Hello again, everyone! Regular readers of my column know I am fighting to help children with autism.

The effort has taken the form of “Nick’s Law,” which would require health insurance in Oklahoma to cover autism spectrum disorders. Last year, we enjoyed bipartisan support in the Senate on this issue.

Not everyone supported it, and I understand that, but senators from both parties joined hands to pass “Nick’s Law” in the Senate numerous times. In the House of Representatives, it quickly became partisan, with the majority Republicans denying the bill even a hearing.

This year, House Republicans shot down “Nick’s Law” very quickly – in hopes of washing their hands of a sticky political issue early in the session. Now, it appears Senate Republicans have decided to be as partisan as their House brethren as two separate votes – right down party lines – suggest they fear even discussing the issue.

The first vote was on a bill about the Oklahoma High Risk Insurance Pool. The pool is the “insurer of last resort,” a creation of the Legislature to provide coverage for those Oklahomans who cannot get health insurance elsewhere. It seems a perfect way to provide autism coverage.

I proposed requiring the pool to cover autism consistent with “Nick’s Law.” The one change I made was to lower the annual cap to $36,000, the same as the Republican-sponsored Louisiana law that requires health insurers in that state to cover autism.

Instead of allowing the amendment to be considered, the author of the bill moved to “advance” the bill beyond the ability to amend. The motion to advance was approved on a staight party-line vote with Republicans voting “yes” and Democrats voting “no.”

The second vote – again, down party lines – was on a bill to create a Health Insurance Mandate Review Task Force. This task force would be horribly tilted in favor of big insurance and against consumers.

Republican legislative leaders would have eight of 10 appointments to the task force. The governor would have two appointments; the state Insurance Commissioner would be the 11th member.

I proposed an amendment to give the governor two more appointments and require they come from the consumer side of the equation. Legislative leaders and big insurance still would have enjoyed a two-to-one advantage on the task force under my amendment.

That wasn’t good enough; the author of that bill moved to advance the measure beyond amendment, which was approved on a partisan vote. Given the composition of the task force, the results it would propose are a foregone conclusion.

There will be other chances to vote on variations of “Nick’s Law” as I refuse to give up on Oklahoma’s children with autism. The question is: Will Republican members – many of whom have voted for “Nick’s Law” in the past – have the courage to vote their conscience or will they cower under pressure from their leadership?

Thanks again for reading this week’s “Senate Minute.” Have a great week, and may God bless you all.

Open Door Policy - March 9, 2009

This week has been a deadline week for the Oklahoma legislature as all House bills must pass out of the House of Representatives to the Senate and Senate bills must pass over to the House. I have been diligently working on helping restructure the bond package from last year which the Supreme Court struck down as having too many different programs in one bill. I think the new bond package on the conservation programs will fit under the scope expected by the judicial branch. These bonds are needed to provide the necessary repairs to many of our flood control dams around the state.
The legislature considered an amendment I presented which would have allowed night hunting of feral hogs on private property outside of deer season. This amendment was defeated for fear of poaching, but I argued we are punishing the honest people by preventing this and poachers will still break the law. This idea was presented to by Ron Black of Wild Oklahoma, an Oklahoma outdoors show which airs locally. They held a feral hog hunt on Saturday which collected game for their Paralyzed Veterans of America fundraiser which I attend each year.
I co-authored House Bill 1422 by Rep. Eric Proctor, which would guarantee tuition to post-secondary institutions for the children and spouses of soldiers who are killed in combat. This is important as we have seen many of our soldiers give the ultimate sacrifice. I also co-authored House Bill 1072 by Rep. Charles Key, which allows easier access for political parties to allow third party candidates access to the ballots in Oklahoma elections. I also want to encourage the registered Democrats to please attend their local precinct meetings on Thursday night. The more people who attend, the better representation for how people feel their party should handle issues.
On Tuesday, I had the chance to visit with the Leadership Class from Caddo Kiowa Career Technology Center. I also had the opportunity to visit with the Leadership Class from Canadian Valley Career Tech last Thursday in Chickasha and attend the Elks Lodge pancake breakfast fundraiser on Saturday. Other events I attended were the REC appreciation dinner for a our local volunteer firefighters and the Comanche County Livestock show.
I appreciate all the surveys which have been returned, both by mail and by email. This is giving me a good insight to your views and how policies should be implemented. We have had many bills heard which I do not feel are good for the people of our state and the rural way of life, so I look forward to sharing more on those as this deadline week ends.

