OKLAHOMA CITY - House Republicans on Tuesday rebuffed minority party efforts to include pay increases for public safety employees, school shelters and Insure Oklahoma in a special session to deal with lawsuit reform.
Gov. Mary Fallin in August called lawmakers into special session following a June Oklahoma Supreme Court ruling that said a 2009 lawsuit reform package, House Bill 1603, was illegal because it violated the constitutional prohibition against including more than one subject in a bill.
House Republicans tabled motions attempting to include pay increases for Oklahoma Highway Patrol troopers and correctional employees and changes to a soon-to-be ended program that offers insurance to employees of small businesses.
Prior to the start of Tuesday's session, Fallin held a news conference in front of the House telling reporters that lawsuit reform was one of the "most important issues facing the state of Oklahoma."
She said it needs to be addressed immediately to attract and retain businesses and help with high medical costs.
Waiting to act on the issue would cost the business and medical community millions of dollars, Fallin said.
"We should be able to get this done quickly," Fallin said. "We are just looking at the same pieces of legislation that have already been passed in a bipartisan way, signed by the previous governor."
Democrats in both houses have said a special session is a waste of time, adding that passing individual bills to overcome the legal barrier to the 2009 tort reform package could have waited until the regular session in February.
House Minority Leader Scott Inman, D-Del City, said it was "unconscionable" that more pressing issues will not be addressed.
Tackling trooper pay, corrections, school safety and Insure Oklahoma makes more sense to small business people, to mom and pops, to individual folks, Inman said.
"But unfortunately the Republican majority stood up and said instead of taking care of issues that really matter to average everyday citizens, we would rather go ahead and focus and spend $300,000 on special interest, special legislation in this special session, and that is unfortunate," Inman said.
Inman was unsuccessful in his attempts to adjourn the entire special session. The House met for more than an hour.
Meanwhile, the Senate managed to adjourn within 30 minutes.
Following the day's adjournment, Senate Minority Leader Sean Burrage, D-Claremore, said Fallin claimed that addressing tort reform was an emergency that needed a special session.
He said the issue could have been addressed during the regular session, saving taxpayers thousands of dollars.
Burrage also said some of the bills filed go outside the scope of the call for the special session issued by the governor.
Fallin said her office has asked that the legislation be drafted carefully to make sure it will pass constitutional muster. Several laws passed by the Oklahoma Legislature have been tossed out by the courts.
Barbara Hoberock 405-528-2465
barbara.hoberock@tulsaworld.com
Original Print Headline: Focusing on lawsuits
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