June is right around the corner, which means the end of session is approaching.
We started to hear Senate amendments to our House bills this week. If bills are amended in the opposite chamber, they must return to their chamber of origin for a vote to accept or reject the changes. For example, I accepted Senate amendments to House Bill 2335 and House Bill 2339, which are now sent to the Governor for consideration.
If amendments are rejected, the bills have one final possibility to advance in the current session – through the conference committee process. This is where members from both the House and Senate committees where the bills were initially considered to gather to approve or disapprove the final language. Many measures die at this crossroads, but a few survive.
For some exciting news, I was honored for Leadership Elk City to join me at the Capitol this week.
Everyone had the opportunity to meet with me, Senator Howard and Governor Stitt. My parents joined us, which made the day even better. I had a great time visiting with everyone!
In other news, the Legislature is continuing to work on the state budget. Now, for some background on how the process works.
Agencies and other entities receiving state funds must present their initial budget requests for the next fiscal year by Oct. 1. Every member of the Legislature has access to these requests after this date. Every member of the House also is assigned to an Appropriations & Budget subcommittee; for example, I serve on the A&B Natural Resources Subcommittee. Each subcommittee annually evaluates in public meetings budget performance reviews and future budget requests for each state agency, board or commission under their purview.
We also hold annual public hearings in the House with the six agencies that receive the most in state appropriations. Each piece of legislation that constitutes the state appropriation’s package is publicly available on our House website before it is voted on in public committee meetings and then before the full membership of both the House and Senate. Time for questions and debate is given when we hear these bills.
We also give regular updates throughout the year on how much funding is available and make our priorities widely known. The budget process is robust and transparent, giving ample time for members of the Legislature and the public to hear information on how taxpayer dollars are appropriated and expended.
I intend to continually keep you informed of what is happening at the Capitol. It is truly an honor and privilege to represent you at the State Capitol. As always, please do not hesitate to reach out to me with any concerns at (405) 557-7312 or at [email protected].
