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2009 Session in Review Oklahoma House of Representatives Committee Staff Division Oklahoma House of Representatives 2009 Session in Review Measures Passed During the First Session Of the 52nd Oklahoma Legislature Convened January 5, 2009 Adjourned May 27, 2009 Thank you to the Legislative Services Bureau Photography Division for the cover photograph. This publication, printed by the House Duplicating Shop, is issued by the Oklahoma House of Representatives. Two hundred fifty (250) copies have been prepared and distributed at a cost of $7.62 each to the taxpayers of Oklahoma. Reference copies have been deposited with the Publications Clearinghouse of the Oklahoma Department of Libraries. Prepared by House Committee Research Staff Oklahoma House of Representatives Dusty Darr, Research Analyst Editor Marcia Goff, Deputy Research Director Brad Wolgamott, Senior Research Analyst Tricia Dameron, GIS Coordinator Nancy Lutes, Administrative Support Assistant Editors Speaker of the House Chris Benge Chad Warmington Chief of Staff Rick Farmer, Director Committee Staff Dante Giancola Sue Ann Derr Janice Buchanan Research Director Chief Counsel Fiscal Director Table of Contents Preface and Acknowledgments..................................................................................................... vii Explanatory Notes.......................................................................................................................... xi Agriculture & Rural Development and Natural Resources ............................................................ 1 Business and Finance...................................................................................................................... 5 Education ...................................................................................................................................... 11 Energy and Utilities ...................................................................................................................... 19 General Government..................................................................................................................... 25 Government Modernization.......................................................................................................... 37 Health and Human Services.......................................................................................................... 41 Insurance and Retirement ............................................................................................................. 53 Judiciary and Criminal Justice...................................................................................................... 59 Public Safety and Corrections....................................................................................................... 75 Revenue and Taxation................................................................................................................... 83 Tourism and Recreation................................................................................................................ 89 Transportation............................................................................................................................... 91 Veterans and Military Affairs ....................................................................................................... 95 Wildlife ......................................................................................................................................... 97 Appendix 1 – Legislative Production 1999-2009 ....................................................................... 101 Appendix 2 – Legislative Production Detail for 2009................................................................ 103 Appendix 2 – Vetoes 1999-2009 ................................................................................................ 105 Appendix 4 – Ten Year Appropriation History FY-01 – FY-10 ................................................ 117 Appendix 5 – Distribution of FY-10 Appropriations ................................................................. 119 Appendix 6 – State Questions..................................................................................................... 121 Index of Enrolled Bills................................................................................................................ 123 2009 Session in Review vii Preface and Acknowledgments The Session in Review provides a summary of the Oklahoma Legislature’s substantive work during the 2009 session and is organized alphabetically by general topic. Every bill (with the exception of appropriation bills) and joint resolution passed by the Legislature is summarized in the document. A detailed review of the FY-10 appropriations is being published by the House Fiscal Division. A brief description of the session’s major legislation is available in the Session Overview, prepared by the House Committee Research Staff. All three of these documents may be found on the House of Representatives’ Internet website at: http://www.okhouse.gov/Information/Info_Publications.aspx Copies of legislation may also be obtained electronically from the House of Representatives’ website at: http://www.okhouse.gov/Legislation/Leg_Text.aspx During the Second Session of the 52nd Legislature, 2,618 measures and joint resolutions were introduced of which 468 were enacted into law. The Governor vetoed 22 bills. The historical context of this data is shown in Appendices 1, 2, and 3 of this report. The House Research Staff, under the leadership of its director, Dante Giancola, and composed of Tricia Dameron, Dusty Darr, Marcia Goff, Michael Hirlinger, Arnella Karges, Jonathan Small, and Brad Wolgamott, deserves the credit for preparing this document. Also making important contributions to the project were the House Legal Staff and the House Fiscal Staff. Special thanks to Marcia Goff, Brad Wolgamott, and Tricia Dameron who helped edit this document. A word of special gratitude is also extended to Nancy Lutes of the Support Staff whose expertise and dedication made this project a success. Dusty Darr House Research Staff 2009 Session in Review ix Explanatory Notes In a number of instances, individual bills can be found in more than one section of the document. The index at the back of the document indicates the page(s) where a specific bill can be found. The bold-facing of an individual bill indicates the first mention of the measure within a subject area. Measures vetoed by the Governor are mentioned in Appendix 3 along with the Governor’s veto message. The abbreviations HB, HJR, SB, and SJR respectively stand for House Bill, House Joint Resolution, Senate Bill, and Senate Joint Resolution. In the appendices of this document are charts for this year and the past ten years showing the number of bills and joint resolutions introduced and enacted, the number of vetoes, along with the Governor’s veto message, the total amount of state monies appropriated, and a general breakdown of the FY-10 appropriations. Finally, a chart is included listing all state questions which will potentially be on the ballot for the 2010 general election. 2009 Session in Review xi Agriculture & Rural Development and Natural Resources Agriculture and Rural Development The Legislature passed several measures affirming the importance and value of agriculture and rural life in Oklahoma. According to the USDA 2007 Census of Agriculture, farms and farmed land in Oklahoma increased 4 percent between 2002 and 2007. To foster continued growth, the Legislature passed HB 1482, the right to farm bill, which expands the definition of agricultural activities to include aquaculture and improvements to or expansion of shelters, fences, pens, and storage. The expansion need not be contiguous if it is part of the same operating facility. The measure creates a two-year statute of limitations for private nuisance actions. If a nuisance action is declared frivolous by the court, the defendant will recover reasonable costs and attorney fees. HB 2151 preemptively addresses recent legislative initiatives by advocacy groups in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, and Maine to amend regulations in those states regarding livestock confinement. The measure declares the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry (ODAFF) as the state entity empowered to implement regulations on the care and handling of livestock. No political subdivision may create or enforce regulations related to care or handling of livestock that are more restrictive than ODAFF rules. Ordinances or regulations adopted by municipalities pertaining to land use or to human health or safety will not be considered to constitute regulation of livestock care and handling. Over the last several years there has been growing concern of a looming shortage of large-animal veterinarians. HB 1919 amends the eligible agricultural business definition in the Oklahoma Agricultural Linked Deposit Program to include recent graduates of veterinary school that are establishing a practice where at least 30 percent of business consists of services for large animals. The Linked Deposit Program was created in 1987 to diversify Oklahoma’s agricultural industry by offering loans at a reduced rate. To expand markets available to Oklahoma farmers, the The Oklahoma Department of Transportation Legislature passed HB 1583 which creates a program for would like the option to use weed-free mulch farmers to certify their hay as weed free. This to reduce herbicide