prudent common sense move that will insure Oklahoma tax dollars are being spent where and how they are supposed to be.

2012-01-03T08:10:00.000-08:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

TAXPAYER ABUSE!
by Steve Fair

Last week, the Oklahoma Contingency Review Board amended and then approved a settlement agreement in a federal lawsuit brought against the Oklahoma Department of Human Services (DHS) by a New York based child advocacy group. The three member contingency board consists of the Governor, the Speaker of the House and the Senate President Pro Temp. For the settlement to be binding, the DHS Commissioners must still approve the amended settlement.

*****
"We take an important step to move forward to get this lawsuit behind us so we can start with the improvements, taking care of our Department of Human Services and our children of state of Oklahoma," Governor Mary Fallin said.

*****
Oklahoma House Speaker Kris Steele, (R-Shawnee), said "This is a golden opportunity to improve the agency under Oklahoma's terms instead of a court's terms. I'd like to thank Attorney General Pruitt and our DHS commissioners for their leadership in steering this process to a path that is truly in the best interest of Oklahoma, its taxpayers and its vulnerable citizens."

*****
Senate Pro Temp Brian Bingman, (R-Sapulpa) said, “There is no obligation we ought to take more seriously than the responsibility to protect the most vulnerable among us - particularly children in heartbreaking situations beyond their control. The most important thing in this settlement agreement is a focus on improving the quality of services provided for the children of Oklahoma. "
*****
But the organization that filed the suit back in February 2008 said the amended settlement was ‘surprising and disappointing’ and has not agreed to the settlement yet. If the suit is not settled, it is scheduled for a non-jury trial on February 21, 2012.
*****
In the suit filed by ‘The Children’s Rights’ organization, they allege the Oklahoma DHS violated the constitutional rights of more than 10,000 children living in Oklahoma’s child welfare system by routinely placing them in unsafe, unsupervised and unstable living situations, where they are frequently subjected to further maltreatment and deterioration while in state custody.
*****
According to their website, the Children’s Rights group was founded by Marcia Robinson Lowry, who says she has been a leading voice on civil rights and child welfare issues nationally for more than 35 years. Children’s Rights began as a project of the New York Civil Liberties Union and, later, the American Civil Liberties Union. The group has successfully won similar federal class action lawsuits in twelve states. You can read more about Children's Rights at http://www.childrensrights.org/
*****
Jerry Fent, an Oklahoma City attorney has filed a lawsuit challenging the Contingency Review Board’s authority to approve expenditures because two of its members are legislators and therefore the board is violating the state constitution concerning separation of power. Fent has been successful in two previous challenges to the board’s authority.
*****
Oklahoma taxpayers have already been out over 7 million dollars defending this suit according to DHS Director Howard Hedrick. Now it appears taxpayers will be out even more money to settle a lawsuit that will not guarantee future protection for children in DHS custody.

*****

Three comments concerning this issue:
*****
First, DHS can’t provide a guarantee that a child placed in a foster home will not be harmed. No one can do that. To expect otherwise is ridiculous. Blaming DHS for abuse committed by evil people is unfair. Hindsight is always 20/20, but a judge or caseworker can only make a judgment call with the information they have at the time. The abuse has primarily been at the hands of family or by wicked people who fooled DHS caseworkers into thinking they would lovingly care for a child. Perhaps some misjudgments were made by DHS staff, however don’t lose sight of the fact the abuse was not committed by the DHS, but by evil people.
*****
Second, the Children’s Rights organization could care less about children. Their mission is clear- they fund a large liberal organization by suing states and getting government leaders to pay settlements by using intimation tactics. If Children’s Rights cared a rip about Oklahoma kids, they wouldn’t saddle parents in our state with increased taxes to pay off lawsuits. Not one dime of the $7 million of taxpayers dollars DHS has spent defending this suit went to helping children- it went to lawyers.
*****
Third, DHS needs reform. It is a behemoth organization. Oklahoma DHS is the state’s largest employer. It has an annual budget of over $2 billion and staff totaling over 7,500. DHS is responsible for providing help to individuals and families in need through public assistance programs and managing services for seniors and people with disabilities. In addition, they handle child care services and administer several federal welfare programs. They have a function, but their whole structure and mission should be examined to insure effectiveness and efficiency.

*****

No one excuses child abuse, but this lawsuit will do nothing to protect Oklahoma children in the future. It is nothing short of taxpayer abuse!

2011-12-26T12:31:00.000-08:00

Weekly Opinon Editorial

THIMBLERIG!
by Steve Fair

Oklahoma Speaker of the House Kris Steele, (R-Shawnee) and Governor Fallin both addressed Oklahoma’s state personal income tax in separate interviews last week. Steele told Capitalbeatok.com that further income tax rate reductions are possible. “We are having some very significant discussions on how we can systematically and methodically begin to reduce our personal income tax in the state of Oklahoma. We think it’s really important. It’s really the next major policy issue that needs to be addressed to really help Oklahoma reach its potential in the area of creating an environment within our state that is conducive to job growth, job creation and job enhancement.” Steele said.
*****
Fallin told The Oklahoman she would favor gradually reducing the state’s personal income tax. “Our goal of reducing the income tax is to make us more competitive, but not to starve state government from the standpoint of starving essential state services for our citizens.” Fallin identified transportation, public safety, health and human services and education as core services.
*****
Last year, the Oklahoma state budget was 6.43 billion dollars. Education received 3.4 billion; Health and Human services 1.9 billion, Public Safety 629 million and Transportation received 208 million. That means that Fallin identified about 90% of the current state budget as essential core services. That seems a little high. There is no doubt some of those ‘core’ services should be ‘peeled’ back some.
*****
Currently personal income tax provides about fourteen (14) percent of the revenue Oklahoma state government receives. It is entirely feasible for Oklahoma state government to do without fourteen percent of what they currently get from taxpayers, but based on the nature of government it’s highly unlikely. Until Oklahoma state government gets serious about operating on substantially less money, then this talk of eliminating the income tax is nothing but thimblerig.
*****
Thimblerig, three shells and a pea or ‘the old army game’ is often sold as a gambling game, but in reality it is a con trick. A shell man begins the game by placing the pea under one of the shells and then quickly shuffles the shells around. Once the shuffling, is completed, he takes bets under which shell the pea lies. A good ‘operator’ usually has the pea palmed and so the pea is not under any of the shells.
*****
Politicians are masters of the shell game. They tend to hide the pea (taxes) and it’s the next to impossible task of the taxpayer to find out where it is hidden. Like thimblerig, it’s next to impossible to detect the location of ‘eliminated’ taxes once government starts shuffling the shells, but they always show up.
*****
The third law of Steve Fair’s laws of taxation states that forces occur in pairs. Every action is accompanied by a reaction of equal magnitude. Government never eliminates a tax- it is shifted. Government never downsizes- it grows. My apologies to Newton.

*****
When Art Laffer, of the Laffer Curve fame, came to Oklahoma last month and advocated elimination of the income tax, state leadership embraced it. Lafler rightly stated elimination of the state income tax would grow private business and help Oklahoma grow. But until Oklahoma leadership commits to downsizing state government in conjunction with the elimination of the state income tax, then this exercise is nothing more than thimblerig.
*****
Steele made a revealing statement during his interview. He said state revenues will increase between seven and ten percent in the coming year. But he says that still means the state budget will stay about the same. “We utilized a lot of one-time monies over the past two years to balance our state budget. There were federal stimulus monies and rainy day funds that will not be there in the next go-round. We are probably looking at a stand-still budget,” Steele said.

*****
Oklahoma government doesn’t need a standstill budget; it needs a significantly smaller state budget. We need leaders who will tell bureaucrats in state agencies ‘no’ to standstill budgets. We need leaders who will force agencies to slash their budgets to the bare minimum. We need leaders who can think outside the shell.

2011-12-19T10:28:00.000-08:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

LOSING IS A BLESSING!
by Steve Fair

On Friday, USA Today reported nine states will share $500 million in federal grant money won in a high profile competition intended to jumpstart improvements in early childhood programs. The money is part of the Obama administration's cornerstone education initiative, ‘Race to the Top’ which had states competing for federal dollars to create programs that make schools more effective. Last year, Race to the Top handed out $4 billion in grants focused on K-12 education. Oklahoma education leaders requested $60 million of federal funds
*****
The goal of this year’s competition was to get more children from birth to age 5 ready for kindergarten. Because Oklahoma has a solid record in early childhood programs, Governor Mary Fallin and State Superintendent Janet Barresi were confident the Sooner state would win, but Oklahoma was not one of the nine states. The Sooner state finished a dismal #30 out of 37.

*****

In May when the program was announced in D.C., Tulsan George Kaiser, a major supporter and contributor of President Obama, shared the stage with Education Secretary Arne Duncan and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and emphasized Oklahoma had done an excellent job in early childhood development. Kaiser’s involvement is probably why Oklahoma leaders were confident they would win, but instead California, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island and Washington were the nine states. All just happen to have Democrat governors- just a coincidence I’m sure.

*****

Gov. Mary Fallin and State Superintendent Janet Barresi expressed disappointment in not being awarded the grant. “Despite today's news, Oklahoma remains a leader in the field of early learning. With over 70 percent of our 4-year-olds participating in some form of early learning program, it will continue to be important to develop and improve our prekindergarten services,’’ Fallin said.
*****
Barresi said, “I join Gov. Fallin in a shared commitment to continue to find ways to boost learning opportunities for Oklahoma preschoolers, especially for those living in poverty. Our reforms depend a great deal on academic success in the early grades.’’ Barresi said the state must ‘redouble’ its efforts to ensure its children are ready to learn when they enter kindergarten.
*****
First, is it the responsibility of government to insure that children are ‘prepared’ to enter kindergarten? Obviously Fallin, Barresi and Kaiser believe educating children from the cradle is a function of government. So does former Oklahoma first lady Kim Henry. Henry, executive director of Sarkeys Foundation, says, “There is no disputing that parents are the best educators for their young children. But just as indisputable is the fact that many parents are not equipped for the job. In my 10 years as a teacher, I saw firsthand that the kids who stood to benefit most from early learning were the ones who faced a host of disadvantages.” While Henry, Barrei and others may be sincere and truly want to help out parents who need help, it isn’t the responsibility of government to prepare children for kindergarten? That is exclusively the role of the parent.

*****
Second, isn’t it fiscally irresponsible to accept federal tax dollars that include a multitude of ‘strings’ and conditions no matter how just the cause? With the overreaching, ever expanding federal government it doesn’t seem very wise for Oklahoma state leaders to embrace any federal program that expands the reach of government. What is particularly disappointing is when Republican elected officials run on a platform of fiscal responsibility and then line up at the federal government trough immediately being elected. It is little wonder Oklahoma citizens are confused and see little difference in the two parties.

*****
Losing the ‘Race to the Top’ grant is an early Christmas present for Oklahoma. Oklahoma government leaders need to be helping ‘families’ by reducing the size of government, building and maintaining our infrastructure –road and bridges-, creating a better environment for businesses to operate and reducing the individual tax burden. That is the proper role for government, not trying to get kids out of the home as soon as they are born.
*****
Robert Frost was an American poet. He is highly regarded for his realistic depictions of rural life. Frost said, “You don't have to deserve your mother's love. You have to deserve your father's. He is more particular.... The father is always a Republican towards his son, and his mother's always a Democrat. “
*****

Merry Christmas!

For other articles on this subject, clink on

USA TODAY

http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/story/2011-12-16/race-to-the-top-winners/52005184/1

CAPITAL BEAT OKLAHOMA

http://capitolbeatok.com/_webapp_4106279/Fallin_finds_Obama_grant_decision_%E2%80%9Cdisappointing%E2%80%9D_%E2%80%93_Superintendent_Barresi_presses_for_more_spending,_board_edges_forward_on_evaluation_model

2011-12-12T10:10:00.000-08:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

HOW TO BE A DELEGATE!
by Steve Fair

Last week five(5) Democrats and seven(7) Republicans filed to be on Oklahoma’s presidential primary ballot March 6, 2012. The seven GOP candidates are the ones you would expect, but only one of the Democrats is a household name- President Obama. You can see the entire list of presidential candidates at http://www.ok.gov/elections/support/ppp_filing.pdf
*****
The presidential primary is used in Oklahoma to allocate delegates to the two major parties presidential nominating conventions. Fifteen states use a causus system to select their delegates, which is different from a primary. A caucus is a system of local gatherings where voters decide which candidate to support and select delegates for nominating conventions. A primary is a statewide voting process in which voters cast secret ballots for their preferred candidates and the parties use those results to commit delegates. There are advantages to both. Caucus systems tend to attract people who are more engaged and knowledgeable in the political process. Primaries often are won by the candidate with the biggest media spend. There has been an active movement in the Oklahoma GOP to go to a caucus system, which I have opposed. We (the GOP) should be about the business of educating not excluding the general public on issues and candidates. The issue has been soundly defeated at our last two state conventions.

*****
I am unsure how Oklahoma Democrats select the delegates to their national convention, but the Oklahoma Republican Party uses the following process.
*****
Oklahoma has 43 delegates to the 2012 National GOP convention in Tampa, more than New Hampshire and Iowa combined- they total 40. The Sooner state delegation is the nineteenth largest at the convention. Three of Oklahoma’s delegates are unpledged- the members of the Republican National Committee. Fifteen(15) of the state’s national delegates are elected at the five congressional district conventions(3 each) held before the state convention. The remaining twenty five(25) delegates are elected at the state GOP convention May 12, 2012 in Norman. Delegates, who are most often elected officials or political activists, pay their own expenses to the national convention. The competition to become a GOP national delegate is often fierce.
*****
Delegates don’t get to just freelance and vote for whomever they want. Oklahoma Republican Party rules require national delegates to sign a pledge they will vote in accordance with the party rules and state law. A delegate is an elected representative who is to vote based on the results of the presidential primary held on March 6th.
*****
In years past, Oklahoma was a ‘winner take all’ state which meant that a Republican candidate could win a plurity of the vote in the presidential primary and take all the delegates. Earlier this year, the Oklahoma Republican state committee voted to allocate national delegates in 2012 on a ‘proportionate’ basis, meaning that more than one candidate could have national delegates from Oklahoma. Several other states switched from ‘winner take all’ to proportionate allocation of delegates which changes the dynamatics of the nominating process.
*****
With all the hype in the national media, you would think the race to the GOP nomination will be over by the time Oklahomans get to vote in March, but that is highly unlikely. In order to win the Republican nomination, a candidate must have 1,145 delegates. The earliest a candidate could hit that number is March 6th when eleven states vote and select 556 national delegates. The first three causas/primaries are Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. Only 65 national delegates will be chosen in those states. The real test will be on January 31st in Florida when 99 delegates are chosen. It is highly likely the GOP nomination process will be drawn out well into April of 2012.

*****
Want to be a delegate representative to the Republican National Convention? Any registered Republican in the state is eligible. The best place to start is by attending your precinct meeting on Monday February 6th and the County GOP Convention in March. District Conventions, where delegates are actually elected, will be held in April and the State GOP convention is in May. Being a part of the presidential nominating process is educational and fun, but it also carries a burden of responsibility. GOP Delegates in Oklahoma represent 850,000 fellow Republicans across the state.

2011-12-09T14:24:00.000-08:00

Gingrich as Manager

What Newt’s tenure as a House Republican leader says about his ability to lead an organization.

By Major Garrett

http://www.nationaljournal.com/magazine/gingrich-as-manager-20111208

2011-12-05T12:34:00.000-08:00

RUN TOM RUN- FAVORITE SON!

My friend and fellow blogger Michael Bates of Batesline has an open letter to Senator Coburn urging him to run for President as Oklahoma's 'favorite son.' I second the idea. Coburn is exactly what conservatives are looking for- a principled man unwilling to compromise his convictions. You can read the letter at: http://www.batesline.com/

2011-12-05T11:21:00.000-08:00

3 REASONS TO NOT VOTE FOR NEWT!

by Steve Fair

#1: HIS MORALITY! Or lack there of. Newt is on his third wife. He cheated on his first wife and told her he was leaving her while she was in the hospital being treated for cancer. He had proposed to his second wife even before telling his first wife he wanted a divorce. He then cheated on his second wife and proposed to his THIRD wife even before telling his second wife he wanted a divorce. No word on whether he honeymooned at the beach with his two new wives like most Newt aquatic lizards. Newt did all this while writing books and making speeches about ‘family values.’ Newt blames his infidelity to multiple wives on his ‘passion’ for the country.

#2: HIS IDEOLOGY! In December 2008, Newt was paid $300K by Freddy Mac to lobby Congress to not step up regulation or scrutiny. In 1979, when fellow Georgian Jimmy Carter was in the White House, Newt voted to expand the role of the federal government into education with the creation of the Federal Department of Education. In April 2008, Newt made a commercial with then U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi on Climate Change. He advocates a ‘pathway to citizenship for illegal aliens.’ During one 2011 debate he said he would issue up to 200 “executive orders’ his first day as President, a clear violation of the US Constitution.

#3: HIS THEOLOGY! Gingrich often begins his remarks by quoting the Declaration of Independence's premise that men "are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights". When you listen to him, you would think he was a very spiritual man and that spiritual things were important to him but that is not the case. It is very apparent Newt doesn’t know the Creator in the free pardon of sin. He fails the ‘fruit of the spirit’ test. Newt was raised a Lutheran, converted to Southern Baptist while at Tulane and then converted to Catholicism, his current wife’s faith, on March 29, 2009. He said he did it because he saw 'happiness' in the Pope's face. Newt has written a book entitled, "Rediscovering God in America." Newt’s message of “Exceptionalism’ is unscriptural and heretical. It fails to recognize the fundamental principle that man is a fallen creature who needs regeneration- even men in the United States.

