Woodward, Okla. — Area legislators talked about a range of issues, from tax cuts and credits to issues facing the education and corrections departments, during the Eggs and Issues legislative forum on Friday morning.

State Reps. Gus Blackwell, R-Laverne; Jeff Hickman, R-Fairview; Mike Sanders, R-Kingfisher; and State Sen. Bryce Marlatt, R-Woodward, discussed issues such as the state budget, income tax, Department of Corrections funding, the A through F school grading system, tax credits and more.

Rep. Sanders said the state budget and income taxes go "hand in hand," which means lowering income taxes is something that has to be done responsibly. With lowering income taxes could come possible cuts in core services, he said.

His fellow legislators concurred and said the people of Oklahoma have to consider questions such as if income taxes are lowered, what will make up for the drop in revenue without cutting core services?

"I'm in favor of tax cuts but as I look at where we are right now I think we're in a very precarious position economically; we're just coming out the recession," Blackwell said.

In addition, he said 3 major things that are bringing in money for the state are already facing potentially jeopardizing situations.  Those include cuts in defense, with aeronautics being number one, and the EPA coming down on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife and Agriculture as well as oil and gas industries.

If there is a tax cut on the income tax, Blackwell said he thinks it would be better to make it effective later.  While Hickman, Sanders and Marlatt all said they are looking at getting tax rates below the 5 percent mark sooner rather than later.

But whatever happens with the state income tax, the legislators said a decision will need to be made soon because they can't finish the budget until they know what revenues can be expected from income tax.  The legislature only has 2 weeks left to approve a state budget before their session is scheduled to end on the last Friday in May.



Department of Corrections

In the recent redistricting, Hickman recently added the William S. Key Correctional Facility in Fort Supply to his district, and discussed how many correctional facilities are experiencing the challenge of staff shortages.  He said the staff to inmate ratio is something that continues to be a concern.

Marvin Vaughn, William S. Key warden, said staffing is a major issue for wardens across the state and they have been struggling in major ways. Staffing brings problems of maintaining a sense of order and employee safety, he said.

"This is the toughest time I've ever experienced in my 25 years of corrections," Vaughn said.

He said much of the staff is working overtime and working double shifts.

"If I didn't have the dedicated staff like I have, there'd be really serious problems," he said.

Hickman also mentioned several relating items including a bill that they are looking to pass where the governor won't have to sign off on every single parole.  There are 16 other states that have a similar bill on their books allowing for non-violent, low risk offenders to be released solely based on the decision of the pardon and parole board.

Currently, Oklahoma's governor has to sign off on the parole in order for any inmate to leave prison.  However if HB 2131 were to pass, the governor would still be able to review violent cases, but wouldn't have to sign off on every inmate. The process should save about $10 million a year, Hickman said.

Another concern and issue he addressed is working on a grant program for law officers. While population in Oklahoma is increasing, he said the number of law officers is decreasing.  The grant program should help incentivize growth in law enforcement, he said.

Also, as inmates are leaving prisons, they are not checking in with anyone and they are not being held accountable by anyone, Hickman said.  The criminal justice reform bill that was signed earlier this week by Gov. Mary Fallin requires that future felons serve 9 months of supervised release after leaving prison, which will help ensure greater safety for citizens and help reduce crime rates, he said.



A through F Grading System

Blackwell touched on the topic of the grading system implemented at schools across the state. He believes the grading system is too complicated and needs to be simplified.

He recalled 2 experts from the Department of Education even arguing about the meaning of the rules.

"If 2 experts with the Department of Ed can't agree, how will superintendents be able to make heads or tails of what's going on and what they're expected to do?" he said.

Blackwell said the system is geared toward larger schools and said they need to get back to local control with superintendents making adjustments in their school systems.

"Our teachers feel so pressured. They get hammered on education, on performance, and now we're going to be graded by a system that basically sets us up to fail," said Randy Holley, Shattuck superintendent.

Jeff Thompson, Sharon-Mutual superintendent, agreed with Holley's analysis.  He then discussed how the grading system's focus on improvement will actually lower some schools scores even though their students are performing consistently well, just because those students have less room for improvement because they are doing well.

With issues like these, Thompson and Holley said that schools in this part of the state will only get an average grade based on the new grading system.

"But guys, we're not average, you know that," Holley said to the legislators.



Tax Credits

Some of the tax credits discussed included one for housing developers and one for rural firefighters.

Marlatt said he has been researching the tax credit that Missouri implemented following the 2011 Joplin tornado after hearing the credit helped put over $3 billion back into Missouri's economy.  The Missouri measure provided a tax credit for housing developers who came in and built new housing, but only provided the credit once the new developments were 100 percent occupied, he said.

Marlatt believes a similar measure in Oklahoma could help Woodward and Norman after the housing losses the communities sustained from April tornados.

With housing already being an issue before the April 15 tornado, it has become an even bigger issue in Woodward now.  Hickman said all areas where the oil field has a big presence have been challenged with housing issues.

LaVern Phillips, president with the Woodward Industrial Foundation, said providing incentives to encourage housing development is "so vital throughout the state of Oklahoma."

With a 2.8 percent unemployment rate in the Woodward area, Phillips said finding a job is not a problem but finding a place for employees to live is an issue.

"It's a huge issue across the state," Marlatt said. "I really feel like what this will do is cause a lot of people who are looking to do projects decide where they're going to target."

The other tax credit was brought up by Sanders and would benefit rural firefighters.  The tax credit would help reimburse volunteer firefighters in rural areas for the "vital training" that they often have to take time off from their paying job to attend, he said.  This will help allow rural firefighters to have the same level of training as firefighters in Oklahoma City and Tulsa, he said.