OKLAHOMA CITY – Legislation requiring all Oklahoma public high schools to offer at least four Advanced Placement (AP) courses to students beginning in the 2024-25 school year was signed into law by the governor Tuesday.

House Bill 3400, authored by State Rep. Rhonda Baker, R-Yukon, and State Sen. Gary Stanislawski, R-Tulsa, allows schools to choose the type of AP courses offered.

“Data-driven research shows that high school students are better prepared for higher education coursework and the workforce when they take a blend of both AP and concurrent enrollment classes,” said Baker, the chair of the House Common Education Committee. “Performing well in these classes and on subsequent exams also help reduce the cost of college tuition. In addition, having a skilled and trained workforce puts Oklahoma in a better position to attract job creators and build a stronger state economy.” 

Stanislawski, chair of the Senate Education Committee, is serving his final regular legislative session due to term limits.  He said he was gratified that this was his last measure to present to the full Senate.

“Throughout my time in the Senate, I’ve fought to expand educational opportunities throughout Oklahoma,” Stanislawski said.  “I appreciate the opportunity for this to be my final bill, promoting advanced placement courses, regardless of what zip code a child lives in. That’s a legacy we can all be proud of.”  

Baker said schools will be able to select the platform on which to offer these courses, whether in a traditional classroom setting, a virtual option or through an area CareerTech. The bill directs the State Department of Education to provide information to all local boards of education, to be distributed to students and parents, on available opportunities and the AP enrollment process. Virtual schools also would need to make these course options available.

Nearly six in 10 Oklahoma schools do not currently offer a single AP course, many of those in rural areas. Baker said this legislation is a way to ensure all students throughout the state have access to at least some AP courses so they are equally prepared for higher learning and the job market.

She said this measure builds on several investments the state has made to expand AP, including allocating funding for teacher training, test fee assistance for low-income students, and grants for districts to start new AP programs.

OKLAHOMA CITY – A bill requiring dyslexia screening for early elementary students not reading on grade level was signed into law by the governor Tuesday.

House Bill 2804, authored by House Majority Leader Mike Sanders, R-Kingfisher, and Sen. Stephanie Bice, R-Oklahoma City, requires screening for dyslexia for students in kindergarten through third grade who are not reading on grade level beginning in the 2022-23 school year.

“I’m thankful to the governor for signing this legislation that will be life-changing for these children,” Sanders said. “Too many of our children with dyslexia have been left behind in learning, and getting them the help they need is as simple as properly identifying this disorder. When these kids catch up with their peers in reading and other subjects it not only leads to a happier school experience but a better life.”

Bice said the issue was personal because her godson was dyslexic. She thanked the governor and fellow legislators for supporting the legislation.

“With proper screening, we can get dyslexic children the help they need to become stronger readers, giving them the tools to be successful in school and in life,” said Bice. “This is going to make a positive difference in the education outcomes of countless Oklahoma children.”

HB 2804 requires the State Board of Education to develop policies for dyslexia screening, and to adopt a list of approved qualified dyslexia screening tools. The bill also requires school districts to provide the State Department of Education with data about dyslexia, including the number of students screened for dyslexia each year, the number of students identified, and the process used to evaluate students.

“Our student advocates have given a face to dyslexia in Oklahoma. They have struggled to learn to read, but have been determined not to see others have the same fate. As their parents and educators, we have advocated for HB2804. Alongside the State Department of Education, the Dyslexia and Education Task Force, and members of the Legislature, we have worked to improve reading outcomes for struggling readers, including students with dyslexia,” said Michelle Keiper and Tiffany Jenkins of Decoding Dyslexia Oklahoma.  “Change in education is never easy, but OSDE is providing the leadership needed in the Reading Sufficiency and Special Education departments.  Together we are making great improvements in Oklahoma.”

Last year, Sanders secured passage of House Bill 1228, which provides professional development for teachers across Oklahoma to help them better recognize signs of dyslexia in their students. Adding screening through HB 2804 was the logical next step, he said.

Sanders also authored legislation this year to add the Dyslexia Handbook to the list of tools available to teachers, parents and school administrators at no cost through the State Department of Education. Sanders said all of the legislation was a recommendation by the Dyslexia and Education Task Force and the SDE as well as Decoding Dyslexia Oklahoma. All of the bills represent several years’ worth of work on this issue.

OKLAHOMA CITY -- State Rep. Mickey Dollens, D-OKC, released the following statement in response to Gov. Kevin Stitt’s claim to media outlets that the governor had no authority over the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission. 

“In less than a month, the governor has gone from ‘give me another week’ to fix Oklahoma’s unemployment system to ‘the governor has no authority,'" Dollens said. "This type of leadership does little to help Oklahomans and falls short of the job Oklahomans elected us to do. 

“Last year, the Legislature gave the governor unprecedented powers over government agencies. This session, media outlets dubbed him ‘the most powerful governor in state history.’ Now, while people suffer, his answer is ‘the governor has no authority?’

“The governor’s comments are a great example of what I have said for the past month. The governor and his administration paint a pretty picture during press conferences and press releases, but it isn’t based in reality, where thousands of Oklahomans are currently struggling to financially survive. The Legislature allocated $50 million to the governor to use to fight COVID-related problems. Perhaps the governor should have put some of those tax dollars into the obviously broken unemployment system instead of stocking up on arthritis medicine and scapegoating responsibility.”

OKLAHOMA CITY – The governor on Tuesday signed into law a bill that strengthens the role of victims’ impact panels in helping to stop driving under the influence (DUI) offenses in Oklahoma and will help reduce the number of repeat offenders.

House Bill 2877, by House Majority Leader Mike Sanders, R-Kingfisher, was a request by victims’ impact panel programs currently operating in Oklahoma. It follows up on successful DUI legislation Sanders has passed in 2016 that strengthened prosecution of repeat drunk drivers by creating the Impaired Driving Elimination Act, moving all DUI cases to a court of record, ensuring district attorneys statewide would have access to records of DUI offenses. 

“I’ve fought much of my legislative career to curb the horrible crime of driving under the influence, which leaves death and devastation in its wake,” Sanders said. “This law ensures that those offenders who commit this crime will now have to face their victims or even worse the family members of those victims who were killed as a result of their actions,” Sanders said. “This strategy has proven to be 90 percent effective in our state, and it will save lives.”

Sen. Lonnie Paxton, R-Tuttle, is the Vice Chair of the Senate Public Safety Committee and the Senate author of HB 2877.

“This is an important measure that is going to make Oklahoma roads safer and save lives.  We have too many cases of repeat DUI offenders and we’ve got to stop that,” Paxton said.  “House Bill 2877 will also make sure that Oklahoma’s impact panels are legitimate and following all necessary rules and regulations.  I want to thank my legislative colleagues for supporting and Governor Stitt for signing this important public safety measure into law.”

The legislation accomplishes three things:

First, it puts teeth in the enforcement of current statutory requirements for operating a victims’ impact panel. The District Attorney’s Council now will collect information and certify the panels by ensuring they meet all statutory requirements and operate properly. 

Second, the bill ensures that all defendants are being sent to a victim’s impact panel and standardizes the sentencing requirements statewide.

The bill also makes the fee for a victim/offender reconciliation program and Victims’ Impact Panel program a flat $75 instead of the sliding scale that now exists across the state.

Sanders said victims’ impact panels have to pay a $1,000 filing fee and the fee helps offset that and the cost of services provided. Equalizing the fee throughout the state ensures residents in rural areas will have access to such panels without having to make a long drive to attend.