Newt is a complete pragmatist who was an ineffective leader when he was Speaker of the House. There is no doubt Newt is an intelligent person, but he lacks wisdom. Senator Coburn said in his book, “Breach of Trust,” that Gingrich lacked the courage and character to lead effectively. There is no doubt Newt has good ideas and can analyze the situation as well as anyone, but he is no conservative. We do not need Neutron Newt!

*****

A newt is a member of the salamander family. Adult newts have lizard-like bodies and may be either fully aquatic, living permanently in the water, or semi-aquatic, living terrestrially but returning to the water each year to breed. A red spotted newt has a bright orange color to warn predators of its highly toxic skin.

2011-12-05T09:58:00.000-08:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

GRADED ON THE CURVE!
by Steve Fair

Will Rogers said about taxation: “If you make any money, the government shoves you in the creek once a year with it in your pockets, and all that don’t get wet you can keep” Oklahoma taxpayers need to start leaving their money on the bank according to Art Laffer, a former Reagan economic advisor. Laffer spoke in Oklahoma City last week and encouraged the state legislature to look at eliminating the state’s personal income tax over the next ten (10) years. He said that “no matter how you slice it, states without income taxes perform better than those with an income tax.”

*****
In conjunction with Laffer’s appearance, the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs, a conservative think tank, released a report on Oklahoma’s state income tax prepared by econometrics firm Arduin, Laffer & Moore, of which Dr. Laffer is a co-founder. The report estimated the average Oklahoma family of four would see a savings of more than $1,300 a year if the individual income tax were phased out. You can read the entire report at http://ocpathink.org/articles/1598

*****
According to Taxfoundation.org, Oklahoma's state and local tax burden is currently estimated at 8.7% of income (37th nationally). That is below the national average of 9.8%. Oklahoma taxpayers pay $3,259 per capita in state and local taxes.

*****
Laffer was quick to point out that Texas doesn’t have a state income tax. “When you're looking at your neighbors down to the south,” Laffer said “how do you compete with them? You're not competing with them.”
*****

Not everyone agrees with Laffer about supply side economics and the elimination of the state income tax. The Oklahoma Policy Institute published an issue brief entitled, “The Case for the Income Tax,’ which lists eight reasons why the state should not eliminate the state income tax. The first reason is that the tax provides nearly one third of the state’s income. They write, “The state could not provide basic, essential services without income tax revenue unless other taxes were drastically increased.” You can read the entire brief at http://www.okpolicy.org/files/TheCaseForTheIncomeTax.pdf
*****
Republican State Treasurer Ken Miller, an economics professor and former state House budget chair, appears to agree and says state lawmakers should proceed with caution. “We have to have a conversation based on facts and not ideology,” Miller said. . “I don't think you can take your single largest source of revenue and eliminate it and not replace it,” he said.
*****
I disagree! The state can afford to eliminate the income tax and here is why:
*****
First, Oklahoma state government already gets too much of our hard earned money. The state budget has grown 16% in the past ten (10) years to over 6.5 billion annually. The tax money state government collects is often spent inefficiently and irresponsibly. Not sending the government money appears to be the only solution to stopping overspending. Eliminating a substantial amount of their revenue stream- like state income tax- would force them to evaluate the operation. Oklahoma government could certainly stand to tighten the belt a lot.

*****
Second, Laffer’s theory of supply side economics has been proven to work. That means the amount of tax revenue wouldn’t decrease by the full amount and in fact could increase. When Reagan advocated reducing taxes during a major recession in the 1980s, many laughed at the Gipper, but it worked. Supply-side economics, also known as trickle-down economics, provided the private sector stimuli that resulted in increased consumer spending. Over time, the boost to the nation’s economic growth generated a larger tax base, which made up for the revenue lost from the tax cut. Even if the elimination of the income tax cost state government revenue, would that be a terrible thing? Oklahoma lawmakers and leaders should be trying to streamline government by consolidating and evaluating.
*****
Third, what about an individual taxpayer’s ‘essential services?’ Many Oklahoma taxpayers are doing without so they can pay their taxes. It’s their money! They should be enjoying the fruits of their labor, not funding a giant government money pit. State government does have some ‘essential services,’ but what some lawmakers consider ‘essential,’ taxpayers may consider ‘excessive.’ Robert Half said, "People try to live within their income so they can afford to pay taxes to a government that can’t live within its income."
*****
Laffer is known for his 'bell curve'(pictured above) which he uses to illustrate the concept that taxable income will change in response to changes in the rate of taxation. When graded on the curve, Oklahoma state government fails. We should eliminate the state income tax.

2011-11-28T14:06:00.000-08:00

When I was a kid, I appeared on

THE TENNESSEE ERNIE FORD SHOW

during a 1957 Christmas show. I found

the clip and here it is.

I'm the kid directly to the right of Tennessee Ernie.

Enjoy!

Steve

2011-11-28T13:07:00.000-08:00

1 1 4 5 !

In order to win the Republican nomination for President, a candidate has to get 1145 delegates. With changes made to the primary system by the GOP, the earliest a candidate could gather enough delegates to be the nominee would be on March 20, 2012 after the Illinois primary. It will likely be much later because no candidate will get every single national delegate between now and March 20th.

*****
Oklahoma will hold a presidential preference primary on Super Tuesday March 6, 2012. Ten other states, including Texas will vote that date, with 556 delegates up for grabs- the most in any one single day. Oklahoma has forty three (43) delegates to the 2012 GOP National Convention in Tampa. Fifteen (15) are chosen at the district level- the remainder at large. The delegates are allocated based on the percentage of vote for each candidate. OKLAHOMA IS NO LONGER WINNER TAKE ALL. Several other states have also changed from ‘winner take all’ to proportionate allocation which will make the nominating process last longer than in years past. It is quite possible the GOP nominee will not be selected until June when California votes. If most of the current eight (8) candidates stay in the race and spilt the delegates, it is also possible this could be a ‘brokered’ convention.
*****
Conservative Oklahoma Democrats who want to have a voice in who the GOP presidential nominee will be should complete a change of registration form ASAP and mail it in. Oklahomans overwhelmingly voted Republican in the last presidential election- 2008-even though the voter registration favors Democrats. It's time those conservative Ds align with their convictions and re-register. Our country's future is at stake.

2011-11-28T11:02:00.000-08:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

PAY TOLL AHEAD!
by Steve Fair

Toll roads are at least 2700 years old, as tolls had to be paid by travelers using the Susa-Babylon highway in the seventh century BC., but motorists and truckers traveling through Oklahoma probably think our state motto is “Pay Toll Ahead.” Oklahoma ranks second in the U.S. in total number of miles of toll roads at 600. We were the first state west of the Mississippi to build a toll road (1953) and now operate ten (10) turnpikes - all under the authority of the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority.
*****
The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority consists of the Governor (ex-officio) and six members serving without pay for eight-year terms from various transportation districts. Governor Fallin appointed her six members in March. She only retained one of Governor Henry’s appointees, David Burrage from SE Oklahoma. Fallin can remove any member of the Authority, at any time, with or without cause. Authority members have full control over all turnpike operations.
*****
The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority was created by the Oklahoma Legislature on April 30, 1947 to provide for the construction of the Oklahoma City-to-Tulsa Turnpike (officially named the Turner Turnpike in 1947). The Turner was the only anticipated Turnpike project at the time of the legislation. The Turner cost a mere 38 million dollars to build and opened for traffic in May of 1953. When the Turner was built, Oklahomans were promised that when the road was paid for, the toll booths would come down. That same promise was made when the Will Rogers and the H.E. Bailey turnpikes were built, but the toll booths remain. Edmund Burke was right when he said, “Hypocrisy can afford to be magnificent in its promises, for never intending to go beyond promise, it costs nothing.”
*****
The Turnpike Authority receives revenues from turnpike tolls and a percentage of the turnpike concession sales. The Authority has on several occasions issued Turnpike Revenue Bonds for the purpose of paying the costs of turnpike projects. Turnpike Revenue Bonds are payable solely from the tolls and other revenues of the Authority and do not constitute indebtedness of the State. Currently the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority's debt sits at $1.1 billion and it won't be paid off until 2028. The Authority pays about 5 percent interest on that debt, which means bondholders will profit close to 60-million dollars from Oklahoma turnpike tolls this year alone.
*****
Basically the OTA is a billion dollar private enterprise run by Oklahoma government. In their annual reports, the OTA calls itself ‘a component unit’ of the State of Oklahoma. Few states have a separate entity in the highway business. Why does Oklahoma have a Turnpike Authority?
*****
The initial reason the Authority was created was because the Democratically controlled Oklahoma legislature wouldn’t spend federal highway dollars where they were supposed to be spent. According to the Federal Highway Administration of the 31 states that divert Motor Fuel Tax money to non-transportation uses, Oklahoma ranks second, diverting almost 24% of its Motor Fuel Tax collections.

*****
Fortunately legislative funding of roads and bridges in Oklahoma is changing. Since Republicans took over the state legislature in 2004, a total of approximately $1.8 billion has been allocated for upgrading roads and bridges in Oklahoma. We still have a long way to go to catch up, but we are finally on the right road.
*****
The real reason Oklahoma’s Turnpike Authority is still in existence is simple- MONEY! When you toss your toll into the basket, it doesn’t go into Oklahoma state government treasury, it goes to the OTA. Common sense would dictate the bulk of the toll fee would be spent on upkeep and maintenance of the road you are traveling on, but that’s not the case. According to the OTA’s annual report, only about 30% of your toll goes to maintain the road- the bulk goes to the holders of the revenue bonds. That means when you toss your coins into the basket, some investor is getting the majority of the money. You can’t blame the investors who are just trying to make a buck. You have to blame Oklahoma government for allowing this to go on for almost sixty years.

*****
The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority should be dissolved and placed under ODOT. It has outlived its usefulness. The toll booths should come down as promised and Oklahoma government should get out of the private enterprise/toll collecting business.

2011-11-23T08:25:00.000-08:00

Bar Stool Economics

Author Unknown

Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100 and if they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something
like this:
The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
The fifth would pay $1.
The sixth would pay $3.
The seventh would pay $7.
The eighth would pay $12.
The ninth would pay $18.
The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.)
So, that's what they decided to do.

*****
The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve. "Since you are all such good customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20." So drinks for the ten now cost just $80.
The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free...but what about the other six men - the paying customers? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his 'fair share?'. They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody's share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer.

*****
So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay. And so:
The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).
The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).
The seventh now paid $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).
The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).
The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).
The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).
Each of the six was better off than before...and the first four continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.

*****
"I only got a dollar out of the $20,"declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man," but he got $10!" "Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man who was now paying nothing, along with the first four. "I only saved a dollar, too. It's unfair that he got ten times more than I!"
"That's true!!" shouted the seventh man. "Why should he get $10 back when I got
only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!" "Wait a minute," yelled the first five men in unison. "We didn't get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!" The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.

*****
The next night the tenth man didn't show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn't have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!

*****
And that, ladies and gentlemen, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.

*****
For those who understand, no explanation is needed..
For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.

2011-11-21T14:06:00.001-08:00

My thoughts on the 2012 GOP Presidential Field

SOOTHSAYING 2012

by Steve Fair

I have resisted making a prediction of who will win the 2012 GOP presidential nomination until now. I predict that Romney will be the nominee and that Cain will be his running mate. Beyond that, here is my take on each of the candidates.

**********

Herman Cain: While his 9/9/9 plan sounds good, some say it will increase tax on the poor and reduce the tax on the rich. The reality is spreading out the burden would be an improvement over what we currently have. Cain is weak on foreign policy and while he has improved some recently, he is still lacking. While the sexual harassment charges are being blown out of proportion by the media, when you sing gospel music at your appearances, you can expect more scrutiny on moral issues. Don’t forget Herman was on the board of the Fed. That’s not talked about much, but it will hurt him in the primary. Still my candidate and will be in OKC on December 5th .
*****
Newt Gingrich: The most able debater in the crowd. In fact- a real master-bator(I couldn’t resist). Newt can analyze a situation better than anyone, but has trouble governing. Anyone who describes himself as ‘the smartest person in the room,’ lacks the humility and character to be President. Read Dr. Coburn’s book, “Breach of Trust,’ if you want a perspective on Newt. If just the families of Gingrichs former wives vote against him, he’s doomed. Newt is a complete egocentric pragmatist who would be a disaster as President.
*****
Ron Paul: Libertarian and proud of it, Paul’s position on Israel is his major flaw. His isolationist policies would be a disaster for the U.S. His proposed legalizing of drugs would also be a challenge in the general. He is right about the Fed, the budget and health care. Paul’s ‘cult’ has seemed to finally recognize the ‘in your face’ tactics they used in 2008 don’t win friends and influence people and more importantly hurt you at polls. They have softened their approach and that is the reason he is doing better in the polls. He has also done very well in the debates by staying on message.
*****
Rick Perry: How can he still be in the race? He seemed to think if he laughs at himself, everybody will forget his debate gaffs. If this guy becomes President, he will give all the illegals amnesty and free college education. He is great on some issues, but he is a disaster on several key ones. He can raise money like no one in the field which will keep him around longer than he should be. We need a President who can think on his feet and Perry is not it.
*****
Rick Santorum: Of all the candidates, he is probably the best qualified and the most consistent with his message. His problem is he comes across as a whiner at every debate. And Santorum needs to stop trying to take credit for every positive piece of legislation that was passed during the time he was in Congress. With a nickname like Rooster, how can he not be taken seriously? He would be a great VP pick.
*****
Mitt Romney: Most consistent- ly BORING! Romney stays on message, but he doesn’t excite the troops. Obama would blister him in a debate, even if Mitt had the facts on his side. RomneyCare is an issue as is his flip flop on abortion. He has the best campaign mechanism in place for the early primary states, but it remains to be seen if he can translate that into votes. His business background is impressive, but how hard is it when you start at the top. Romney was born on third base and thinks he hit a triple.
*****
Jon Huntsman: How can anyone who worked for Obama be a serious candidate for the GOP nomination? This former ambassador to China sounds more liberal at each debate and clearly is just staying in because his family fortune can let him. He was a decent Governor and while early on he may have been in consideration for VP, now that is out of the question.
*****
Michele Bachmann: Idealistic and energetic, but she lacks executive experience. Sound familiar- like in Obama? Bachmann got off to a quick start and has sputtered as of late. In the debates she REPEATS the same lines, hoping to get the applause and cheers she got the first time she delivered them. Just voting no is not really governing. She is not Sarah Palin and it shows.

2011-11-21T09:53:00.000-08:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

PLAN FOR THE FUTURE REQUIRES BALANCE!
by Steve Fair

Obamacare gives states an option: Either establish insurance exchanges by January 1, 2014, or the Secretary of Health and Human Services will establish one for them. An “exchange” is essentially a bureaucracy where federally-mandated health insurance may be bought and sold. Thus far only seventeen (17) states had set up an exchange and Oklahoma is not one of them.

*****
According to policy experts, state insurance exchanges are not being set up fast enough to meet the 2014 deadline. The delay could mean that Oklahoma and other state legislatures are at risk of handing over a central component of the mandated federal health care effort to the federal Department of Health and Human Services, making the federal government even more powerful than it already is.

*****
During this year’s legislative session, the Oklahoma House passed a proposal to use a $54 million federal grant to set up an exchange system, but that proposal was derailed after an outcry from conservatives. They believed that accepting the grant money was an endorsement of ObamaCare. Proponents of the proposal said the grant money would not be earmarked for future use by Oklahoma, but redirected to other states.

*****
In response, the Oklahoma legislature created, ‘The Joint Committee on Federal Health Care Law.’ The ten member committee’s purpose was study how the federal health care law would affect Oklahoma. They met five times from September to November and concluded they were ‘unsure’ about what Oklahoma should do concerning a health care exchange.

*****
The two co-Chairs, Rep. Glen Mulready, R-Tulsa Sen. Gary Stanislawski, R-Tulsa, met with Oklahoma U.S. Senator Tom Coburn last week and discussed the issue. Coburn, an OGBYN physician, told them to copy Utah’s exchange program. The Utah program was set up before ObamaCare was passed and it is still unclear if it will meet the guidelines of the federal mandate.

*****
According to Mulready, Coburn told them they had to show action and not defiance in regard to the exchange otherwise HHS Secretary Sebelius will be in Oklahoma ‘telling you exactly what to do and when and where.’ Coburn also said he was "not optimistic whatsoever" about the chances of state challenges to the law that are now pending with the Supreme Court.

*****
In a Wall Street Journal editorial last week, Jonathan H. Adler and Michael F. Cannon pointed out a major glitch in ObamaCare involving the exchanges that will likely come up no matter the outcome of the top court ruling. They wrote, “ObamaCare authorizes premium assistance in state-run exchanges (Section 1311) but not federal ones (Section 1321). In other words, states that refuse to create an exchange can block much of ObamaCare's spending and practically force Congress to reopen the law for revisions.” Adler and Cannon also allege the Obama administration is trying to fix the glitch through the IRS without going through Congress, which they conclude is illegal. You can read the entire editorial at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203687504577006322431330662.html

*****
More than any modern government program since Social Security, ObamaCare has divided the country into pragmatics and idealists. People who are pragmatic are said to be more practical and willing to compromise. Some conservatives call pragmatics unprincipled. That is not necessarily true. Often pragmatics are the voice of reason in a sea of confusion. As Coburn correctly points out, it appears we have ObamaCare whether we like it or not. It now becomes necessary for the Oklahoma legislature to prepare for implementation.