It is an honor to represent your views at the State Capitol. If you wish to contact me and discuss one of these or another issue, I can be reached at my office in Oklahoma City toll-free at 1-800-522-8502, or directly at 1-405-557-7305. My e-mail address is http://us.mc837.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=joedorman@okhouse.gov at work. My mailing address is PO Box 559 , Rush Springs , OK 73082 and my website is http://www.joedorman.com/ on the Internet. Thank you for taking time to read this column and I look forward to seeing you soon.

Fire Hydrant Inspections Advance

Oklahoma House of Representatives
Media Division
March 12, 2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Contact: State Rep. Joe Dorman
Capitol: (405) 557-7305
E-mail: joedorman@okhouse.gov

Fire Hydrant Inspections Advance

OKLAHOMA CITY – State Rep. Joe Dorman helped advance legislation today that will increase public safety by requiring routine inspections of fire hydrants.
House Bill 1656, by Dorman and state Sen. Tom Ivester, would require that all fire hydrants receive a maintenance check at least once every three years.
“A fire hydrant is one of those things that you never think about until you need it,” said Dorman, D-Rush Springs. “Unfortunately, that means officials don’t know a hydrant is unusable until a building is burning and they need the water immediately. By requiring routine inspections, we can prevent an avoidable tragedy.”
Tulsa Mayor Kathy Taylor asked for the change to reflect recommended national standards. The inspections would include lubrication and likely replacement of o-rings. Standards would be set by each city and rural water district.
The bill also requires the local fire chief to estimate the amount of water necessary to fight a fire to allow the city or water district to recover the cost of the water used.
House Bill 1656 passed the Oklahoma House of Representatives 99-0. It now proceeds to the state Senate.

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House Bill 1032 - The Modernization Bill

In previous weeks I have made the case that state government's massive budget shortfall presents an exciting opportunity to spend less money. To accomplish this, the government will be forced to make long needed changes. Instead of the downturn being a detriment to the people, I believe many of these changes will actually improve the quality of service provided to the people. The downturn is in fact a blessing, as it forces the government to do what it should have done a long time ago.

Some of these proposed changes are reflected in a bill I am authoring. House Bill 1032 has already been approved by the House Modernization Committee and is awaiting action on the House floor.

The primary focus of the bill is to make all license and permit operations accessible online. The Oklahoma web portal would be able to offer the same services as theTexasOnline.com web site. From that web site, you can participate in such tasks as renewing your occupational license or license plate.

The obvious benefit to this reform is cutting through cumbersome state bureaucracy and allowing direct access to these services without having to use government resources. This should put an end to the old practice of waiting in long lines to get a license or permit.

This benefit recently became very obvious in the California when part of the state government was forced on a furlough because of a massive money shortfall. Normally this would be a huge problem because people were unable to go to the tag office to renew their licenses. But since they could renew online, online registrations increased by about 20% during that time.

The Oklahoma State Board of Medical Licensure is already saving $20,964 per year because of an online professional license renewal system. Staff time was cut by fifty percent. It also appears that 99% of license renewals now occur online.

Another important reform contained in HB 1032 is transparency. The bill requires more state spending be made available for public review through the state's online portal. As the state institutes more reforms geared towards public accountability, there will be more and more opportunities for greater transparency. It is this transparency that will discourage abusive spending practices.

