Republicans in the House Ignore Bill for Financial Accountability of County Jails

House Republicans who claim to be fiscally responsible have killed a bill that would require county jails to show they are financially sound before entering into a contract with the state. Senate Bill 687, authored by Senator Kenneth Corn and Representative Joe Dorman, passed the Senate with bi-partisan support but failed to receive a committee hearing in the House, rendering the measure dead for this legislative session.

“This bill was good public policy and I am truly puzzled in a year when we have seen one county jail teeter on the brink of financial failure that we can’t get a bill passed so this type of thing never happens again,”

Corn, a Poteau Democrat, said. “The bill made it through the Senate with no problem at all, but when it arrived in the so called ‘fiscally responsible’ House of Representatives, it never saw the light of day.”
Corn said he filed the measure to protect the taxpayers of Oklahoma.

“When we make an investment with taxpayer dollars, it just makes sense to make sure that investment is solid,” the Senator said. “Because the bill never made it out of the Republican controlled House tells me those on the other side of the aisle do not believe in the importance of being responsible with taxpayer dollars. And once again, their rhetoric simply doesn’t match their record.”

The lawmaker said Oklahomans expect more responsibility from the legislature.

“By completely ignoring this bill and allowing it to die without a committee hearing, the Republican majority in the House have turned their backs on the taxpayers of this state,” Corn concluded. “And I believe Oklahomans deserve more than that.”