*****
Those critical of the idealistic conservatives who derailed the exchange plan this past legislative session should remember the words of George Bernard Shaw: "The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man.” They were not willing to fold the hand before all the cards were dealt. Pragmatics are willing to concede defeat before the game starts. We need a balance of both pragmatics and idealists in leadership. Without the idealistic, we never move forward. Without the pragmatic, gridlock rules.

*****
Since the Health Care committee failed to come up with a plan, it appears Oklahoma legislators are putting all their chips on the U.S. Supreme court ruling and have no contingency plan if ObamaCare is ruled legal. You should always have a back-up plan. Mark Twain said, “Plan for the future because that's where you are going to spend the rest of your life.” Having a contingency plan is not compromise- that is simply accepting reality.

2011-11-14T04:29:00.000-08:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

NUTHIN’ BUT HONEY?
by Steve Fair

Last week, the members of the Oklahoma Task Force on State Tax Credits and Economic Incentives meet and discussed recommendations on how to rein in ineffective and impractical tax credits. When the business tax credits were set up, they were supposed to help existing Oklahoma businesses grow and expand. Recent revelations have shown instead they cost the state millions in lost tax revenue and benefited a few individuals by reducing their tax liability. The task force listed ten recommendations including authorizing the Oklahoma State Auditor and Inspector to annually audit the programs.

*****
“We are not against business. We don’t oppose growth,” said state Rep. David Dank, R-Oklahoma City, who chairs the task force. “We believe that government policy can help create jobs. We don’t think all credits or incentives are bad. What I think most of us believe after all we have heard here is that far too many tax credits and other incentives enacted in the past were created for the wrong reasons and in the wrong way.”
*****
Dank described the transferable tax credit situation in a colorful way: “The simple truth is that a few of these tax credits are like the huckster who took a bucket of manure, covered the top with an inch of honey and sold the whole thing as a full bucket of honey. It wasn’t until the sucker got home with it that he found out what he had actually bought,” The problem is that Oklahoma taxpayers were the suckers in this situation.

*****
According to Capitolbeatok.com, State Treasurer Ken Miller, a Republican and a member of the Task Force, agreed there should be less tax credits, but took issue with the auditing recommendation. He said he was “not yet opposed to enhancing the auditor’s authority, but also not yet convinced or persuaded to grow government.” He said he was concerned whether or not proposals to increase the auditor’s role could be done with existing resources, or if more spending would be needed. Miller was reported as saying he believed the legislature should provide the ‘oversight’ on the programs. You can read the entire article at http://capitolbeatok.com/_webapp_4074992/Treasurer_Ken_Miller_takes_critical_view_of_some_reform_ideas_before_tax_credit_task_force
*****
Three observations on the transferable tax credit saga:
*****
First, it’s clear some of these tax credits benefited wealthy individuals in Oklahoma and created fewer jobs than what was promised. Who knows if the lawmakers who wrote the legislation were aware they were selling a bucket of manure with a thin honey layer? If they did, shame on them. Who knows if the legislators who voted for the credits knew the bucket was mostly manure? If they did, shame on them. But going forward, every tax credit program that reduces the amount of taxes due to the state should be subject to audit by the State Auditor and a complete report provided to the public.

*****
Second, Miller is right about Oklahoma government being too big. In fact, Oklahoma government’s annual ‘expenditures’ have grown every year the past decade- from 9.6 billion to 16.6 billion. The ‘appropriated’ budget monies-money the legislature allocates- has gone down in recent years, but the overall size of Oklahoma government has continued to grow since 2001. That growth trend needs to be stopped, but one of the ways to stop government from growing is not to scrimp on oversight.

One of the fundamental roles of state government is to make sure Oklahoma tax dollars are not misappropriated or misused. The elected official charged with that responsibility is the State Auditor. Expanding the role and responsibility of the Auditor’s office just makes sense. Miller is correct in saying the state legislature is our first safeguard against bad policy. Lawmakers should never let a bucket of manure with a layer of honey get passed and signed into law. Every bucket of proposed legislation needs to be examined to determine if the ingredients are as advertised. If that had been done, this tax credit program would have never have seen the light of day.
*****
Third, authorizing the State Auditor to insure tax credit programs are doing what they are supposed to be doing is just common sense. Granted, it will require an investment. It will require additional staff in the Auditors office and a bigger budget, but growing government? Hogwash! Auditing government programs is just good judgment and a wise investment.

2011-11-07T11:18:00.000-08:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

WE NEED CRAZY JOE!
by Steve Fair

Historically, public schools in America were funded largely by local property taxes. Local revenues, however, have not kept up with the needs of the schools and have actually decreased in many states. To compensate for this change, state government entered the picture and backfilled these losses and now state funding represents the majority of funding for most local school districts. In Oklahoma, state government collects money earmarked for education from school land, earnings, REA tax, motor vehicle taxes, gross production tax, gambling, and a few other sources. The legislature then divvies up the money by using a ‘funding formula.’ The formula takes into account the number of students, transportation costs, etc.

*****
Despite all the media attention to federal programs like No Child Left Behind, the federal government does not contribute a large amount to running America's schools. And the federal money that is given to schools often comes with strings attached.

*****
On average, Oklahoma’s K-12 schools receive about eight percent of their funding from the federal government, fifty percent from the state budget and the rest from local taxes. Bear in mind that Oklahoma school districts have varying funding percentages due to the local tax factor.

*****
Education funding is the single largest expenditure in the Oklahoma state budget- over 3.4 billion. One Oklahoma state representative believes that total is actually 2 billion higher. Oklahoma State Rep. David Brumbaugh, (R-Broken Arrow) is conducting an interim study on where Oklahoma secondary education dollars are being spent and says, “Oklahomans spend $5.4 billion on education, or $8,411 per student a year according to the Friedman Foundation, which doesn’t include the dedicated revenues that are going to schools that don’t go through the appropriations process,” said Brumbaugh. “That alone indicates we need greater transparency and accountability on actual costs. Furthermore, funding for things like debt service, CareerTech, bursars, pensions, or depreciation on buildings and assets are not currently included in those figures; I believe that data should be made easily accessible to the public. Overall, costs continue to go up, yet in many school districts less than half of expenditures are getting to the classroom.”

*****
Brumbaugh’s demand for accountability and transparency from education is a good first step. Rep. Corey Holland, (R-Marlow) has pledged to shine the light on where/how higher education is spending our tax dollars. The key will be for other state legislators to get on board and demand accountability from education on where tax dollars are being spent.

*****
Education dollars not getting to the classroom is not just an Oklahoma problem, it’s a national one. In a 2010 study conducted by the National Center for Policy Analysis, Michael Barba wrote, “Public education now costs federal, state and local governments upward of $500 billion annually. This total is up from $354 billion 15 years ago and currently represents the largest state and local government expenditure. While spending increased nearly 50 percent, enrollment increased by just over 10 percent, reading and science scores held steady and on-time graduation hovered at 70 percent. Instead of cutting dollars spent in the classroom, state legislators across America should require clear accounting for how education tax dollars are spent, cap non-instructional spending and limit the growth of spending outside the classroom.”

*****
In Texas, rising administration costs in public education is also being questioned. Texas State Representative Erwin Cain, (R-Sulpher Springs) says in the Lone Star state for every five teachers employed in Texas public schools in the 1970s, there were just two non-teachers. Since 2004, non-teachers have been hired at nearly three times the rate of in-classroom teachers in Texas and out of classroom employees now equal those in the classroom. Cain believes this is a disturbing trend.

*****
If Texas has too much education administration costs, what about Oklahoma? The Sooner state has more total school districts than Texas. Each one of those districts has buildings, buses, and administration. 52 cents of every dollar allocated for K-12 education in Oklahoma goes for non-classroom related activity. This is not a new development, but has been ongoing for years in Oklahoma, yet no lawmaker wants to jeopardize their political career by addressing the dreaded ‘C” word-consolidation- so each year the education political football is kicked to the next legislature.

*****
To fix the problem will require legislative leadership with the same attitude of Joe Clark (Morgan Freeman) from the movie “Lean on Me.” They will have to forget their career, their retirement, their legacy and their security and do what is right. Like ‘Crazy Joe,” they will have to make tough decisions that will upset the establishment. But I believe like Joe they will be rewarded with a legacy that they made decisions that made a profound positive impact on this state.

2011-10-31T11:02:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

MAIL ORDER IS FOR A BRIDE, NOT DRUGS!
by Steve Fair

The Oklahoma State and Education Employees Group Insurance Board was created by the legislature in 1990 to administer the health, dental, disability and life insurance programs for state employees and educators. It is governed by an eight member appointed board that meets monthly. For several years, the OSEEGIB has been toying with the idea of having state employees and teachers purchase their drugs through a mail order pharmacy. The toying is over.
*****
In a press release issue on August 19th, the OSEEGIB said, “Beginning January 1, HealthChoice plans will make a mail-order pharmacy program for maintenance medications available to all pre-Medicare members. Maintenance medications are prescriptions that are usually taken on a daily basis and include drugs used to treat high-blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, heart conditions, etc. By adopting a mail-order pharmacy program, it is estimated the plan will save about $9 million in prescription drug costs."
*****
Not everyone was happy with the decision. The Pharmacy Providers of Oklahoma, who negotiates contracts on behalf of over 500 Oklahoma pharmacies, distributed a flyer to HealthChoice members stating the proposal would hurt locally owned pharmacies and communities. The presented a plan of their own the ‘Community Pharmacy Proposal,’ saying it would save taxpayers $13.5 million more than the mail-order proposal.
*****
PPOk also said the decision would hurt local pharmacies and would have a negative economic impact of up to $75 million annually. The OSEEGIB disputes the amount of the economic impact and said they have been more than fair with independent rural Oklahoma pharmacists by ‘maintaining their reimbursement rate for over two decades.’
*****
After the PPOk’s flyer was distributed, the OSEEGIB’s Director of External Affairs, Dana Webb responded with a four page letter to members of the legislature providing a timeline of when the mail order proposal was discussed, who was invited to address the issue, and the justification for the decision by the board.
*****
Last week, three Enid area Republican lawmakers- Senator Patrick Anderson and Representatives John Enns and Representative Mike Jackson, sent a letter to Governor Fallin urging her to stop the mail order implementation by executive order. “There are better approaches to take than this OSEEBIG plan if the goal is to save money. Other options do exist- OSEEGIB has heard their plans and does not seem interested,” the lawmakers allege.
*****
This issue begs five questions:
*****
First, the move to a mail order pharmacy by the OSEEGIB will directly impact over 100,000 state employees and teachers plus their dependents. Webb states in her letter the OSEEGIB held two public meetings in August on this issue and lists a laundry list of organizations and associations contacted, it still begs the question why this flew under the radar? I can assure you that most of the insured were unaware this change was being considered.
*****
Second, who is Medco? They are a New Jersey publically traded company and a spinoff of Merck. They provide health care management services to over 65 million people nationally. In fact, Medco is the current Pharmacy Benefit Manager for the OSEEGIB. They also just happen to be in the pharmacy business. They operate nine mail-order pharmacies and six call center pharmacies throughout the country. Doesn’t this look like a conflict of interest? They decide what is covered, how much is paid and they sell the product?
*****
In 2004 Medco settled a lawsuit brought by 20 states alleging that they failed to disclose ‘incentives’ they received from drug companies and improperly switched or pressured doctors to switch patient's medication in pursuit of profit. Medco Health Solutions agreed to pay the United States $155 million plus interest to settle allegations that it defrauded the government. Was the OSEEGIB aware of Medco’s ethics issues?
*****
Third, if the PPOk’s Community Pharmacy Proposal will save taxpayers more money than Medco, why was it not considered by the OSEEGIB? On the flip side, why wasn’t PPOk charging these reduced prices proposed in their ‘Community Pharmacy Proposal’ before the mail order issue came up? Both questions should be addressed.
*****
Fourth, was the trust factor considered? Most people trust their local pharmacist when they have questions about their medication. They know them and feel comfortable confiding in them. Calling an 800 number and talking to someone in a call center just isn’t the same.
*****
Fifth, why would we intentionally do something to hurt our local businesses and communities? The actual savings to the taxpayer and the amount of economic impact this proposal will have on local pharmacies may be in dispute, but whatever the impact, there is no doubt it would hurt the local pharmacies. That actual savings to the taxpayers may also be insignificant.
*****
Fallin should issue an Executive Order delaying the implementation of this proposal. This decision needs to be revisited with the next round including full disclosure and more legislative and public input. Mail order may be fine for a bride, but not drugs.

2011-10-24T10:37:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

HAS RIGHT TO WORK WORKED?

by Steve Fair

Right-to-work laws are enforced in twenty-two states, mostly in southern and western states. Right to Work laws are allowed under the provisions of the Taft-Hartley Act, which prohibit agreements between labor unions and employers to make union membership and/or payment of union dues a condition of employment.
*****
Oklahoma passed State Question #695(Right-to-Work) on September 25, 2001 in a special election. The vote was close- 54% to 46%- with twenty six of the state’s seventy seven counties voting against the proposal. Of the twenty two Right to Work states, Oklahoma was the last state to pass Right-to-Work. To view county by county election results, go to http://www.ok.gov/elections/support/02sq.pdf
*****
In 2001, I wrote a brochure that was widely distributed in the state advocating the passage of Right-to-Work entitled, “The Exodus Continues.” It featured a comparison of the mass migration of the Okies fleeing the dust bowl to modern day college grads fleeing the state for better paying jobs. The facts were clear- just like in the 1930s, Oklahomans were leaving the state not because they hated Oklahoma, but because they needed a job.

*****
It has been ten years since Right to work was passed in Oklahoma and eight years since it was implemented. Has passage of Right-to-Work worked in Oklahoma? That is a legitimate question and one that deserves an answer.

*****
According to The Economic Policy Institute, R-T-W has failed in Oklahoma. In a paper written in February 2011, the EPI claims “manufacturing employment and relocations into the state (Oklahoma) reversed their climb and began to fall, precisely the opposite of what right-to-work advocates promised.” They also point out the state’s unemployment rate(still lower than the US rate) continues to be comparable to neighboring states. You can read the report at http://www.epi.org/publication/right-to-work_law_did_not_help_oklahomas_labor_market/
*****
In the interest of full disclosure, The Economic Policy Institute is a union funded organization with an agenda, so their objectivity in the analysis must be questioned. Because jobs are a primary issue at the forefront of the 2012 Presidential campaign and Republicans have introduced a National Right to Work Act in Congress, the EPI will use any means possible to defeat a National Right to Work law. For more on the National Right-to-Work law, go to http://capwiz.com/nrtwc/issues/alert/?alertid=48799571&type=CO

*****
Last week, the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs released an in-depth study by Scott Moody and Wendy Warcholik countering the EPI study. They claim Right-Work has been a boon for Oklahoma. “Manufacturing output and productivity have outpaced the competition, and people from non-RTW states are voting with their feet by moving to Oklahoma in increasing numbers,” Moody and Warcholik wrote. You can read the report at http://www.ocpathink.org/articles/1549.
*****
Oklahoma’s population grew +8.7% between 2000 and 2010, but according to the US Census Bureau, the US population grew faster- +9.7% -during that same period, so Oklahoma has not seen major population growth from migration. And increased productivity” in manufacturing was not what those of us advocating passage of Right to Work were talking about in 2011. When we said R-T-W would help Oklahoma, we meant jobs- real jobs. We expected existing businesses to expand and grow and other businesses to relocate to the state.

*****
The truth is the measure of how Right to Work has helped Oklahoma is somewhere in between the two studies. Passing Right-to-Work in Oklahoma was not a mistake and it certainly has helped our state in business recruitment, but it is fair to ask if R-T-W has delivered what was expected. It hasn’t and here is why:
*****
First the national economical climate has been poor. Even though the R-T-W election was held two weeks after 9/11, no one could have foreseen that event would have a dramatic impact on the economic business climate in America. Ten years later, almost ten percent of Americans are unemployed and our country teeters on the brink of bankruptcy. Much of that is due to the cost of the war on terror.
*****
Secondly, Oklahoma has a flawed strategy in business recruitment. Economic development teams across the state spend too much time trying to recruit the ‘sexy’ jobs (aerospace/high tech), to Oklahoma and neglect the ‘meat and potatoes’ (distribution centers/consumer products) segment. Because of our geographic location, Oklahoma should be the hub for DCs, freight companies and CPG manufacturers. Those segments provide good paying stable jobs. In economic development, every segment should be recruited.
*****
Thirdly, Right-to-Work was just one of the impediments to recruiting business and industry to Oklahoma. Oklahoma’s workers comp laws and jackpot justice laws were two others. This past legislative session progress was made in both those areas. We have other impediments- tax structure, infrastructure- and our leadership must address those if we are to continue to move forward.
*****
Finally, passing R-T-W was not a quick fix solution to Oklahoma’s job woes. It took the state one hundred years to get to #45 in the country in per capita income. It will take time to reverse the trend but Scotsman Walter Elliott, a physician and politician, was right when he said "Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after another." Right to Work was just one of those races.

2011-10-17T09:07:00.001-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

GRADING THEIR OWN TESTS!
by Steve Fair

The Oklahoma Tax Commission last week released a report that examined the 2009 impact of the state’s Small Business Capital Formation Incentive Act as well as the Rural Venture Capital Formation Incentive Act. These tax credit programs stated objective was to create jobs for Oklahomans. According to the report, the two programs cost Oklahoma taxpayers more than $550,000 per job. In comparison, Solyndra cost federal taxpayers $486,000 per job.

