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Recent Oklahoma Forum Posts
Oklahoma News
- 09/30/08 - Judge Rules Against Bird Waste Injunction in Okla.
- 09/17/08 - Selling Ice Cream, With Sprinkles of Anarchism
- 08/22/08 - Grassroots Direct Action: San Francisco Voters Nov. 4 Will Tell Their Congress Reps to Defund the War
- 08/22/08 - Jim Hightower: Let's Stop Clowning Around With America's Economy
- 07/24/08 - Has Your Town Declared Peace Yet?
- 07/18/08 - Wal-Mart Highlights Locally Grown Program in Okla.
- 06/30/08 - States Taking Initiative on Environmental & Climate Crisis while Feds Do Little or Nothing
- 06/11/08 - Move Over MoveOn: Grassroots Netroots Alliance (GNA) Launches New Progressive Campaign to 'Press the Politicians'
- 06/06/08 - How Global Warming Is Helping Democrats Win The Heartland
- 05/15/08 - Center for American Progress: What Are You Paying for the War?
- 05/13/08 - EPA Testing Toxic Picher Air After Tornado
- 05/12/08 - Lead and Mines Decimate Picher
- 05/06/08 - Supreme Court Upholds Indiana Photo ID Law, Undermines Voting Rights
- 04/16/08 - When Testing High is Bad.
- 03/31/08 - Mercury Rising as a Potent Killer in State
- 03/17/08 - Okla. AG Seeks Halt to Poultry Waste Disposal in Watershed
- 01/08/08 - Kansas Voters Agree with Decision to Block Construction of Coal Plants, Poll Says
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Tell Your Representatives to Include Public Schools In Green Building Requirements
The passage of HR3394, The High Performance Green Buildings Act, was a huge victory! HR3394 requires that state funded buildings meet the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Standards or its equivalent Green Globes Standard for energy efficiency and environmentally and sustainably produced materials.
However, HR3394 failed to include that public schools be build to these standards. Public schools comprise the majority of state funded building. Please write your representative and ask them to introduce legislation next year that would include public schools.
Take Action
Updated 7/9/08
Oklahoma 2008 Legislative Roundup
(From Progressive States Network)
The Oklahoma State Legislature adjourned late Friday, May 23, a week earlier than constitutionally-mandated. Lawmakers closed the session with an agreement on a $7.1 billion state budget for the next fiscal year. Overall the short 16 week session led to a mix bag of results.
Education: Legislators showed a commitment to education by passing a bill that earmarks $2.3 billion for schools, a $185 million increase over last year. This includes a $3,000 across-the-board pay raise for all state teachers.
Ethics: Lawmakers also passed a significant ethics reform bill, HB 2196, which bans lobbyists from making campaign contributions during a legislative session. The bill prohibits contributions from lobbyists to legislators - both incumbents and challengers - from the start of legislative sessions to five days after adjournment.
Infrastructure Improvements: Legislators also passed a $475 million bond package largely dedicated to infrastructure improvements. A majority of the bond funding is earmarked to help with the state's roads and bridges. The bond package, however, also includes $100 million in state matching funds for the endowed chairs programs at Oklahoma's colleges and universities. Additionally, $25 million will go to the Oklahoma Conservation Commission to repair and replace flood control dams in rural Oklahoma, $25 million for the construction of a low-water dam project on the Arkansas River in Tulsa, and $25 million to help finish construction of the Native American Cultural Center in Oklahoma City.
Healthcare: HB 3060 provides for the establishment, operation and maintenance of a public umbilical cord blood bank and establishing an education program for maternity. Unfortunately, legislators were unable to pass healthcare legislation which would have mandated health insurance coverage for autism diagnosis and treatment.
On a positive note, some negative bills were not passed, including voter identification provisions and an attempt to mandate English as Oklahoma's official language.
- Progressive lawmakers were able to block SB 1150, which would have required individuals to show ID every time they vote. The legislation did allow a person who was unable to provide ID to vote after affirming his identity under penalty of a felony for misinformation.
- HB 3349 would have declared English the official language of Oklahoma and prohibited actions that would diminish or ignore the role of English in the state.
Further, Governor Henry once again vetoed a "tort reform" bill, HB 2458, which would have undercut consumer rights and gutted corporate accountability for injuries to the public.
Take Action. Support Green Jobs!
The Green Jobs Act of 2007 authorized $125 million per year to create an Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Worker Training Program as an amendment to the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). The Green Jobs Act (GJA) is an initial pilot program to identify needed skills, develop training programs, and train workers for jobs in a range of industries - including energy efficient building, construction and retrofits, renewable electric power, energy efficient vehicles, biofuels, and manufacturing that produces sustainable products and uses sustainable processes and materials. It targets a broad range of populations for eligibility, but has a special focus on creating "green pathways out of poverty."
Congress has not yet appropriated money for the Green Jobs Act. Please contact your Senator today and urge them to fund the Green Jobs Act of 2007!
Read more at Green for All's web site.
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