Oklahoma
State Senate
Communications Division
State Capitol
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73105
For Immediate Release: February 27, 2009
Sen. David Myers
Measure to Deter Vandalism of County and Municipal Property Heads
to House
The State Senate unanimously passed legislation
Thursday to help save Oklahoma's counties and municipalities thousands
of dollars that are lost each year through the vandalism of signs
and other property. Senate Bill 348, by Sen. David
Myers, would allow counties and municipalities to offer higher
rewards for information leading to the arrest and conviction of
individuals for such crimes.
"Our counties and cities spend thousands of dollars each
year replacing and repairing vandalized signs and other property.
This measure will give them the tools they need to help deter
these crimes, which will not only save taxpayers money but will
help prevent potentially deadly accidents," said Myers, R-Ponca
City.
County commissioner boards are authorized under current state
law to offer and pay up to $100 as a reward for the arrest and
conviction, or for evidence leading to the arrest and conviction
of any person stealing or defacing county road signs. SB 348 would
add all other county property to the list and would also increase
the allowed reward amount to $1,000. County commissioner boards
would also be allowed to have up to $2,000 in their reward funds
rather than $500.
The measure was requested by the Oklahoma Association of County
Commissioners, but after learning of the bill various municipalities
asked that for language to help them as well. Therefore, SB 348
also would create a new law authorizing municipalities to offer
the same rewards as counties for evidence and conviction of vandalism
if they wanted.
"Our counties and cities have enough on their plates without
dealing with these types of crimes. Unfortunately, we're not just
dealing with juvenile acts like spray painted signs, but potentially
deadly crimes such as stop signs being removed from intersections
and county vehicles having their brakes tampered with," said
Myers. "County officials feel that offering higher rewards
will encourage increased levels of community awareness and people
will feel more inclined to come forward about possible crimes."
SB 348 now goes to the House for further consideration.
For more information contact:
Sen. Myers' Office: 405-521-5628