*****
According to State Representative Mike Reynolds, (R-Oklahoma City), “This is just more proof that the government should not try to pick winners and losers in the marketplace. The track record of government officials displays why legislators, other government officials, and employees in the various departments who make the decisions to give away this money aren’t in the private sector. This money should have been used for roads, schools, or constitutional incentives like across-the-board tax cuts.”

*****
The Small Business Capital Formation Incentive Act provides up to a 30 percent tax credit of qualified investments made in certain small business capital companies or investments made “in conjunction” with those ventures.

*****
The Tax Commission report found that of the $158 million in total tax credits generated through the program in 2008 and 2009, only $41 million has currently been claimed, leaving at least $117 million in potential revenue reductions for the next budget year. Of the 99 total jobs created by the program, over half were at the Patriot Golf Course, a private golf course in the Tulsa area.

*****
State Representative David Dank, (R-Oklahoma City) is the chairman of the Task Force on State Tax Credits and Economic Incentives. He and Reynolds agree that a 2010 AG’s opinion that some of the tax credits in the two programs were unconstitutional because they failed the ‘accountability’ test should sent up a red flag and put a stop to them, but it didn’t.

*****
In the 2010 opinion, then Attorney General Drew Edmondson said for the credits to be legal, they had to serve a public purpose, provide more benefit than cost, and include adequate controls and safeguards.

*****
Dank believes many state tax-credit programs fail the third test involving safeguards. “We have reviewed enough of these tax credits so far to know that the controls and safeguards in place are often a joke,” Dank said. “In many cases, they are nonexistent.” In other words, these programs had no oversight- no one was watching to make sure they were not being abused. Why has there not been any ‘accountability’ for these two programs?

*****
Oklahoma has the office of State Auditor and Inspector. The state constitution states the Auditor’s duties include examining the state and all county treasurer's books, accounts and cash on hand or in bank and to publish an annual report with the results of those examinations.

*****
You would think the State Auditor’s office could audit any agency or program that receives state money, but that is not true. The office is limited by statue from looking at certain agencies books. You would also think that any honestly administrated publically funded program would welcome an annual outside audit by the Auditor’s office.

*****
But there are two problems. First, some agencies and programs don’t want the taxpayers to know how and where tax money is being spent. They know taxpayers would be outraged and demand reform, so they conduct ‘internal’ audits that are designed to make them look good. They account for the money, but no ‘performance’ audit is conducted. A performance audit differs from a regular audit because it examines whether tax dollars were spent economically, efficiently and effectively. Agencies and programs shouldn’t be grading their own tests. An objective set of eyes should be auditing their books.

*****
Second, audits are expensive. Expanding the reach of the Auditor’s office would cost money, requiring the legislature to increase the Auditor’s budget, but if we are truly concerned about accountability, this would be a good investment for taxpayers.

*****
The so-called Venture Capital programs mentioned were supposed to create permanent jobs for Oklahomans, but they appear to have done nothing but give tax credits to wealthy investors. The long term answer is to expand the State Auditor’s authority to audit any agency, program or group that gets a penny of state money or receives a reduction in their tax obligations.

2011-10-10T09:01:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

DON’T MESS WITH OUR RIGHTS!

by Steve Fair

Qui tam lawsuits are essentially a civil lawsuit filed on behalf of the government by a private citizen for fraud on or false claims submitted to the government. The individual bringing the qui tam lawsuit, called the "relator," is often a whistleblower with personal knowledge about a past or ongoing fraud scheme. If the qui tam lawsuit is successful, the whistleblower is entitled to a share in the recovery. Qui tam is Latin for ‘he who sues in this matter for the king as well as for himself.” Qui tam lawsuits were used in colonial times, and were embraced by the first U.S. Congress as a way to enforce the laws when the new federal government had virtually no law enforcement officers.
*****
Close to half of the states have enacted Qui Tam laws modeled on the federal False Claims Act to combat fraud against state and local governments. Most of the reforms deal with Medicare and Medicade fraud.
*****

State Senator Rob Johnson, (R-Kingfisher) authored SB 331, which increases the number of signatures required for "qui tam" lawsuits against government in Oklahoma. Currently it takes only ten taxpayers to file a suit to stop a questionable government action in Oklahoma. SB 331 increased that number to one hundred registered voters or 2.5% of the registered voters in the district involved. It also limits the amount a citizen can be awarded from a Qui tam lawsuit to attorney fees and court costs. Currently citizens who bring Qui tam lawsuits can share up to fifty percent of the court’s award.

*****
Senator Johnson says the increase will make it more difficult for a small group of disgruntled citizens to stop a government project. He believes the increases to be reasonable. Evidently his colleagues in the Senate agreed, passing SB331 by a vote of 43-0. The measure passed the House by a vote of 65-34. See House votes at http://e-lobbyist.com/gaits/rollcall/64856

*****
On Thursday, Oklahoma City attorney Jerry Fent filed a lawsuit directly with the Oklahoma Supreme Court seeking to stop SB331 from taking effect on November 1st. Fent says the law will make it more difficult for taxpayers to stop government corruption. Fent named only Governor Fallin in the suit since she signed the bill.

*****
Fent has a history of suing government when he disagrees with their actions. He has been called both a watchdog and a nutcase by various groups. Fent sued the state in June of this year over the state budget. In 2010, he won a lawsuit against the state when the State Supreme Court ruled 6-2 in his favor after he successfully argued the legislature could not collect ‘a fee’ from one area and use it somewhere else. In that case, it was a clear violation of SQ 640 and the state constitution.

*****
Fent has also argued before the State Supreme Court the current Judicial Nominating Committee is unconstitutional because it operates from old historical congressional lines and not the new lines. He lost that argument in February. He argued unsuccessfully in 2009 that Oklahoma’s acceptance of federal stimulus money was not handled properly.

*****
No one should be able to get rich by suing taxpayers. The provision to limit awards to only attorney fees and court costs is needed reform, but raising the number of discontented citizens necessary to file a suit against the state from 10 to 100 is too much. It appears this bill may have been targeted at Fent and like-minded individuals who file frequent lawsuits against government, but when legislators ‘target’ a citizen because he uses his ‘right’ too much, they hurt all of us. The average citizen must have a mechanism to appeal laws that are not well thought out.

*****
Taxpayer lawsuits against government do cost taxpayers money, are sometimes frivolous and take up valuable time for courts, but we need them left in the tool chest. Let’s hope Fent wins this battle in the Supreme Court. In this case, he is battling for all of us.

2011-10-03T10:36:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion EditorialOklahoma Prison Overcrowding a growing issue!
by Steve Fair

Last legislative session, HB 2131, authored by Speaker of the House Kris Steele, (R-Shawnee) and State Senator Patrick Anderson, (R-Enid) was approved overwhelmingly by both chambers of the legislature, passing the House by an 84-7 margin and the Senate 44-3. It was signed into law on May 11th by Governor Fallin and was scheduled to go into effect November 1st.

*****
The motive behind HB 2131 was Oklahoma’s prison overcrowding. According to Speaker Steele, “Our prisons are near capacity. Currently, if someone is convicted and considered a danger to society, there is virtually no place to put them.”
*****
HB 2131 changed the default sentencing structure from consecutive to concurrent terms, enhanced eligibility for community service and GPS monitor sentencing, and reduced the Governor’s role in the parole process for non-violent offenders.

*****
While the idea was good, the new law hit a snag last week when Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt said HB 2131 was unconstitutional. Pruitt’s opinion states that it violates the Oklahoma Constitution for the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board to grant parole without action by the governor. The statute provision that provided that, in cases involving nonviolent offenders, a parole recommendation by the Pardon and Parole Board is deemed approved if the governor does not take action on it within a 30-day period.

*****
While an Attorney General’s opinion is not binding on state officials, it appears the legislature and the Governor will defer to Pruitt’s judgment and start over next session.

*****
Oklahoma is the only state that requires the Governor to approve every parole after the Pardon and Parole Board submits a recommendation. That does seem unnecessary and redundant when you consider the Governor appoints the majority of the board. The Board is composed of five appointive members. Three are appointed by the Governor, one by the Chief Justice of the Oklahoma Supreme Court, and one by the Presiding Judge of the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals. The five members serve four year terms that run concurrent with the term of the Governor.

*****
Like governors before her, Fallin supports the reforms in HB 2131 and was disappointed by Pruitt’s opinion. “It will be up to the legislature to once again look and see where they want to move from this point on, Fallin said. “I do support going to a vote of the people.”

*****
State Senator Harry "Turn" Coates, (R-Seminole) has filed Senate Joint Resolution 46 that would remove the governor totally from the parole process- violent and non-violent offenders. Coates’ says it will allow the Governor to focus on the state's budget and other official business. If it passes both chambers, it would still have to be approved by Oklahoma voters.

*****
"The Legislature took a step in the right direction this session passing House Bill 2131, but we need to do more to speed up the parole process and make it more efficient,” said "Turn" Coates, R-Seminole. “The Pardon and Parole Board is a group of highly qualified experts with backgrounds in criminal justice. Giving the Board complete control over the pardon and parole process will save the state money and allow the Governor to focus more time on her primary responsibilities, which are finding ways to strengthen the state’s economy, help attract new businesses to our state and improve the lives of our citizens.”

*****
Coates' proposal goes too far by totally eliminating the governor from the process. The governor is the ‘elected’ representative of the people charged with specific duties- one of which is to deal with pardons and paroles. No appointed body should be granted that much power. While efficiency is a desired characteristic of government, accountability is more important.

*****
Oklahoma’s prisons are being filled up with non-violent offenders. The Sooner state locks up more women per capita than any other state. More than two thirds of the women in Oklahoma prisons were convicted of nonviolent crimes (mostly drugs) and have children that become the responsibility of extended family or state taxpayers.

*****
According to the Oklahoma Department of Corrections, about 20,000 Oklahomans are convicted of felonies annually. The current population in Oklahoma prisons is about 26,000- 60% of those who are there for nonviolent crimes.

*****
Steele is on the right track by attempting to ease prison overcrowding. With the cost to Oklahoma taxpayers to lock up criminals now at over 600 million annually (almost 10% of the state budget), and growing this is an issue that demands immediate attention.

2011-09-26T11:12:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

Oklahoma needs Open & Campus Carry!

by Steve Fair

In 1995 Oklahoma passed the Self Defense Act aka the Conceal & Carry law. Since that time over 107,000 Oklahomans have taken the course and received a license to carry a weapon. There have been only 30 revocations, 85 suspensions related to felony arrests, and about 15 suspensions per year for failure to conceal. Licensed C&C holders represent about 2.8% of the population of the Sooner state.

*****
Last week, State Representative Mark McCullough, (R-Sapulpa), convened an interim study to review Oklahoma’s gun laws. “We are conducting a serious, thoughtful examination of Oklahoma’s gun laws,” McCullough said. “Our goal is to develop responsible proposals for expanding the right to carry firearms in self-defense.”

*****
During the study, members of the House Public Safety Committee heard testimony from Oklahoma City University law professor Michael O’Shea, a nationally recognized expert on the Second Amendment. O’Shea said Oklahoma’s Self Defense Act is unreasonably harsh in its concealment provision. The Oklahoma law states that the gun must be completely concealed from view and detection, meaning even accidental exposure of the weapon is a crime.

*****
Tim Gillespie, an official with Oklahomans for the Second Amendment urged lawmakers to amend state law to allow gun owners to openly carry a weapon on their own private property, saying such restrictions are unreasonable.

*****
During the study, legislators considered at a wide range of issues, including modifying the weapons permitting process, open carry, and possible constitutional issues that may need to be addressed in light of certain court rulings.

*****
It’s legal to conceal and carry in 49 of the 50 states. Only Illinois does not allow a citizen to carry a gun. Seems a little ironic because Chicago has one of the highest gun related crime rates in America, yet it’s ‘illegal’ to carry a gun in Chicago. The old adage is right- ‘when you outlaw guns, only outlaws will have guns.’ Rocker Ted Nugent, an outspoken advocate for the Second Amendment, says, "If guns cause crime, all of mine are defective."

*****
Concealed handgun laws have reduced violent crime in America for two reasons. First, it reduces the number of attempted crimes because criminals are uncertain which potential victims can defend themselves. Second, victims who have guns are in a much better position to defend themselves from criminals.

*****
The upcoming Oklahoma legislature should consider two improvements to gun laws in Oklahoma:

*****
First, Oklahoma should have Open Carry. While many believe open carry would frighten people so gun toters should be considerate and “cover up” for the fearful’s sake, that argument doesn’t take into account the right of the gun owner to defend themself. A second argument against open carry is it makes you a target and that criminals will come after you if they see your gun. In a Department of Justice poll of violent criminals 57% said they fear a law abiding citizen with a gun more than they fear the police. The final and most compelling argument for open carry is that criminals do not openly carry their firearms. While law abiding people must conceal their firearms, it is also the preferred method of carry for criminals. It is not the gun you can see that is to be feared…it is the one you don’t see coming.

*****
The real purpose of passing open carry is to fix the ‘causal exposure’ problem that currently exists in Oklahoma’s law. This proposal failed to get past a Republican controlled House committee in the 2011 legislative session after being passed by both chambers and vetoed by the Governor in 2010.

*****
Second, Oklahoma should have Campus Conceal. There are no significant differences between carrying a concealed handgun on a college campus and carrying a concealed handgun in an office building, shopping mall, restaurant, grocery store, bank, or movie theater. Currently only Utah allows C&C license holders to carry on campus at their public colleges/universities. Fifteen states allow the individual schools to make the call, but only a couple of schools allow it.

*****
It seems some liberal educators are afraid students will pull their weapon after a tough test and plug them. According to concealcampus.org, since 2006 of the nine degree-offering public colleges in Utah not one single gun incident, including threats and suicide has occurred. Efforts to get this passed in Oklahoma have failed the past two legislative sessions after higher education administrators lobbied against it.

*****
Legal age Oklahoma college students should be allowed to exercise their constitutional right to bear arms on campus. These ‘gun free’ zones don’t work- ask Chicago. Former Vice President Walter Mondale, a Democrat, said, “Gun bans don't disarm criminals, gun bans attract them.”
Oklahoma legislators should be protecting citizen’s rights to defend themselves. The original intent and purpose of the Second Amendment was to preserve and guarantee, not grant, the pre-existing right of individuals to keep and bear arms.

2011-09-18T14:33:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion EditorialHITTING THE WALL!
by Steve Fair

The U.S. debt ceiling- the legal limit on government borrowing- has been in the news lately, but little or nothing has been said about the looming US debt wall- the point in which the percent of government debt to America’s GDP begins to affect our economy. An Oklahoman is trying to change that.
****
On Sunday’s Fox News ‘Huckabee,’ Marc Nuttle from Norman, Oklahoma was interviewed by the Governor about the debt crisis in the US and across the world. Marc is an attorney based in Norman, Oklahoma, who specializes in international trade, international foreign policy and international political affairs. Nuttle is widely recognized for his expertise in forecasting political and economic trends. He represents corporations, business projects and political entities nationally and internationally.
*****
Nuttle is heading up an organization known as Debt Wall (http://debtwall.org/). At DW, they contend there is a limited amount of money that the world’s sovereign governments can borrow in any single given year without pressuring interest rates to rise above the point of affordability. They believe that limit is approximately 9% of the world’s gross domestic product (GDP) and the US will hit the wall by July 31, 2012. The Debt Wall Index is a countdown to this collision. Based on current projections of economic growth and government spending, Nuttle and his organization believe the US will hit the Debt Wall by July 31, 2012.

*****
Marc’s reasoning is this: The current U.S. spending deficit is about $1.67 trillion. The spending deficits of the rest of the nations in the world run another $9 trillion or so. Combined, there simply is not enough liquid capital in the world to fund $10 trillion in deficits at an interest rate taxpayer anywhere can actually afford.

*****
Nuttle believes that once the world governments run out of ready money to borrow — they’ll pursue other means like raising interest rates to pull investors and their equity from other markets. They’ll also turn up the presses and print more money, devaluing their currencies and causing inflation. During inflationary times, the middle and lower income earners always feel the biggest pinch.

*****
At debtwall.org, Nuttle has a top ten list of things you need to know about the looming debt crisis in America. http://debtwall.org/debt-crisis-index-what-you-need-to-know/ To summarize the ten points he is simply saying if we don’t get our debt under control, our lives will change dramatically from an economic standpoint once we hit the Debt Wall.

*****
On ‘Huckabee’ the Governor noted that if Nuttle’s projected date of July 31st of next year is correct then America will be in the midst of the 2012 presidential campaign when the wall is hit. “Isn’t it in the best interest of both Parties to deal with the debt issue?” Huckabee asked. “Certainly,” Nuttle replied. “The nation’s debt wall is not a partisan issue.”

*****
It isn’t a partisan issue, but it certainly seems that way. When you consider how difficult was to get the debt ceiling compromise through the House, it would seem many in Washington mistakenly believe we have a revenue problem, not a spending problem.

*****
Dave Ramsey broke down the US federal budget and debt to levels that we can better understand when he said the cuts Congress was like a family making 58K a year, spending 75K a year and have over 327K in credit card debt. The family decides to fix it, by reducing their annual spending to $72K. While the cuts got them going in the right direction, it reveals a complete disregard of the fact their deficit spending is not sustainable long-term. Even if they act now, some believe it might be too late.

