We had several long days on the House floor this past week as we raced to hear several hundred bills before the third-reading deadline. March 24 was the date legislation had to advance from its chamber of origin to stay active this session. All House measures that passed now move to the state Senate, and we will receive all legislation that advanced from that chamber.
One of my bills that passed before deadline was House Bill 3995. This is a request bill from the Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority. It updates the statutes from when the authority was established in 1981, and it will improve service to communities in Northwest Oklahoma that are served by the authority.
House Bill 3827 also passed the House. This bill would require all medical marijuana commercial grower licensees to register as an environmentally sensitive crop owner with the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture beginning Nov. 1. This would provide notice to commercial and private pesticide applicators of the location of medical marijuana crops to help minimize the potential of damaging pesticide drift. This was just one of many bills that address medical marijuana issues.
Several measures advanced that will grant some tax relief to Oklahomans, especially important during the current inflation we're experiencing. One measure would grant a two-year moratorium on the 4.5% portion of the sales tax on groceries. This will grant some temporary relief as we work on more comprehensive tax reform. This will not affect the local portion of the sales tax on groceries. We also voted to grant some permanent personal income tax relief as well as to phase out the corporate income tax in an effort to make Oklahoma more business friendly and attract more jobs.
In addition, the House voted through a measure that would allow civil lawsuits to be brought against anyone who performs or attempts to perform an abortion or anyone who knowingly engages in conduct to aid or abet an abortion, including paying for or reimbursing the cost of the procedure. An exception would be made in cases of medical emergency to save the life of the mother.
We also moved along a number of bills that will strengthen Oklahoma's already strong election integrity measures.
We'll have a somewhat slow week as bills move between the House and Senate, and then we'll resume committee work to hear bills from the opposite chamber.
It's an honor to continue to represent the people of House District 59 in our state House. Please follow regular updates on my house Facebook page and reach out anytime at (405) 557-7407 or Mike.Dobrinski@okhouse.gov.
Mike Dobrinski serves District 59 in the Oklahoma House of Representatives. His district includes Dewey and parts of Blaine, Canadian, Kingfisher and Woodward counties.