The 60th Legislature convened for Organizational Day on Jan..7. Each legislative chamber officially elected new leadership and adopted rules by which we will operate during the next two sessions. We also certified results from the Nov. 5 general election.
In the House, members elected Kyle Hilbert, a Republican from Bristow, to serve as speaker and Anthony Moore, a republican from Clinton, to serve as speaker pro tem.
The speaker of the House, no matter who it is, wields enormous power. This person has the power to set forth his leadership team, including the majority floor leader, as well as committee chairs and vice chairs. These people are then able to determine which bills get heard in committee and on the House floor and which do not. So while all Oklahomans get to elect their local representatives, not all of those Oklahomans will get equal representation. It all depends on the favor of the speaker.
It’s my contention that absolute power corrupts absolutely.
When all the power is vested in one person, transparency is no more, and legislators become beholden to leadership for their seats and assignments. This is not good for the people, the state or for the institution of the Legislature.
I have a different idea for how the House should be structured. I co-authored House Resolution 1001 with Rep. Tom Gann. This would have delegated the speaker’s powers to a proposed Governance Committee that would operate transparently by recorded vote and would have been made up of a broader composition of House membership.
The resolution would have opened the general appropriations process allowing it to be debated by all House members earlier in the session, removing much of the behind-closed-doors dealings.
It would have allowed all members to have at least two priority bills heard each session. If they failed to receive a majority vote, so be it, but at least they would be heard and considered by all members not stifled by the few in power.
Anyone interested can read the full resolution at okhouse.gov, then under legislation select basic bill search and type in HR1001.
Leadership refused to allow this measure to be considered on the House floor on Organizational Day, so we broke it into amendments to the rules that were proposed. All but one amendment was tabled. Again, an example of the corruption of absolute power.
I’m not shocked or surprised our efforts were stifled, just disappointed. New leadership had the opportunity to change the process for the better, and they chose not to. Still, I will continue to work hard to accomplish the changes I feel will benefit not only my constituents but all Oklahomans.
I do have a vice chairmanship this year on the House Agriculture Committee. This is of importance to the people in our House district and many throughout the state, and I’m grateful for the role I’ll get to play in considering legislation that could improve policy and regulations for agriculture producers and those who benefit from them. I also will serve on the Appropriations & Budget Public Safety Subcommittee and on the State Powers Committee.
As always, if I can help you with anything, please call my Capitol office at (405) 557-7413 or email me at [email protected].
Rick West serves District 3 in the Oklahoma House of Representatives. His district includes part of LeFlore County.
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