*****
A month ago Peter Leeds of Penny Stocks, wrote in an op/ed http://augustafreepress.com/2011/08/15/peter-leeds-past-the-point-of-no-return/that America is past the point of no return on dealing with the national debt issue. “You've certainly heard the endless stream of negative economic news lately. America's fiscal house is in trouble, job growth has stalled, and we may be driving right into a double-dip recession. While giving their pessimistic economic outlooks, there is one thing that the doomsayers have gotten wrong - they aren't nearly worried enough. We've past the point of no return. In both America and globally, in less than two years, our societies will look very different, and possibly be almost unrecognizable. I expect very strong inflation, fueled by loose monetary policies and an unprecedented period of near zero interest rates,” Leeds predicted. Not a very rosy picture.

*****
If Leeds assessment is correct and the debt wall projection by Nuttle’s group is accurate, America may be in for a long period of economic recession, but until a majority in Washington starts slamming on the brakes and not just lightly tapping them, it appears the US will hit the wall like a crash test car. The problem is the American economy is in the car, not the dummies that got us there.

2011-09-11T20:36:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

LESS GOVERNMENT, NOT LESS REPRESENTATION!
by Steve Fair

State Representative Gary Banz, (R-Midwest City) is conducting an interim study next week to look at reducing the number of members of the Oklahoma Legislature by approximately ten percent.
*****
“As lawmakers, we constantly talk about the need for smaller government,” said Banz, a retired coach and educator. “My legislation lets legislators prove it in a way that shows we are truly committed to reducing the size of government.”
*****
If both chambers of the legislature approve Banz’s House Joint Resolution 1021, voters in November 2012 would have the opportunity to approve a constitutional amendment reducing the Oklahoma Legislature membership. The proposal would cut the number of seats in the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 101 to 91, and reduce the number of state senators from 48 to 43. If approved by the voters, t would not take effect until after the next redistricting- 2021.
*****
“I believe the Legislature needs to look at itself first,” Banz said. “If we ask agencies to consolidate, it is important for the Legislature to take the lead and do the same.”
*****
In 1921, Oklahoma’s population was just over two million and there were 92 seats in the Oklahoma House of Representatives. Each State Representative represented about 22,000 Oklahomans. In 1953, there were 124 members in the State House and the population was 2.2 million in the Sooner state and each lawmaker represented about 17,000 people.
*****
“The House has successfully operated with far fewer members in the past, and the chamber has also successfully downsized in the past,” Banz said. “History shows this idea is very feasible.”
*****
“This would be a significant change, and I want to solicit input from every corner of Oklahoma,” Banz said. “I think this is good policy, but also believe it should be carefully vetted.” You can express your opinion by contacting Banz’s office at 405.557.7395.
*****
Three observations about Banz’s proposal:
*****
First, you will get little argument Oklahoma state government is too big. When you consider the largest employer in the state is state government, lawmakers should to be seeking ways to downsize government and save taxpayers money. But just how much money would Banz’s proposal save?
*****
Rank and file Oklahoma state legislators make $38,500 annually and then there are expenses, benefits, and staff for each member. The savings resulting from eliminating fifteen district would likely be around a million a year- not an amount to be sneezed at, but when the Oklahoma state budget is 6.7 billion annually, the savings from this proposal are virtually insignificant.
*****
Second, are Oklahomans currently over represented? Oklahoma’s population in 2011 is 3.75 million. That means an Oklahoma State Representative has slightly over 37,000 population in their district- a State Senator around 75,000. Today’s legislators represent over twice the population a 1950s legislator represented. If the number of legislators were reduced, it would make it even more difficult for citizens to get to know their state legislator. It would also increase the amount of geography each lawmaker would represent. The more sparsely populated areas in a district would get likely little or no attention as legislators would ‘fish where the fish are.’
*****
Third, Banz’s proposal would hurt rural Oklahoma. A large percentage of Oklahoma’s population lives in the urban areas of the state. If the number of state legislators is reduced, those larger population areas would gain more power and rural areas would lose representation. In the 2011 redistricting, rural Oklahoma lost three House seats and one Senate seat to the urban areas. You can’t change the dynamic of population shifting to the urban areas, but if the total number of legislators is reduced, the influence of rural Oklahoma counties will be reduced proportionally.
*****
While I applaud Banz’s willingness to save taxpayers money, reduction of the number of legislators will not result in enough savings to really matter. It would make access to state lawmakers more difficult than it is now, and dilute the influence of rural Oklahoma. Oklahomans need less government, but we don’t need less representation.

2011-09-05T07:19:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

Feeding the Education Machine!
by Steve Fair

Governor Mary Fallin said last week she wants Oklahoma to produce 1,700 more college graduates a year. “We need a much higher number of college-educated graduates in our state,” Fallin said at an OSU town hall meeting. Currently Oklahoma produces about 27,000 college degrees a year.
*****
In “ Brain Gain 2010,” a 1999 strategy by the Oklahoma Regents for Higher Education, http://www.okhighered.org/studies-reports/brain-gain/braingainreport.pdf, the lofty goal of thirty eight percent of Oklahoma’s population was set by the Regents to have completed an Associate degree or higher by 2010. They failed to reach the goal- only about 20% of Oklahoma’s workforce has a college degree.
*****
The higher education lobby in Oklahoma has been very successful at feeding the education machine, but they have done little to improve the states per capita income. In fiscal year 2012, Oklahoma higher education will get 14.5% of the state budget.
*****
State Representative Corey Holland, (R-Marlow) wants higher education to be more accountable for the money they get from the taxpayers. Holland said in a June 2nd interview with The Duncan Banner http://duncanbanner.com/x775914909/Holland-hones-in-on-education-reform that he believes that higher education should be scruntized more. “I still think there are some areas that we really need to look at,” Holland said. “One of those is the spending that occurs in the higher education areas. “Essentially, all the other state agencies, when they incur cuts, they make cuts. They live in the reality of the economic climate. Colleges and universities, though, when they cut their budgets cut, they raise the prices for tuition. They pass it on to the students. There needs to be a lot more accountability on higher ed.”
*****
Of Oklahoma’s common education superintendents, more than two hundred make more than $100,000 annually. In contrast, Holland, a former teacher, said more than 2,000 higher education employees make more than $100,000 annually. “That’s just ridiculous,” Holland said. “It’s because there is not enough ability for the legislature to provide adequate oversight on their spending. If that doesn’t change, it’s going to continue to be a detriment of K-12 schools statewide.”
*****
Holland is correct that higher education has a funding mechanism that state agencies don’t have. Their consumer- the student- pays a large portion of the cost of their education. Colleges and universities just increase tuition to make up for the budget shortfall. They seldom lay off Profs or administration- they just take a price increase in tuition. At the town hall meeting in Stillwater, Fallin failed to mention that when the Oklahoma legislature cut higher eds budget this year (by 6%), OSU, OU and other state college students got a +4.8% tuition increase. An in-state OSU student is paying about $500 more this year, making the yearly tuition about $7,200.

*****
At the town hall meeting, Fallin agreed that asking State colleges and universities to produce more graduates would logically lead to a call for more higher education funding, but she did not commit to asking the legislature to increase higher eds budget, saying that savings should be squeezed out of ‘other areas.’
******
Fallin also announced that Oklahoma would participate in the “Complete College America” http://www.completecollege.org/program, a program whose stated goal is, “to significantly increase the number of Americans with a college degree or credential of value and to close attainment gaps for traditionally underrepresented populations.” Funded by several foundations, including the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation, correctly state that while Americans are starting college at a record level, the graduation rates are flat.
*****
Oklahoma colleges already have a ‘Reach Higher’ http://www.okhighered.org/reachhigher/ program that encourages older students to complete their college degree online. The Reach Higher courses are repetitive and not very practical and while the ‘Reach Higher’ marketing brochure touts completion of the program as a stepping-stone to a better life, more pay, and personal satisfaction, little or no placement services are offered to graduates of the program. Like many higher education programs, it’s all about the tuition money.
*****
Educating Oklahomans is a worthy lofty goal, but is only one part of the puzzle. If Oklahoma college graduates don’t have a place to work when they get out of school, then Oklahoma colleges and universities are nothing more than a taxpayer funded business enterprise producing a product for other states and their industries. The key is moving Oklahoma forward is creating a business environment that will attract business and industry for those completing their education.
*****
Fallin said the future of Oklahoma’s prosperity depends on education. The reality is Oklahoma’s prosperity- humanly speaking- is dependent upon our marketing our state’s geographic location, citizen work ethic, natural resources and lifestyle. Just feeding an Oklahoma higher education machine is not the answer to moving Oklahoma forward.

2011-08-29T10:37:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

POPULAR VOTE WOULD HURT OKLAHOMA!
by Steve Fair

Last year, SB 841, authored by Senator Rob Johnson, (R-Kingfisher) and Representative Don Armes, (R-Faxon) passed out of committee and if it had been approved would have sent to Oklahoma voters a State Question to have Oklahoma join the National Popular Vote Compact. After an outcall from citizens throughout Oklahoma, the proposal was withdrawn and never was voted on in either legislative chamber.

*****
The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact is an agreement among states designed to replace current state rules governing the Electoral College system. If implemented, it would guarantee the election of the national popular vote winner. Eight states and the District of Columbia have passed the compact. Just last week, the country’s most populous state. California joined the compact. With the addition of California, proponents of the NPVIC have nearly half the electoral votes they need for the compact to take effect.

*****
The compact is based on Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution, which gives each state legislature the right to decide how to appoint its own electors. Today, 48 states, including Oklahoma, award all of their electoral votes to the candidate with the most popular votes statewide. Proponents of the NPVIC claim that means we are electing the President and elect the President and Vice President of the United States by popular vote and this just simplifies the often misunderstood Electoral College system. You can read more about their proposal at http://www.nationalpopularvote.com/index.php.

******
Who are the people behind the NPVIC? The Chairman is Dr. John R. Koza, the inventor of the scratch off lottery ticket, and twice a Democrat elector in California. Dr. Kova is a good friend of Al Gore, who won the popular vote in 2000 but lost the electoral vote count to George W. Bush.

*****
Barry Faden, a Democrat, is the President of NPVIC. He is a San Francisco attorney who supported John Kerry in 2004. He contributed $2,000 to Kerry according to campaignmoney.com.

*****
Board members for NPVIC are Tom Golisano, the owner of Paychex, an HR company for small business and the owner of the NHL’s Buffalo Sabers. In 2008, Golisano, a registered Independent in New York state, gave one million dollars to the Democrats for their national convention. Chris Pearson is State Representative in Vermont. He is a member of the Progressive Party, one of only 6 in the 150 member body. Stephen Siberstein is a California Democrat who contributed $250,000 to the Center for American Progress, a left wing think tank.

*****
So why is NPVIC pushing a national popular vote? In fifty-six Presidential elections, only four times has the winner of the electoral vote not won the popular vote (1824, 1876, 1888, 2000), so why is there such a rush to move to a national popular vote? According to the NPVIC website, it is “to guarantee election of the presidential candidate who receives the most popular votes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.” But that doesn’t seem to be real motive.

*****
When Al Gore won the popular vote in 2000 by 500,000 over George W. Bush, liberals began a systemic attack of the Electoral College. Even though Bush won over 70% of the geography of the US and thirty states vs. Gore’s twenty, liberals still believe he stole the election. They know that large urban states tend to be more liberal than rural states, so moving to a popular vote system would give a definite advantage to a liberal.

*****
But the founders of our country were huge proponents of ‘states rights.’ The founders of our republic were avid supporters of state rights. James Madison, known as the father of the constitution, said, “In our complex system of polity, the public will, as a source of authority, may be the will of the people as composing one nation, or the will of the States in their distinct and independent capacities; or the federal will as viewed, for example, through the presidential electors, representing in a certain proportion both the nation and the States.”

*****
According to David Barton of Wallbuilders, the genius of the Electoral College is that it synthesized two important philosophies established in the Constitution: (1) the maintenance of a republican, as opposed to a democratic, form of government and (2) the balancing of power between the smaller and the larger States and between the various diverse regions of the nation. I would recommend you read David's 2001 article, "Electoral College: Preserve or Abolish? " at http://www.wallbuilders.com/LIBissuesArticles.asp?id=95

*****
On Saturday, the state committee of the Oklahoma Republican Party voted to oppose any proposal to move to a national popular vote in the election of the POTUS. The vote was unanimous. This is one issue that both Oklahoma Republicans and Democrats must agree on; moving to electing the president by national popular vote would hurt Oklahoma.

2011-08-22T09:27:00.000-07:00

Ann Colter

You will note I have dropped the link to Ann Colter's column from my list of recommended links. I have always admired Colter for her courage and candor, but it appears she has now endorsed the gay lifestyle by joining the Log Cabin Republicans- aka GOProud. Here is a link to the story concerning her joining up with the group.

http://www.inquisitr.com/133795/ann-coulter-goproud-honorary-chair/

“Ann Coulter is a brilliant and fearless leader of the conservative movement; we are honored to have her as part of GOProud’s leadership,” board Chairman Christopher Barron said in the group’s official statement. “Ann helped put our organization on the map. Politics is full of the meek, the compromising and the apologists — Ann, like GOProud, is the exact opposite of all of these things. We need more Ann Coulters.”

*****
Coulter, who has a history of anti-gay statements and who does not support marriage equality – at least not publicly – joins anti-tax activist Grover Norquist, online media mogul Andrew Breitbart, Republican strategist Roger Stone, and a slew of other noted conservatives, all of whom serve on the organization’s council.

*****
Disappointing, but in today's situational ethics society, not surprising....

2011-08-22T09:07:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

COOL CLEAR WATER!
by Steve Fair

W.C. Fields said, “I never drink water. I'm afraid it will become habit-forming.” Fields was right- water is habit forming. According to A.C. Nielsen sales of bottled water last year were over $60 billion. Water is a necessary precious resource. Wars have been fought over water and the right to use it. Oklahoma may be about to go to war with Texas over water rights.
*****
In early August, Oklahoma Speaker of the House Kris Steele, (R-Shawnee), and Senate Pro Temp Brian Bingman, (R-Sapulpa) appointed sixteen state legislators to a joint legislative committee to study Oklahoma’s water policy. State Senator Brian Crain, (R-Tulsa), an attorney, and State Representative Phil Richardson, (R-Minco), a retired veterinarian, are co-chairs of the committee. Capital Beat has an excellent story on those appointed. You can read it at http://www.capitolbeatok.com/_webapp_3944106/Legislative_leaders_name_Joint_Legislative_Water_Committee,_with_diverse_group_of_16_members
*****
The committee met for the first time last Wednesday and according to OETA, they focused on water laws and court cases governing the allocation and use of water in Oklahoma. A New Mexico environmental attorney, Chuck DeMars, reviewed ‘The Red River Compact’ with the committee members.
*****
‘The Red River Compact’ was signed in 1978 by member states to resolve and prevent disputes over waters of the Red River Basin that are shared between the neighboring states of Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas, and to assure the receipt by member states of adequate surface flows and releases.
*****
The Red River Compact Commission consists of nine members -- two members from each of the four states (the director of the state water agency and a basin resident appointed by the governor) and a federal representative appointed by the President. The federal commissioner is a non-voting member and serves as Commission chairman. The Commission meets once each year.
*****
While provisions of the Red River Compact specifically state how much water each signatory state is allowed to develop or store on an interstate stream, the compact generally provides a means of working out problems between member states in an orderly manner, thus preventing the likelihood of litigation in most cases.
*****
But the Tarrant County Regional Water District sued the Oklahoma Water Resources Board and the Oklahoma Water Conservation Storage Commission to keep its permit applications from being dismissed while the matter was in court. Dallas Water Utilities, the North Texas Municipal Water District and the Upper Trinity Regional Water District have since become parties to the lawsuit.
*****
The TCRWD wants to divert more than 130 billion gallons of water from river basins just north of the Red River and provide it to the district's growing population(Fort Worth area), which has been projected at 4.3 million by 2060.
*****
The district filed permit applications in 2007 to capture water from three river basins in south central and southeastern Oklahoma before it enters the Red River and takes on too much salt to be drinkable.
*****
While selling water to our southern neighbors may seem almost treasonous to many Sooners, we must approach this issue in a rational logical way.
*****
First, north Texas is one of the fastest growing areas in population in the United States and they need water. If Oklahoma has a water surplus, that could provide millions of dollars in capital to help create jobs and opportunity for our state. The key is what is ‘surplus.’ How much water do we have in Oklahoma that we don’t really need? Selling water to Texas may be a prudent, wise decision, but determining what is surplus is the key. As this year’s record setting drought has shown, water can evaporate quickly in 100 degree temperatures.
*****
Second, allowing this case to go to trial in federal court is risky. Oklahoma could lose and Texas would get the water for free. The Tarrant County group has argued that Oklahoma has more than enough water for its needs and is violating the Red River Compact by not sharing it.
"There's enough water in the Kiamichi River basin alone to serve four times the population of Oklahoma," Jim Oliver, director of the Tarrant County group says. Indeed, the OWRB has said repeatedly that Oklahoma has more than enough water for our needs. If the court agrees with Texas, we give them the water. That’s even worse than selling it.
*****
Third, before we start selling water out of state, we should insure that every area of Oklahoma is taken care of, not just the SE corner of the state where there is an ample supply of water. This committee should be looking at ways to move Oklahoma’s water to other parts of the state to help suffering Sooners. I realize that may be a challenge logistically, but before we start selling water to others; we should be taking care of ourselves.
*****
Fourth, if the state sells the water to Texas, what happens to the money? Will it go to roads and bridges? Will it go to social programs? Will it just be thrown into the state’s general fund and used to shore up short budgets and more state employees? Any sale of water should move the state forward with long term investments in infrastructure like roads and bridges or aqueducts within the state to move surplus water from one area to another.