HB 1032 would also convert state payroll to a bi-weekly system. State government appears to be one of the few organizations that still issue monthly payroll. This leads to any number of problems: from hindering the recruitment of employees to what appears to be the unnecessary need for a supplemental payroll system. The conversion to the bi-weekly system could save the state millions, as man hours are freed up from recalculating and issuing supplemental payroll.

HB 1032 joins HB 1410, HB 1704 and SB 980 as part of the effort to modernize government this legislative session.

Senator Gumm's "Senate Minute" for March 6-12, 2009

Hello again, everyone! The best way to describe the Oklahoma Senate this week is that is was a “mixed bag”: not all bad, but certainly not all good.

You probably read this week the Senate passed a bill to do away with the grocery tax – one of the issues about which I am most passionate. As the late Paul Harvey used to say, “Here’s the rest of the story.”

The bill approved by the Senate only does away with the state’s 4.5 cents-on-the-dollar grocery sales tax; it leaves intact city and county sales taxes on groceries. Further, the bill phases out the state grocery tax over several years. Most families will hardly notice the reductions and every family will still pay a grocery sales tax if this bill becomes law.

A fair question is: Why would this be the approach to end the grocery tax? The answer is simple: The Senate’s new majority would much rather focus on reducing the income tax – a proposal, as I have written before, grossly skewed to benefit Oklahoma’s wealthiest citizens.

The only reason we see any movement on the grocery tax is because of the enormous political pressure being generated to end this most hurtful and regressive of taxes.

Any doubt of that was erased during debate on a bill this week to reduce the income tax in Oklahoma. I asked a simple question: Wouldn’t it be better to not reduce the income tax and use that revenue to be bolder in attacking the grocery tax?

The answer was talk about “macro economics” and how reducing the income tax is better to promote economic development than ending the grocery tax. Even though the facts do not bear that out, at least we get a consistent answer from those who prefer to put more dollars in the hands of the wealthy.

During my debate on the income tax bill, I spoke of “kitchen table” economics. The best way to improve family budgets is to do away with a tax that eats away at income every time we feed our families. Doing away with the sales tax on groceries is more direct and more meaningful to the people who deserve tax relief the most.

Outside of the “back-to-school” sales tax holiday, we have done nothing to reduce sales taxes – the levy that hits hardest those among us least able to afford it. If we are truly interested in helping those families who need it most, we should focus on reducing the sales tax – and the grocery tax should be target number one.

The reason this timid plan to whittle away the grocery tax was approved by the Senate this week is because it was the only grocery tax bill still alive. Despite the timidity with which some approach the grocery tax, I will continue my fight to get rid of this most insidious of taxes.

Thanks again for reading this week’s “Senate Minute.” Have a great week, and may God bless you all.

Open Door Policy - March 3, 2009

My legislative schedule has been lightened quite a bit over the last week as House Republican committee chairmen have refused to grant hearings to most of my bills. These bills will be carried over until next year and I will try again. The status of my bills currently is as follows:

*HB 1654 - Grocery Store/Pharmacy incentive bill - refused a hearing in committee;

*HB 1655 - Children's Cabinet - refused a hearing in committee, but a similar Senate bill passed unanimously by the Senate and could be heard by the House;

*HB 1656 - Fire hydrant maintenance - passed out of committee, awaiting a floor hearing;

*HB 1657 - Deceased employees insurance benefits - I pulled this bill due to the need for more information;

*HB 1658 - Doctor's incentive for volunteering at school functions - refused a hearing in committee;

*HB 1659 - Utility Terrain Vehicles use on county roads - refused a hearing in committee;

*HB 1660 - Alternative energy tax credits - refused a hearing in committee; and

*HJR 1018 - Emergency management funding constitutional amendment - was placed on a committee agenda, then removed by the House leadership; and

*HB 1918 - 4-H/FFA tax exemption on premium checks - refused a hearing in committee. Obviously, I am very frustrated, but I will continue to work with the House leadership to try to get hearings on these bills for next year. I also have other issues in the works and will continue work on those, along with amending other bills in attempt to make them better. HB 1661 creates a tax check-off on tax returns to allow donations to YMCA Youth & Government programs and it is up for a floor hearing, along with HB 1662 which would allow police officers to issue tickets to individuals who are playing pornographic movies in their vehicles. Both of these bills were authored by colleagues and I will assist them with moving through the process.

