Rep. Duel: Legislature adjourns

The Legislature has adjourned sine die as it is constitutionally required to do by the last Friday in May.

The last few days of our session turned out to be quite the experience as the House and Senate voted to override more than 40 measures the governor had vetoed.

One of those was House Bill 1563, a measure I authored to strengthen due process and government accountability within the criminal justice system. Supported by both district attorneys and defense attorneys, this measure ensures timely access to evidence and empowers defendants to obtain records directly from businesses. It also protects victims and the integrity of investigations by limiting access to sensitive materials and tightening standards for jailhouse informants.

We also overrode the governor’s veto on a bill that will require health benefit plans to include coverage for contrast-enhanced mammograms and molecular breast imaging as part of diagnostic and supplemental examinations for breast cancer. It’s reported that one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer, and these early detection tools can help save lives and reduce long-term care costs.

Another action taken was the adoption of Senate Concurrent Resolution 12. This removes the commissioner of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. The current commissioner has served in her position for a year and a half, after being appointed by the governor. Yet, she has been unable to fully identify or right the wrongs at this agency and still cannot satisfactorily explain a shortfall of about $30 million.

Legislators held numerous hearings with the commissioner and her staff, but the Legislature has lost confidence in her ability to identify, oversee, and manage the critical services delivered by the department she oversees. It will be up to the governor to appoint someone new, and to the Senate to confirm the appointment.

In the meantime, the Legislature, the Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency, the state auditor, and others will continue to examine this agency and work toward putting better practices in place moving forward.

We started this session by filing 1,928 bills and 29 joint resolutions in the House. Senators filed 1,124 bills and 17 joint resolutions. We finished our session by sending a total of 527 House and Senate bills and joint resolutions to the governor. To date, he’s vetoed 68 measures. Both chambers voted to override 47 of those, sending them to the Secretary of State to become law.

Even though the legislative session has ended, I’ll still be available to my constituents. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me at (405) 557-7350 or collin.duel@okhouse.gov. It’s a pleasure to serve House District 31.