2011-08-14T14:16:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

RURAL OKLAHOMA NOT REPRESENTED!
by Steve Fair

According to the U.S. Census Bureau eighty four percent of Americans live in metropolitan areas. In Oklahoma, only 63.3% of the state’s population lives in metropolitian areas. Oklahoma is a rural state.
*****
According to Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) the sixteen percent of Americans that live in rural areas have only nine percent of the nation’s physicians. They claim the lack of accessibility for those in rural areas to quality health care results in higher risk for cancer, heart disease and diabetics. Oklahoma ranks 46th in primary care physicians per capita- 80 for each 100,000 population.
******
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation along with the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute has ranked every county in the US on health. The four factors they used were health behavior, clinical care, social and economic and physical factors. Out of Oklahoma’s seventy-seven counties, Stephens County ranks 21st. Complete information on the study can be found at http://www.countyhealthrankings.org/

*****
When he was running in 2008, President Obama had a ‘Rural Plan.’ for America that included a tenet on health care. The plan can be viewed at http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/ruralplan/ Obama said, “A basic problem facing rural America is access to affordable quality health care. Barack Obama is committed to signing universal health legislation by the end of his first term in office that ensures all Americans have high-quality, affordable health care coverage. His plan will save a typical American family up to $2,500 every year on their health care costs.
*****
Obama delivered on his promise and ‘The Patient Protection and Affordable Health Care Act’ was passed and signed into law. Some provisions have begun, but it will take ten years for the entire plan to be implemented. Last week, ObamaCare was dealt a blow when the 11th Circuit of Appeals in Atlanta ruled that it was unconstitutional to require all Americans to buy insurance or face a penalty. The 2 to 1 decision said that Congress exceeded its authority by requiring Americans to buy coverage.
*****
Governor Mary Fallin said about the 11th circuit ruling; “I am pleased that yet another federal court has agreed that the ‘individual mandate’ contained within the president’s health care law is unconstitutional. Oklahomans have made it clear the federal government under no circumstance should be allowed to force citizens to purchase health insurance. As this case moves through the federal court system, I look forward to continued validation that the ‘individual mandate’ is unconstitutional and in contradiction with the free market principles that have made this nation great.”
*****
Last week, Oklahoma legislative leaders announced membership and meetings for the Joint Committee on Federal Health Care Law, a special legislative committee that will study how the new federal health care law aka ObamaCare will affect Oklahoma.Senate Pro Tem Brian Bingman and House Speaker Kris Steele ordered the formation of the joint committee this past legislative session to ensure Oklahoma properly addresses the Federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. At the direction of co-chairmen Sen. Gary Stanislawski, R-Tulsa, and Rep. Glen Mulready, R-Tulsa, the Joint Committee of Federal Health Care Law will do its work through a series of public meetings in Oklahoma City and Tulsa.The committee’s first meeting will be Sept. 14 in Oklahoma City. The committee is expected to meet at least five times through November.

*****

“Having suitable health care options in Oklahoma is an issue the Legislature takes very seriously and intends to proactively protect and address through this committee,” said Stanislawski. “Oklahoma patients, taxpayers, businesses, health practitioners, insurers and others all have wide-ranging questions and concerns about this largely unwanted new federal law. The law will affect all Oklahomans, some in significant ways, so this committee will seek to address all relevant questions and concerns for the benefit of all Oklahomans.”
*****
First, the Oklahoma legislature should study the impact federal health care will have on individuals and businesses. That is prudent considering the sheer magnitude ObamaCare could potentially have on heath care in our state.
*****
Second, the members of the committee should have been appointed based on the Congressional districts, geographic areas and population of Oklahoma. The twelve members of the committee (eight Republicans and four Democrats) do not include one legislator from southern Oklahoma. Thirty seven percent of Oklahoma’s population lives in rural areas, but for the most part they are not represented on the committee. All of the announced public meetings are scheduled in OKC and Tulsa. http://www.oksenate.gov/news/press_releases.aspx
*****
Rural Oklahoma has the real health care shortage and yet it appears we are not represented. That is unacceptable.

2011-08-08T12:06:00.001-07:00

Weekly opinion editorial

HAND UP, NOT A HAND OUT!
by Steve Fair

State Representative Guy Liebmann, (R-OKC), has announced plans to file a bill for the 2012 legislative session that would require drug testing of individuals in Oklahoma applying for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.
*****
“Federal law already gives states the right to test welfare recipients for use of controlled substances and sanction those recipients who test positively,” Liebmann (R-Oklahoma City) said. “My legislation would just make it mandatory. It’s just a common-sense bill and one that is already being signed into law in other states.”

*****
Liebmann’s bill is similar to one just signed into law in Florida. Last week, Missouri’s governor signed legislation requiring applicants and recipients of the welfare program be tested for drugs if there is reasonable cause to suspect illegal drug use. More than two dozen other states are considering similar legislation.
*****
Temporary Assistance for Need Families is a federal program begin back in July 1997, and succeeded the Aid to Families with Dependent Children program. According to the Oklahoma Department of Human Services website, TANF in the Sooner state is to be primarily a safety net for children. The site describes the program as: Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) is a federally-funded program for children deprived of support because of a parent’s death, incapacity, absence or unemployment. Cash assistance is available to the family on a time-limited basis through TANF. The purpose of this federal program is to provide temporary support in meeting basic needs, training leading to employment, employment services and childcare assistance for qualified families with children.
*****
In 2010, there were about 10,000 families and 5,000 single parents in Oklahoma on TANF. Monthly payments ranged from $10 up to $500 per month per child. Those onTANF are also eligible for food stamps and taxpayer funded health care.
*****
Is there a widespread problem with drug use among those on government assistance? It would seem so. According to a U.S. government study from 2000, 9.6 percent of people in families receiving some type of government assistance reported recent drug use, compared to 6.8 percent among people in families receiving no government assistance at all. A recent University of Michigan study found that almost 20 percent getting TANF payments reported recent use of some illicit drug.
*****
That is a significant percentage and no one using dope should expect taxpayers to fund their habit. Two questions need to be addressed on Lieberman’s proposal:
*****
First, what happens to the children if a parent doesn't pass a drug test and are not able to receive a government handout until they can prove they are drug-free? Liebmann said he would like to include a provision allowing parents who test positive for controlled substances to sign up a relative to serve as a protective payee to receive benefits for a dependent child. But if children are living in a home with drug abuse and parents who are not responsible enough to place the care of children above the desire to take meth or smoke a crack pipe; shouldn't they be removed from the dangerous situation? The question of what to do about the children will likely be seriously considered and debated as Liebmann’s bill move forward.
*****
Second, how much will this testing cost Oklahoma taxpayers each year? In Florida the annual tab will be $3.5 million dollars. TANF is a federal program so any money ‘saved’ by not going to a drug user will not be put back into state coffers to help offset the cost of testing. That means the feds save money, but it is highly unlikely they will help the state with the cost of testing. Oklahoma taxpayers will foot the bill to help combat fraud and the feds will redistribute the ‘saved’ money to other states.
*****
If Liebmann can find a way to help those kids who are in homes where dope is being used and a way to fund the program, this bill should sail through the legislature. Really why shouldn’t people wanting government assistance be drug tested before they get a dime of taxpayer funded assistance? Most employers now require new hires pass a drug test before employment. Many employers conduct ‘random’ drug tests to insure a safe working environment for their employees. The poor and downtrodden should be shown compassion during difficult economic times. But when they use taxpayer dollars to buy dope and alcohol that is not giving them a hand up, it’s giving them a hand out.

2011-07-31T17:38:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

CAN’T SAY NO!
by Steve Fair

A balanced- budget amendment is a constitutional rule requiring government to not spend more than its income. It would require a balance between the projected receipts and expenditures of the government. Every state in America, except Vermont, has some form of a balanced budget amendment.
*****
The U.S. federal government does not have a balanced budget amendment, but with the debt ceiling debate, there is a lot of talk of passing one. But getting a balanced budget amendment is a long and tedious process.
*****
There are two methods spelled out in Article five of the US Constitution on how to amend the founding document. The first is for the bill to pass both the US House and Senate and then go to the fifty state legislatures where it must be ratified by three fourths- 38- of the states.
*****
The second method- which has never been done- is for 2/3 of the state legislatures to call for a Constitutional Convention and propose one or more amendments. Ratification must still be by ¾ of the states.
*****
The Supreme Court has stated amendment ratification must be within "some reasonable time after the proposal." Beginning with the 18th amendment, it has been customary for Congress to set a definite period for ratification. In the case of the 18th, 20th, 21st, and 22nd amendments, the period set was 7 years, but there has been no determination as to just how long a "reasonable time" might extend.
*****
Of the thousands of proposals that have been made to amend the U.S. Constitution, only 33 obtained the necessary two-thirds vote in Congress. Of those 33, only 27 amendments (including the Bill of Rights) have been ratified.
*****
One state ready to ratify a balanced budget amendment is Oklahoma. Sixty-four legislators in the State House signed a letter in support of a proposed federal Balanced Budget Amendment. The letter expresses the legislators’ support of the amendment and declares the legislators’ intent to work for ratification of the proposal in Oklahoma.“If the Balanced Budget Amendment is approved by Congress, we are committed to supporting and working for ratification in Oklahoma,” the letter states. “We are confident that if given the opportunity, Oklahoma will be one of the first states to ratify the Balanced Budget Amendment.” Speaker of the House Kris Steele, (R-Shawnee), Representative Dennis Johnson, R-Duncan, and Corey Holland, (R-Marlow) all signed the letter.
*****
Oklahoma’s congressional delegation all support a balanced budget amendment. In fact, Senator Tom Coburn is so confident that President Obama would sign it if it reached his desk that he bet reporters in Washington a steak. Coburn told reporters, “I will bet you a porterhouse steak if it lands on his desk, he will sign this puppy.”
*****
While Dr. Tom and Prez are friends, it would seem Obama is not ready to help the Okie from Muskogee collect on the bet. President Obama said, “I think it’s important for everybody to understand all of us believe we need to get to the point where we can balance the budget, We don’t need a constitutional amendment to do that.”
*****
Do we need a federal constitutional amendment to insure Washington doesn’t spend more than they take in? It would seem so. Even under Republican control, Congress has an insatiable appetite for spending. When Republican lawmakers who brand themselves fiscal conservatives, but then take earmarks, push pet projects in their home state and rail against ‘big spending,’ it’s obvious we have a problem. Spending taxpayer money is the nature of the political beast, so it’s critical a law be passed that forces the creature to do what every American household has to do- live on what money comes in.
*****
Balancing the budget will be tough. The federal government employs over 2 million people- up almost ten percent in the past ten years- and those folks will not go ‘gently into that good night.’ Because most of the 1.4 million civilian employees have lots of time on their hands at work, they will relentlessly lobby members of Congress on how important their job is to the survivable of America. That’s how America has gotten a national debt of over 14 trillion dollars- over $130,000 per taxpayer. By caving into special interests. Like Ado Annie Carnes in the musical Oklahoma, most politicians ‘can’t say no.’
*****
Oklahoma legislators are OK for leading the charge to ratify a federal balanced budget amendment.

2011-07-24T18:55:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinon Editorial

COME FLY WITH US!
by Steve Fair

Last week, Governor Mary Fallin told the Tulsa Chamber of Commerce at their annual banquet that Oklahoma needs a ‘game changer.’ “All states have about the same things they offer business to come to their state. They all have tax incentives or use higher education or cash-back offers. In order to stand out, the state needs to create a game changer – something that is distinctive to Oklahoma and no other state,” Fallin said.

*****
One of the potential ‘game changer’ industries Fallin mentioned was the unmanned aircraft industry. “One such area today is the unmanned aerial systems program,” Fallin said. “Aerospace remains a key industry for our state, with more than 500 aerospace companies offering potential for growth and economic impact.” The Sooner state has about 360 flying days a year, so it is a great place for UAVs to be developed and tested.

*****
Unmanned aircraft has a history in Oklahoma. The Maritime Vertical Takeoff and Landing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle System or MAVUS I was completed at Ft. Sill in 1992. That drone named, ‘The Sentinel’ successfully demonstrated the first free-flight autonomous landing of a UAV.

*****
According to the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Association the advantages to using unmanned aircraft is the drones do not contain, or need a qualified pilot on board and can enter environments that are dangerous to human life. They can also stay in the air for up to 30 hours and can be programmed to complete a mission even if contact with the drone is lost.

*****
Some are saying it’s not that far into the future when commercial aircraft will have no on-board pilot, but a UAV pilot on the ground flying the plane remotely. The cost savings by eliminating the cockpit area would save carriers millions and would virtually eliminate the chance of a hijacking like what occurred in the 9-11 attacks.

*****
In fact Federal Express, the world’s largest air freight carriers, has said concerning UAVs, "'FedEx is always interested in new technology that will help us improve service to our customers, but we do not disclose the nature of our research."

*****
Call me old fashioned, but I want the pilot on-board/up front in any plane I’m flying on.

*****
In 2010, Oklahoma State University, through the University Multispectral Laboratories (UML), received a five-year U.S. Navy contract worth up to $44 million to test and design unmanned aerial systems. The work is being conducted at the UML in Ponca City, on the OSU-Stillwater campus, and at UML sites in Lawton. The contract will lead to the creation of 90 new jobs over the next five years
*****

The defense department has increased their inventory on UAVs in the past ten (10) years from less than 50 to more than 7,000 according to defensesystems.com. While the aircraft are unmanned, there is still a ‘pilot’ flying the UAV from a remote location. The challenge for the military has been a shortage of pilots which has plagued all branches of the service using the drones.

*****
UAVs perform a wide variety of functions and not just for the defense department. Most drones are currently used for some form of remote sensing. Less common UAV functions for the military include interaction and transport of supplies. Most everyone has heard of the MQ-1 Predator UAV which is armed with missiles and used for offensive purposes, but Predators have also been used to perform search and rescue and damage assessment. After hurricanes in Texas and Louisiana, the drones were sent up to 29,000 feet to gather information about the damage on the ground. The Predator has a sophisticated all-weather sensor capable of providing photographic-like images through clouds, rain or fog, and in daytime, so it is invaluable to officials as they access damage and what is happening on the ground.
*****

Fallin is onto something by encouraging the aeronautics industry to look at Oklahoma. Our two largest state universities- OSU and OU- have undergraduate degrees in Professional Pilot, Aviation Management, Technical Services Management, and Air Traffic Management. Oklahoma’s terrain and climate is friendly for flying planes- both manned and unmanned. The state has great people and an excellent quality of life. Aircraft companies should be looking to the Sooner state to location their operations. As the saying goes, “Come fly with us.”

Note: Pictured above is a General Atomics MQ-1 Predator, an unmanned aircraft (UAV) used primarily for reconnaissance and forward observation roles. The Predator carries cameras and other sensors and has been modified to carry and fire two Hellfire missiles. The drone has seen combat over Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bosnia, Serbia, Iraq, Yeman, Libya, and Somalia.

2011-07-18T10:49:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

PROMISES AND REALITY!
by Steve Fair

On Monday, House Speaker Kris Steele, (R-Shawnee) announced a State House oversight committee on pensions. The twelve member committee has eight (8) Republicans and four (4) Democrats. Representative Corey Holland, (R-Marlow) and Representative Todd Russ, (R-Cordell) are representing SW Oklahoma on the committee which is Chaired by Representative Randy McDaniel, (R-OKC). Holland is a former educator, Russ a banker.

*****
Representative McDaniel made a presentation at the Southern Legislative Conference’s annual meeting in Memphis that evidently grabbed the attention of other state legislators whose states face similar challenges with their pension plans. In his presentation, McDaniel highlighted what the Oklahoma legislature is doing to fix unfunded pensions.

*****
At the start of the 2011 legislative session, Oklahoma’s seven public employee retirement systems had over a $16 billion unfunded liability compared to a $6 billion unfunded liability just a decade ago. As of last March, Oklahoma’s 57 percent pension funding ratio was the third worst in the nation.

*****
However, the reforms enacted by the Oklahoma Legislature this session will produce savings of nearly $7 billion over the next 30 years. The major reforms enacted will require that cost-of-living adjustments be fully funded when authorized and will increase retirement ages to reflect rising longevity.

*****
“Oklahoma made noteworthy strides this year. Our efforts to shore up the state’s pension plans are being recognized,” McDaniel said. “I was honored to have the opportunity to discuss our approach with policymakers from across the country and look forward to continuing to work on this important issue.”

*****
“Improving the fiscal stability of our pension system is important because failing to do so would risk sending all of state government into fiscal disarray. I am pleased the House is continuing to rise to this challenge,” Steele said.

*****
How did the Oklahoma pensions plans get in this mess in the first place? In an article for OCPA in October 2010, Edmond CPA Steve Anderson answers that question. Anderson said, “The simple answer is that the state embraces a type of retirement plan that has shown a tendency to become fiscally insolvent. Defined-benefit plans, such as the state uses in each of its systems, have flaws that are almost unavoidable. In a defined-benefit plan the employer guarantees a certain benefit payment to an employee for his or her lifetime, come hell or high water. The collapse of Bethlehem Steel, the crisis at General Motors, and dozens of other examples have spotlighted the inherent problems with defined-benefit plans.” The entire article can be found at http://www.ocpathink.org/articles/274

*****
Anderson went on to point out that defined-benefit plans are even more pronounced in the public sector. He contended for year that Oklahoma politicians used the plans to buy votes but hide their actions from all but the most knowledgeable financial types.