I was honored this past week by the Oklahoma Rural Fire Coordinators for my efforts to assist them and the state with fire protection issues. I was a great privilege to be recognized by this group and I can't thank them enough for their service to assist our local fire fighters.

Congratulations to all the teams who have been progressing through the basketball tournaments and good luck to those still playing! I was able to watch one game this weekend back home. I also attended the Children's Starlight fundraiser, which raises money annually for the children's wing at Comanche Memorial Hospital. I also enjoyed attending the Chickasha Chamber banquet and the Lawton Chamber luncheon, along with recording a blog for http://www.lawtontowncrier.com/ while I was at home.

It is an honor to represent your views at the State Capitol. If you wish to contact me and discuss one of these or another issue, I can be reached at my office in Oklahoma City toll-free at 1-800-522-8502, or directly at 1-405-557-7305. My e-mail address is http://us.mc837.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=joedorman@okhouse.gov at work. My mailing address is PO Box 559 , Rush Springs , OK 73082 and my website is http://www.joedorman.com/ on the Internet. Thank you for taking time to read this column and I look forward to seeing you soon.

Stopping your Vital Information from being at Risk

Knowing what you know about the ineffectiveness of the government, do you really trust the government to protect your most vital information?

This year, state government must cut state spending by about 600 million dollars (closer to 900 million, if you count spend that will be offset by previously mandated increases). This forces state leaders to enact needed reforms that should have occurred many years ago.

One of these reforms is the centralization of the state's massive and (up until now) rather chaotically managed information technology (IT) functions.

Each year, state government has been spending $340,577,938 of your hard-earned tax dollars on IT and telecommunications. This does not count the salaries of the hundreds of state employees who are assigned to IT departments. These IT functions are spread out on an agency-by-agency basis, with each agency capable of creating their own IT empire.

Can you imagine what would happen to a private business that did not efficiently coordinate the actions of a department that spent in excess of 340 million dollars?

This year I am working with Senate Pro Tem Glenn Coffee as the House author of his Senate Bill 980, and State Representative David Derby as the co-author of House Bill 1704 to craft a plan that will break down these barriers and allow for the direct coordination of state government IT functions.

The obvious reason for this reform is savings. Let's consider how much the state spends on energy costs associated with duplicative server capacity. While private businesses are taking advantage of cloud computing and blade servers with shared power sources, too many antiquated government servers are using too much energy. How much sense does it make for Agency A to use a different server system than Agency B when they easily use the same storage device? Millions of taxpayers dollars could probably be saved each year if duplicated servers were eliminated and new technology was used to maximize speed and space.

A second very important reason for reform is that of security. Today, government computers contain everything from your tax returns to your biometric description. State computer systems are constantly under attack from those who would like to steal this information. State officials must constantly guard against these attacks. One of the most frequent originators of these attacks is from Communist China, where there is no way for our law enforcement officials to bring those responsible to justice. The fact that the Chinese are working so hard to steal our information is very concerning. One of the more disturbing incidents includes the successful compromise about two years ago of a local law enforcement database known as OLETS, which Oklahoma law enforcement agencies use to access information pertinent to the security of our communities.

Under current state law, as is all too often the case in government, potential security issues must be mitigated through a long, complicated, multi-step bureaucratic process. In today's rapidly changing technology, we no longer have the luxury of letting a bureaucratic, slow-moving government put our vital information at risk.

Senate Bill 980 and House Bill 1704 are part of the agenda of both the House and Senate leadership and I have been honored to work with Senator Coffee and Representative Derby in advancing this important reform.