Senate Review by Senator Todd Gollihare

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(Oklahoma City) - This week, a historic education funding agreement was unveiled at the state Capitol by leaders of the Senate, House and Governor Kevin Stitt, which will provide $625 million in recurring total investment in public education.

This agreement places $500 million directly into the education funding formula and I believe these investments will be instrumental in helping us attract and keep the best and brightest education professionals in our public schools. That investment will cover teacher pay raises of $3,000 for teachers with zero to four years of experience; $4,000 for teachers with five to nine years of experience; $5,000 for teachers with 10 to 15 years of experience; and $6,000 for teachers with 15 or more years of experience.

The agreement, for the first time ever, includes funding for six weeks of paid maternity leave. Again, we want to provide funding that better supports our professional educators and makes Oklahoma schools more attractive for those considering teaching as a profession.

The agreement also includes putting an additional $10 million into a three-year literacy program to employ a literacy instructional team to support school districts. Reading at grade level is essential for success in school and throughout life.  This is an investment in the future of Oklahoma’s children. The agreement also includes $125 million to the Redbud Fund that largely benefits rural schools that don’t have the same ad valorem tax collections as districts. This package also includes an additional $150 million for a three-year pilot program for school safety and security. This will provide each district with a school resource officer, or security upgrades, depending on what is needed. For each year of the program, each public school district will receive approximately $96,000.

We’ll soon be hearing details on other areas of the state budget. As education makes up the lion’s share of state appropriated dollars, reaching consensus on that clears the way for final announcements on the rest of the budget.

Meanwhile, work continues on legislation and executive nominations. I expect floor votes soon giving final confirmation for John Longacre, of Kellyville and Jay Rotert, of Sand Springs. John is the principal of Crown Auto World, RAM , Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep in Bristow and Taft Motors in Sapulpa, and has been nominated by Governor Stitt to serve a fourth term as chair of the Oklahoma Used Motor Vehicle, Dismantler and Manufactured Housing Commission. Jay is a professional educator and spent 15 years in the classroom at Charles Page High School in Sand Springs.  He’s currently serving as the director of the Sand Springs Virtual Academy and as district state testing coordinator. Jay has been nominated to serve as a member of the State Textbook Committee. It is my pleasure to carry both of these nominations forward.

I also wanted to update you on my legislation naming a section of Highway 66 the Army SPC Ryan J. Grady Memorial Highway. Ryan, formerly of Bristow, was a combat engineer in the Vermont National Guard’s Special Troops Battalion, 86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team. He was killed after his vehicle was hit in a roadside bombing near Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. The legislation honoring his life, service and sacrifice is now on its way to the governor for final consideration.

Thank you for allowing me to serve you in the Oklahoma Senate. If you have any questions or concerns about legislation or other issues related to state government, please feel free to contact my office by calling 405-521-5528, or email Todd.Gollihare@oksenate.gov.