*****
“Fortunately, recent rule changes enacted by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) have required government entities to reveal these debts to the public in their annual financial statements. However, those numbers are buried in places in the financial statements that still require a sleuth to find them,” Anderson said.

*****
Bottom line- past Oklahoma legislatures overpromised and underfunded. As they say, it's not often that promises and reality cross paths and this is a classic example.

*****
According to former Oklahoma AG Drew Edmondson, taxpayers are on the hook for those overpromises. In an opinion released in late November 2010, as he was leaving office, Edmondson said the Oklahoma Teachers Retirement System (OTRS) must receive its annual allocation from the State Department of Education regardless of whether or not the Oklahoma Legislature passed line item direction to fund the credit.

*****
That simply means that if the money to fund teacher’s retirement is not there, then the legislature will have to raise taxes to get it. It’s like a mortgage- you are committed to it for years- payments are not optional.

*****
Past Oklahoma legislatures have passed the buck to the next legislature for years because they didn’t want to deal with this looming issue. They knew dealing with it would likely cost them votes, so they just ignored it.

*****
That is why it is critically important who we send to represent us in both Washington and Oklahoma City. If a person can be influenced by a powerful lobbying group to commit Oklahoma taxpayers to fund programs without a plan or mechanism to pay for it, then we need to replace them with someone with more common sense.

*****
Oklahoma still has a long way to go before we have our public pension plans fixed, but at least we now understand we have an issue and can work to resolve it. The key is to avoid similar ‘commitments’ in the future.

2011-07-14T10:02:00.000-07:00

Commentary for SoonerPoll

OKLAHOMA IS OPEN FOR BUSINESS!
by Steve Fair

In a SoonerPoll http://soonerpoll.com/taken in early May, 500 plus Oklahomans were asked the reason only 40.4% of Oklahoma’s population of 3.75 million population is working. 26.7% of the respondents cited ‘lack of job opportunities’ as the reason. Interestingly the polling responses didn’t have a partisan twist- meaning both Democrats and Republicans recognized that lack of job opportunities is a major issue in the state.

*****
If you ask your friends and neighbors where their kids and grandkids are living most will say out of state. Their kids didn’t leave the state because they hated Oklahoma- they left for job opportunities. For years we have exported our best and brightest because meaningful jobs were not here when they completed their education.

*****
Because there were limited job opportunities, Oklahoma college graduates fled like the Okies in a Model A during the dust bowl. And who could blame them. When the average Oklahoman was earning $5,000 less per year than a person in Texas doing the same job, it’s hard not to justify living 300 miles south.

*****
For almost a century, the liberal controlled Oklahoma legislature did everything possible to hurt businesses by taxing everything that wasn’t nailed down. Oklahoma had high workers comp rates, no right-to-work law, and ‘jackpot justice.’ tort. No major company would seriously consider Oklahoma for relocation and existing Oklahoma businesses often left the state to seek friendlier confines. It was as if a CLOSED sign was hung on Oklahoma’s door to business.

*****
Thankfully that is changing. The most recent Oklahoma state legislature and Governor Fallin deserves an A+ for addressing two impediments to recruiting business to Oklahoma. This session they passed meaningful lawsuit reform and they revamped the workers comp system. That will help existing Oklahoma businesses be more competitive. It will also help to recruit business to the state. Don’t expect it to change overnight because we didn’t get here overnight, but the Sooner state has a lot going for it.

*****
Oklahoma is centrally located geographically, has a mild climate (never mind the current heat wave), hard working people and sits at the crossroads of two major interstates- I40 &I35. Oklahoma should be the distribution center capital of America. Retail and manufacturing goods have to be transported and with diesel fuel at all time highs, freight is a big factor. In time that may come to past because the 2011 removed some obstacles to job development in Oklahoma.

*****

It’s now up to state and local leaders to follow up by selling Oklahoma to out of state businesses for relocation. Oklahoma is open for business.

*************************************

READ MY PREVIOUS POST- HI..HO..HI..HO..IT'S OFF TO WORK THREE OKIES GO FOR MY OPINION ON WHY OKLAHOMA HAS ONLY 40.4% OF THE POPULATION WORKING! WHILE LACK OF JOBS IS ONE REASON, AN AGING POPULATION AND A HIGH NUMBER OF PEOPLE OF DISABILITY IS THE REAL REASON!

2011-07-13T12:27:00.000-07:00

HI..HO..HI..HO..IT’S OFF TO WORK
THREE OKIES GO!
by Steve Fair

Sneezy has a chronic sinus infection. He takes Seldane, which he gets from his local pharmacy with his Medicaid card. He has been on Social Security disability for eleven (11) years. He mows yards in the summer, but will only accept cash for payment- no checks. He pays no state or federal income taxes, but receives an ‘Earned Income Tax Credit’ check every year.

*****
Sleepy is also on disability. He has sleep apnea and because he can’t get it under control, he is always tired. He does manage to make it to the local tribal casino everyday, but he can only stay about eight hours at a time. He always makes sure his winnings are below the ‘reportable’ amount to the IRS, so his disability check is not impacted. He works as a security guard at a salvage yard at night. The guy that opens up usually has to wake him up. He gets paid in cash.

*****
Bashful has ‘bashful bladder syndrome,’ also known as Paruresi. He has a fear of urinating. It means he has to stay home most of the time. He also draws social security disability, but works online for a psychic reading website that pays him cash so he doesn’t lose his disability. He takes Xanax to help him with BBS. The meds are covered by Medicaid.

*****
Dopey has an intellectual disability known as cognitive dysfunction or commonly known as brain fog. It unusually results in poor mental function, associated with confusion, forgetfulness and difficulty concentrating. He lives in a taxpayer supported apartment and draws social security disability. He works for a concrete contractor and gets paid in cash. He has a live-in girlfriend.
*****
Doc runs a thriving primary care medical practice. He works eighteen hours a day caring for the sick and disabled in his community. Sneezy, Sleepy, Bashful and Dopey are all his patients. They are all on Medicaid. Because Doc’s medical liability premiums have risen in the past couple of years, his practice is just marginally profitable. He has considered leaving Oklahoma and moving his practice to another state, but with lawsuit reform passing the legislature this year, he decided to stay. Last year Doc paid 61% of his personal income in federal and state income tax. Sometimes he just doesn’t think it is worth it, even though he went to medical school to help people, he feels taken advantage of. Sometimes he questions if the juice is worth the squeeze.
*****
Grumpy runs a construction firm. He inherited the company from his father. He hates his job, his suppliers, his customers, his employees and most of all his family. He works fourteen hours a day and feels unappreciated. He built low income housing for Sneezy, Sleepy, and Bashful, three of his childhood friends. Grumpy believes it’s unfair for him to work and pay taxes and yet these ‘slackers’ can have a new house free and never pay a dime in taxes. Last year, he started going to Tea Party rallies when he could, taking along his friend Happy. Last year he paid 42% of his income in federal and state income tax. Two years ago, Grumpy was audited by the IRS for taking a perfectly legitimate business deduction. It took three months and lots of Grumpy's time and money, but in the end the IRS ruled he owned no additional taxes. He suffers from high blood pressure and high cholesterol, but his private funded HMO does not cover the medication he needs to keep it under control. Grumpy got his friend Doc to write him a prescription for two generic drugs that works fairly well, but his out of pocket expense is over $300 a month for the two medications.
*****
Happy is a jelly salesman. He travels the country and the world selling top retailers and wholesalers. Last year, he paid over 45% in federal and state income tax, but he still enjoys his life. He loves his family, his country and his Creator. He is content, believes America is still the land of opportunity. He cares about those less fortunate than himself. So much so, that he brought Sneezy, a childhood friend, a hypoallergenic pillow because he thought it would help him with his allergies. Every Christmas, he and his wife take baskets of food and goodies to Dopey, Sneezy, Bashful and Sleepy. Recently, he has not been as happy as he used to be because his wife has started to nag him about their not enjoying the fruits of his labor. He started attending the Tea Party rallies with his friend Grumpy and liked what he heard- particularly the part about smaller government. He put a 'Don't Trend on Me,' sticker on his back window.
*****
In America we have reached the lowest percentage of the population working in three decades. According to an April 2011 USA Today article http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/employment/2011-04-13-more-americans-leave-labor-force.htm ,only 45.4% of Americans were working in 2010. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out when less than half the people are working you have a productivity decline.
*****
In Oklahoma it’s even worse. Only 40.7%. of the population is working If the Oklahoma population were represented by the ‘Seven Dwarfs,’ only three of them would be working/producing. Nearly 60% of Oklahomans are NOT working. They are either on private or social security retirement, disability or public assistance. The rate of those not working in Oklahoma is 10.3% higher than the rest of the country.

****

There are three reasons why Oklahoma’s rate of workers is lower than the total U.S.:
*****
First, Oklahoma’s overall population is older than the rest of the country. The U.S. Census Bureau reports that 13.5% of Oklahoma’s population is over the age of 65. Nationally that number is 12.9%.
*****
Second, Oklahoma loses a lot of young people to other states. Because of limited career opportunities in the Sooner state, kids tend to leave our state as soon as they graduate from high school or college. We export our best and brightest. Like a modern day, Grapes of Wrath, the youth flee the Sooner state like the Okies did the dust bowl.

*****
Third, Oklahoma’s population is not as healthy as other states. According to Americanhealthrankings.org, Oklahoma is 49th in the country in health. In a state where the state meal is the Chicken Fried Steak, that’s not surprising, but poor health results in a higher percentage of the population not being able to work.

*****

The Social Security administration website lists Oklahoma as having 705,364 people drawing SS in some form or fashion, either in retirement benefits (430,842), or as disabled workers (120,235). 18.8% of the population of Oklahoma is on some form of social security. Nationally that percentage is 17.5%. In Texas that number is only 13.7%. Of the bordering states, only Arkansas (21.8%) has a higher percentage of their population drawing social security.
*****
While that explains the why Oklahoma has only 40% of their population working, but it doesn’t address the economical and social impact that will have in the coming years.
*****
First, with less people working, less tax will be collected reducing revenue to the government. That means government leaders will have to increase the rate of taxation on those working or reduce government services.
*****
Second, if government increases the rate of taxation on those working, some may elect to join those who are not. “If you can’t beat them, join them,” may replace “Labor conquers all,” as the Oklahoma state motto. Less producing workers will put more pressure on government sponsored entitlement programs, resulting in an even higher tax rate for those 'stupid' enough to continue to work in the private sector.
*****
Third, as the population ages, there will be an increased demand for health care particularly in rural areas of the state. With a shortage of primary care physicians already in the Sooner state, the new ObamaCare will create an even bigger shortage. According to a July 13th article in The Oklahoman, Oklahoma will face more challenges than any other state when more residents become eligible for Medicaid under ObamaCare.
*****
What do state and local government leaders need to do about this trend?
*****
First and foremost they must stop the erosion of our younger population. They can’t stop the aging process, but they can address people leaving the state. They must foster a business climate that will attract industry and jobs. They should be ‘selling Oklahoma’ to private business 24/7 to relocate and help existing businesses expand their operations.
*****
Secondly, they must work at pruning back government now starting with entitlement programs. If they wait until only one third of the population is working, it will be too late. The function of government is not to take care of someone from' the cradle to the grave.'
*****
Thirdly, they should provide an incentive for older Oklahomans to stay in the workplace. Seniors make great employees and many would continue to work, but government penalizes them if they ‘earn too much.’ Remove that impediment and older people will continue to remain in the workforce. That's a win/win for both government and seniors.
*****
Federal, state and local government better start paying attention to the graying of the population. ‘He ain’t heavy, he’s my Brother,’ is a great song, but Doc, Grumpy and Happy are not going to be able to carry their ‘petite disabled brothers’ forever. We have to give them some relief!

2011-07-11T11:35:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

"Labor omnia vincit"
Labor conquers all- the Oklahoma State Motto

by Steve Fair

The Oklahoma Department of Labor is responsible for the administration and enforcement of Oklahoma’s minimum wage law, enforces the state's child labor laws, oversees that state's workers’ compensation insurance compliance program, regulates of private employment agencies, and investigates and mediates of unpaid wages disputes.

*****
Additionally, the ODOL has jurisdiction for the inspection of welded steam lines, boiler and pressure vessels, elevators, amusement and water rides, and water heaters in public facilities. The Department is responsible for the certification of welders and weld-testing laboratories as well as the regulation and certification of asbestos workers.

*****
Since statehood, Oklahoma has only had eighteen (18) Commissioners of Labor. The office is a Constitutionally created office. In terms of personnel, the agency is among the states smallest with less than one hundred employees. The ODL has an annual budget of $7.5 million dollars. Mark Costello is the current Oklahoma Commissioner of Labor. He was elected in November 2010.

*****
According to the department’s website, Costello is a 4th generation Oklahoman born in Bartlesville. Mark graduated from the University of Kansas in 1980. He met and married his wife Cathy in 1982 and they have five children Christian, Ian, Anna Marie, Caitlin and Kolbe. They currently reside in Edmond.

*****
Costello was in the technology business before he ran for office. He founded and ran several tech companies. A fiscal conservative, Commissioner Costello believes that his private sector business experience is an asset in doing his job.

*****
One of the functions of the Oklahoma Labor Department is the gathering of statistical data to help employers. Statistics gathered by the Oklahoma Department of Labor for the US Bureau of Labor Statistics show that employees with less than one year of service are twice as likely to be injured at work as employees with more than five years of service with the same employer. These statistics suggest a direct causal link between workplace injuries and the amount of time an employee has worked for the same employer.

*****
The statistics gather by the ODL are consistent with the data compiled by Zurich, the second-largest writer of commercial general liability insurance in America, on workers comp claims. They found that claims from new employees account for a disproportionate share of workers’ compensation claims and related costs. Zurich cites reasons like inexperience, lack of skills or training, unrecognized hazards, unfamiliar surroundings, and careless or reckless efforts to complete tasks on time as reasons for the on-the-job injuries. Young workers – those under age 25 – are twice as likely to be injured on the job as older workers. The full report can be accessed at http://www.zurichna.com/internet/zna/SiteCollectionDocuments/en/media/whitepapers/Zurich-M-Recession-workers-comp.pdf

*****
Each year, more than 4.1 million people in the United States suffer a workplace injury or occupational illness. The injury rate is about 4.4 cases per 100 full-time workers. Through the years, the rate of injured workers has steadily increased which in turn costs business more in workers comp insurance.
*****
Much of the increase in premiums is due to fraudulent claims and business trying to deceive the insurance companies. According to the Coalition against Insurance Fraud (formed by the insurance industry in 1993), http://www.insurancefraud.org/ some businesses illegally try to avoid paying full state-required workers compensation premiums. One scheme involves paying workers off the books because the number of employees is a factor in determining a business’s premiums. Another scheme involves misclassifying employees in high-risk jobs as holding lower-risk jobs. The Oklahoma Department of Labor is charged with making sure employers are providing workers comp to employees as required by law. They balance that by working to help businesses reduce their workers comp premiums by providing a safe workplace for their employees.

*****
The Oklahoma Department of Labor offers a ‘Workers' Compensation Premium Reduction Program’ http://www.ok.gov/odol/Business_Services/Safety_Pays_OSHA_Consultation/Workers to help employers earn certification by demonstrating a strong commitment to workplace safety and health which is reflected in a reduced occupational injury/illness experience. Employers can earn up to a 15 percent reduction in their workers' compensation insurance premium by getting certified. That is significant because businesses don’t pay taxes, fees or workers comp premiums. Their customers do. A business can only pass along the cost.

*****
For decades, the Oklahoma Labor Department was very cozy with the state’s labor unions. The ODL’s enforcement of the ‘prevailing wage’ law on public projects cost Oklahoma taxpayers millions of dollars through the years. But in 1994, former three term Labor Commissioner Brenda Reneau( a Republican) took on the unions by challenging the Little Davis-Bacon(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DavisâBacon_Act) Act. Reneau's courage resulted in its repeal in 2000. Up until Reneau took the helm at the ODL, few Oklahomans knew the function of the agency, let along how it impacted their wallets.
*****
The Department of Labor performs an important function in Oklahoma government. The state is fortunate to have a Labor Commissioner whose business background will make the Labor Department more effective for both businesses and employees. For the previous four years(under Lloyd Fields), the Department had digressed to nothing more than a front for the unions. Costello is a breath of fresh air in an agency that needed an airing out.

