The Oklahoman
House Speaker Chris Benge said he is ready to discuss limiting the number of state questions that will appear on the November ballot. Last session, lawmakers put eight questions on the ballot ranging from voter identification at the polls to Senate approval of a governor’s selection of judges to serve on the workers’ compensation court ”” two issues Gov. Brad Henry vetoed.
The 2010 elections may seem far off. But in the state Capitol folks are already lining up their message and jockeying. Which can only mean the next legislative season will interesting. Lawmakers up for re-election will either be overly cautious, not wanting to offend or they’ll be outlandish, hoping to garner attention and get their name out.
Group supporting child-welfare system changes will try again to gather signatures for ballot measure
A group pushing to overhaul Oklahoma’s child welfare system will host its second rally in less than two weeks today at the Oklahoma County Juvenile Justice Center. The rally will be from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the center, 5905 N Classen Blvd. The rally is sponsored by the Oklahoma Family Rights Coalition, which has circulated initiative petitions twice this year calling for a public vote on overhauling the child welfare system. The group withdrew its first initiative petition in April after gathering only about 85,000 of the 117,013 necessary signatures within the 90-day period allowed.
Criminal charges against three out-of-state signature gatherers were dismissed after the state’s attorney general decided not to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review Oklahoma’s initiative petition law.
Attorney General Drew Edmondson said Thursday his office would stop its legal challenge of a 10th Circuit Court of Appeals decision that ruled unconstitutional Oklahoma’s law requiring petition signature gatherers to be residents.