This past week has moved slowly with the 2024 Budget Summit negotiations between the governor, the House of Representatives leadership, and the Senate leadership. The transparent approach has allowed all to view these negotiations and to see how the citizens of Oklahoma’s tax money is projected to be spent.
On March 19, the Senate released its proposed budget in Senate Resolution 31, which was nearly three weeks before the House openly released its proposed numbers. As a result, budget negotiations stalled early on. Numbers from the Senate did not change even after the appropriations chair changed.
We have also made headway with the conference committee process. As expected, requests for conferences have been a process, and it has not gone very quickly. This process will continue until the end of the session.
During session, we have had the pleasure of honoring fellow senators who will not be here next year by either terming out of office or not choosing to run again. All of those not returning have dedicated their time in office, and for that, I am thankful to each of them. It is an honor to serve along with them, and each will be truly missed.
On Tuesday, we had our annual Legislative Blood Drive. Along with the competitive spirit of the Senate versus the House, blood donations are even more important because of the tragic weather emergencies that we have experienced over the last month.
Thursday, we honored the Hmong American Association of Oklahoma with Hmong Day at the Capitol. A special program to honor Hmong Vietnam Veterans who served as our allies in the Vietnam War was presented. The Hmong people and culture were celebrated, honored, and recognized for their contributions to the United States past and present.
I want to congratulate Marshall Reigh from Medford for receiving Game Warden of the Year from the Oklahoma Wildlife Conservation Department. Marshall is a second-generation game warden and grew up in Yale. He attended Northern Oklahoma College and finished his bachelor's in criminal justice with a biology minor at Northwestern Oklahoma State University. He began his career with the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation in 2004 as the Grant County warden. I appreciate his dedication to wildlife preservation and for promoting good stewardship of our environment.
In closing, I want to take a moment to congratulate all the high school and college graduates for their achievements, and I wish them great success in their future endeavors.
If I can be of service to you or your family, please reach out to my office. You can reach me at 405-521-5630 or [email protected].
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