2011-07-03T19:41:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM!
by Steve Fair

Last week, U.S. Senators Tom Coburn, (R-Oklahoma), and Joe Lieberman, (I-Connecticut) unveiled a plan to save Medicare. It calls for higher premiums, an increase in the eligibility age from 65 to 67 and other measures to cut $600 billion from projected Medicare spending.
*****
The plan extends the solvency of Medicare Part A (Hospital Insurance) by allocating half of the savings from the proposal to the Hospital Insurance Trust Fund. It also reduces Medicare’s 75-year unfunded liabilities by an estimated $10 trillion and significantly reduces the fiscal impact of Medicare Part B and Medicare Part D on the federal budget.
*****
For the first time in the history of the Medicare program, the proposal will provide seniors with an annual out-of-pocket-maximum benefit within the Medicare program to protect them from bankruptcy in the event of a major illness or long term health condition.
*****
It also contains a three year fix to the Medicare physician reimbursement formula that is paid for and will bring stability and payments to the Medicare provider system, ensuring access for seniors.
*****
“We can't save Medicare as we know it,” Lieberman said at a news conference. “We can only save Medicare if we change it.”
*****
Acknowledging the tricky politics surrounding entitlement programs, Coburn said, “Nobody's going to like this plan; we understand that.” He said, though, that the need to take immediate action overrode the politics of the issue.
*****
Coburn estimates that twenty(20) percent of taxpayer dollars spent on Medicare is fraud. "If you look at Medicare and Medicaid, both vital programs today, they're highly inefficient. Medicare has at least $80 billion worth of fraud a year. That's a full 20 percent of every dollar that's spent on Medicare going to fraud. And Medicaid is not much better. We don't actually have the numbers because half the states aren't reporting their Medicaid fraud. So when you have programs that are designed to be defrauded, even though they're well-intended and they are helping people, we ought to think about how do we get better value for that money and less money going out the door. "
*****
Two weeks ago, Coburn and Senator Tom Carper, (D- Deleware) introduced bipartisan legislation to combat and reduce waste, fraud and abuse in Medicare and Medicaid. The Medicare and Medicaid Fighting Fraud and Abuse to Save Taxpayer Dollars Act (S.1251), also known as the FAST Act, would address a set of problems that leads to tens of billions of dollars lost to waste and fraud in Medicare and Medicaid every year.
*****
According to the Milliman Medical Index(http://insight.milliman.com/article.php?cntid=7628), the typical American family of four will spend $16,700 on health care this year. Americans spent over 2.3 trillion on health care in 2010- 17% of our total Gross Domestic Product. Health care costs are rising at a rate of eight(8) percent per year and have doubled in the last nine years.
*****
Coburn is not afraid to deal with the hard issues. Most of the politicos in Washington will not address the elephant in the room. They know neither Medicare and Social Security are not sustainable in their current structure, but are unwilling to take the political risk to reform them. Coburn is the exception to the rule and is the conscience of the Senate when it comes to out of control spending.
*****
During his keynote speech at the annual Stephens County GOP Fish Fry in May, Dr. Coburn said the most pressing issue in America is the politicians in Washington’s unwillingness to address out of control government spending. Coburn had just left the ‘Gang of Six’ and was frustrated with their unwillingness to make the deep cuts necessary to keep America from going broke.
*****
In an interview with the Free Republic, (http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2722999/posts) Dr. Coburn said,“You have politics being played ahead of the good best interests of the country. I mean, this shouldn't be a Democrat/Republican thing. Our problems are urgent, they're immediate and they're severe, and lack of action's going to make the difficulty in solving them even greater.”
*****
On September 18, 2007, computer science professor Randy Pausch stepped in front of an audience of 400 people at Carnegie Mellon University to deliver a last lecture. Randy told his audience about the cancer that was devouring his pancreas and would claim his life in a matter of months. Millions have viewed Pausch’s ‘last lecture.’ (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji5_MqicxSo) Pausch said, "When there’s an elephant in the room introduce him."
*****
Unlike most politicians, Coburn refuses to ignore a huge smelly mammal in the room. Americans should be thankful for his courage and conviction.

2011-06-27T11:28:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

LEGISLATORS STILL WORKING!
by Steve Fair

Just because they are out of session doesn’t mean that Oklahoma legislators are on vacation. Between each legislative session, the Speaker of the House and the Senate President Pro Tempore appoint “Interim Committees” to study important issues. This year, Speaker of the House Kris Steele, (R-Shawnee) approved 126 interim studies and President Pro Tempore Brian Bingman, (R-Sapulpa) approved 29 interim studies. The House and Senate web sites have a comprehensive list of the 155 studies. The Senate site is http://www.oksenate.gov/news/press_releases.aspx. The House site is http://www.okhouse.gov/committees/showinterimstudies.aspx.
*****
“Senate members have requested studies into some of Oklahoma’s most critical issues,” said Bingman. “I appreciate their focus and willingness to tackle such big issues in preparation for another great session in 2012.”
*****
Three local Stephens County legislators will be conducting studies on a variety of issues.
*****
Senator Anthony Sykes, (R-Moore) will be conducting three interim studies before the next legislative session. One will be a study on the growing problem of juvenile ‘sexting’ in Oklahoma. The study will review current law, ramifications of conviction under current law, how often the situation is presented to law enforcement, issues law enforcement may have with such occurrences, and how law enforcement addresses the situation.
*****
According to a 2008 report by he National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy (NCPTUP) http://www.thenationalcampaign.org/sextech/, 20% of teenagers ages 13–19 have “electronically sent, or posted online, nude or semi-nude pictures or video of themselves" This is a growing problem among youth that has resulted in teen suicide and bullying.

*****
Some states are considering legislation that would give judges the discretion to divert teen ‘sexting’ to an ‘educational reform program’ and prevent them from having to register as sex offenders.
*****
Sykes will also conduct a study on the need for the Oklahoma National Guard to acquire real estate, construct new facilities, and remodel legacy facilities and how to fund those needs.

*****
Sykes will also chair a study on Senior Nutrition sites and their funding. Oklahoma gets about $1.5 million annually through the federal government’s Older Americans Act nutrition program. How that money is allocated and used is important.

*****
Representative Dennis Johnson, (R-Duncan) will conduct a study on the age of children entering kindergarten. Johnson authored legislation this year that would have required children to reach the age of 5 before July 1st to enter kindergarten. It failed to gain passage. He ran the bill at the request of a teacher’s organization who conducted a comprehensive survey of kindergarten teachers across the state. The results revealed the vast majority of the teachers surveyed favored moving the age requirement up by four months. They believe it will help the child long term academically and emotionally. Johnson plans to run the legislation again in the 2012 session if the interim study reveals similar findings.

*****
Representative Corey Holland, (R-Marlow) and Representative Jason Murphy, (R-Guthrie) will review the statutory exemptions granted to Oklahoma’s Higher Education entities. The “statutory exemption” is designed to exempt from disclosure information that is required of other governmental agencies. In other words, to keep the public out of the loop on what is being done with taxpayer dollars.

*****
Holland has been vocal about higher education and the need for it to be more accountable to Oklahoma taxpayers. In a Duncan Banner article on June 2nd, Holland said, “Essentially, all the other state agencies, when they incur cuts, they make cuts. They live in the reality of the economic climate. Colleges and universities, though, when they face a budget cut, they raise the prices for tuition. They pass it on to the students. There needs to be a lot more accountability on higher ed.”

*****
One interim study being conducted by House Majority Leader Dale DeWitt, (R-Braman) could result in less elected officials. DeWitt wants to look into redrawing the boundaries of Oklahoma’s judicial districts (DA/Judges), which he says has not been done in twenty five years. During that same time, Oklahoma has lost a Congressional district. DeWitt says Oklahoma law requires that judicial districts be reapportioned as congressional districts change.

*****
Legislative interim studies are important because they allow lawmakers to conduct in-depth studies on an issue. It allows them to solicit opinions and counsel from their constituents and the public at large. That results in better laws and avoids the ‘unintended consequences’ that often happens with legislation crafted during session.

*****
If you have insight into one of the issues mentioned above, contact your legislator. They will appreciate your interest and it will help make for better government. Proverbs 11:14 says, “ For lack of guidance a nation falls, but many advisers make victory sure.”

2011-06-20T06:14:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

Age is a 'state' of mind!
by Steve Fair

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 13.5% of Oklahoma’s population is over the age of 65. Nationally that number is 12.9%. It is projected that by 2020, the percentage of Americans over the age of 65 will be 16.1% of the U.S. population and by 2030, one in five Americans will be over the age of 65. We are a graying population.
*****
In Stephens County 16.9% of the population is over the age of 65. Of all the counties bordering Stephens, only Jefferson County has a higher percentage in that demographic- 19.2%. The other counties’ numbers are: Cotton County- 16.2%, Carter County- 15%, Comanche County- 11%, and Grady County- 12.6%.
*****
Forty-five rural counties in Oklahoma had higher percentages of aging population than the statewide number. More of Oklahoma’s younger population is residing in the metropolitan areas- the larger cities- than in years past. Why is that?
*****
Primarily, it’s because youth from rural Oklahoma are moving to metro Oklahoma cities because that is where the jobs are. If rural counties expect to compete, they must do it by recruiting jobs and industry to their area. If they want to retain their young people, they can’t just rely on kids that want to get involved in production agriculture. They must have place for all of their educated youth to work in non-farm related areas.
*****
Politically, an aging population means a higher voter turnout at the polls. According to blogger Bruce Bartlett who analyzed the 2008 vote nationally, voters older than 65 are three times more likely to vote than 18-24 year olds. Bartlett concludes this graying of America will make it increasingly difficult for Congress to reform entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare because the members will not be courageous enough to stay up to the aging voter block.
*****
An aging rural population in Oklahoma will result in less influence for rural areas in the state legislature. During the reapportionment process this year, virtually every rural House and Senate district had to gain population while every metro House and Senate district had to lose population. Districts are drawn by population and not by voter turnout, so many rural districts will have the same population as the urban districts but with higher turnout because of the higher percentage of 65 plus voters.
*****
The aging population in rural Oklahoma presents some interesting fiscal challenges for Oklahoma government- both state and local. According to the Oklahoma Policy Institute, because government is the largest provider of heath insurance, the impact of health care on the state budget in the next decade will be significant.
*****
In a study conducted the OSU Center for Rural Health, they found there is a significant shortage of doctors in rural Oklahoma. The study said in rural Oklahoma there is a primary care physician for every 1,535 people compared with one physician for every 740 in the state’s urban areas. The specialty where the largest shortage exists was in geriatric medicine- physicians treating the elderly. Some have described the impact on health care of America’s baby boomers hitting 65 to a health care tsunami.
*****
Another major factor is the amount of revenue available to Oklahoma government will likely decline in coming years due to the aging of the population. The Oklahoma Policy Institute says the declining percentage of the rural Oklahoma population paying taxes and holding jobs will impact revenues in such a way that it will force the legislature into making some hard decisions on entitlement programs and government services.
*****
Mark Twain said, “Age is an issue of mind over matter. It you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.” But an aging population does matter and it will impact Oklahoma in the coming years.
*****
Local and state leaders should be paying attention to these changing demographics before they look up one day and see their revenue down because a bunch of the population has retired. Local leaders in rural areas should be especially concerned because of the higher percentages of older citizens in their counties. By streamlining government and working to make it more efficient, they can prepare for the impact Oklahoma’s aging population will have on their budgets. It’s important government has a plan before that day arrives.

2011-06-13T10:09:00.000-07:00

Weekly Opinion Editorial

COURT SHOULD NOT OVERRULE VOTERS!

by Steve Fair

Senator Anthony Sykes, (R-Moore) was the author of SQ #755 which passed overwhelmingly by state voters in November (70%-30%). It amended the Oklahoma state constitution by requiring that Oklahoma courts rely on federal or state laws when handing down decisions concerning cases and prohibited them from using international law or Sharia law when making rulings.

*****

Immediately after the passage of the state question The Executive Director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in Oklahoma filed a lawsuit claiming the measure was unconstitutional because it unfairly targeted Muslims. Federal district judge Vicki Miles LaGrange agreed with CAIR and issued a temporary injunction delaying implemention of the bill.

*****

The lawsuit is now in the United States Court of Appeal for the 10^th circuit. On May 10th, the ACLU filed a brief on behalf of the plaintiff. They stated: “This amendment is nothing more than a blatant attempt to subvert the Constitution by enshrining anti-Muslim bigotry into state law The idea that followers of an entire faith should be treated like second-class citizens is ugly, discriminatory and profoundly un-American.”

*****

Sharia law is Muslim or Islamic law. It is based on the Quran and the religion of Islam. Most Muslim states are theocracies, so religious texts are law. Here are a few examples of Sharia Laws that all Muslims scholars agree on. (1) Drinkers, gamblers and those who fail to offer prayer five times a day must be whipped. (2) A husband may beat his disobedient wife. (3) A thief must have a hand cut off. (4) An adulterer should be stoned to death. (5) Anyone who leaves Islam must be killed.

*****

Critics of SQ 755 say its passage was unnecessary because Sharia law is not a threat in the United States and in particular Oklahoma, but based on how Sharia law has grown worldwide, SQ 755 got in front of an issue that threatens our way of life.

*****

Sharia Law entered Europe after WWII when the weakened European nations retracted from their colonies, bringing to Europe their former colonial subjects as both refugees and cheap labor from such Muslim nations as Pakistan (UK), Turkey (Germany) and Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia (France).

*****

Initially, Sharia law was applied discretely within the small Muslim communities of Europe. But after two generations of high birth rate and immigration, those communities have grown to where the Sharia law has now challenged the traditional rule of law in many European nations.

*****

In Germany, for example, Muslim men have successfully used the Sharia law in court to defend their right to beat their wives and to practice polygamy.

*****

In United Kingdom, where Islamic imams now outnumber Christian pastors and converting empty church buildings into mosques has become a cottage industry, the Archbishop of Canterbury - the leader of the Church of England - recently stated that adopting elements of the Sharia law into the English judicial system was “unavoidable”.

*****

British Muslim Cleric Anjem Choudary has said, “We believe the whole of the world must be under Shariah. America is not blessed by God. The American dream has become a nightmare.”

*****

Former CIA director R. James Woolsey estimates that the Saudis have spent nearly $90 billion since the mid-1970s to export their ideology into Muslim and non-Muslim countries alike. That may well be a conservative estimate.

*****

Awad and the ACLU’s reaction to Oklahoma voters’ rejection of Sharia law should be taken note of. If they don’t want to apply Sharia law in US courts as Awad has publically stated, then why challenge a law that bans it?

*****

The answer may be in a document was seized in 1982 by the Swiss government that outlined a 12 point strategy to “establish an Islamic government on earth,” identified as The Project. According to Swiss authorities, it was prepared by Islamic researchers and presented a multi phased long term approach to the cultural invasion of the West. One of those tenets was the incorporation of Sharia law into society and to use deceit as a means to accomplish it.

*****

Sykes says, “I firmly believe that the people of Oklahoma want us to defend SQ 755 and do everything to ensure that their voice is heard. As its author, I am committed to doing everything I can to see that SQ 755 takes effect in Oklahoma. As legislators, we owe it to the people to see that their voice is heard and not give up at the first sign of trouble.”

*****

In past years, courts overturning poll results were rare, but that is changing. At this point, the fate of SQ 755 rests in the hands of the 10^th Circuit. Sykes is optimistic the judges will not overrule the will of the people of Oklahoma. Let’s hope not.

2011-06-10T12:58:00.000-07:00

OKLAHOMA'S COMMON EDUCATION IS NOT O.K.!

by Steve Fair

According to a recent Sooner Poll, 51.1% of Oklahoma voters believe Oklahoma has too many school districts. The number is slightly higher among Republican voters. But that leaves almost half of Oklahomans who believe having over five hundred school districts in the state is O.K. Why is that? Why do almost half the voters in the state believe spending over half of the common education dollar on non-classroom related activity is O.K?

*****
First, a large number of Oklahomans embrace the small school concept. They may have attended a small school and remember with fondness their education experience. Some believe a smaller system will protect their children from violence and evil influence. They mistakenly believe that isolating their children will protect them from temptation. Theologically, their thinking is flawed because men are born with a depraved nature so isolation will not solve the heart problem. Realistically, smaller systems have the same issues with drugs, premarital sex, and other social problems that larger systems do.
*****
Second, some believe their child gets a better education at a small school. That is not necessarily the case. The size of school doesn’t seem to determine how good the instructors are. Many large schools do a better job of preparing their students for college and life than smaller ones.

*****

Third, some Oklahomans believe that closing down the school in their small town will kill the town. This is also flawed thinking. The reason they have a small school is because they have a small town and are losing population. Jobs are becoming as scarce as hens teeth in rural Oklahoma. What they fail to see is they are clinging to a way of life that has passed us by.

*****

Fourth, most Oklahomans are unaware of the inefficiency of the state’s common education system. When schools spend a majority of their money on administration, buildings and transportation, they are not fulfilling their primary mission- educating children.

*****

Texas began a school consolidation program in the late 1960s. If you travel the rural areas of the Lone Star state, you will see large middle and high schools geographically situated in the middle of several small towns. The small towns retain their elementary, but the kids are bussed to the larger school from the 5^th grade up. They have fewer districts, less buildings and spend less money on administration than Oklahoma.

*****

School consolidation is an issue that most state legislators avoid like the plague. Sooner Poll’s results affirm that it is a polarizing issue and until Oklahoma is willing to take a long hard look at how we spend our education dollar, we are not going to provide the education our children need to compete in the 21^st century. I suggest a Blue Ribbon Commission similar to the BRAC commission be established and empowered with the authority to evaluate each district and recommend closures. Take the politics out of the process.

*****

In the interest of full disclosure, I graduated from Geronimo High School in 1970. I was one of 12 graduating seniors. When I enrolled at Cameron University in the fall of 1970, I was completely unprepared academically for the college experience, even though I had made straight As the last two years of high school. I spent most of my junior and senior years hauling hay during school hours to raise money for a Jr./Sr. trip that most of the faculty and their spouses’ chaperoned. The school sanctioned this. We were never required to submit a term paper. Academics played a backseat to sports. All small schools are not alike, but my point of reference is one that tells me consolidation would have provided me with a better background for higher education.

*****

If Oklahoma wants to compete with our neighboring states, we can’t keep pouring money into an educational system that spends most of the money outside the classroom. What the Sooner Poll shows is that conservative legislators and state leaders should be talking about school consolidation and its benefits. They should be helping educate the people about this vital issue. Until that happens, nothing will happen.

*****

Oklahoma’s common education is not O.K.!

This editorial was written for Sooner Polls-http://soonerpoll.com/oklahomas-common-education-is-not-ok/