For Immediate Release: January 15, 2014
Sen. Patrick Anderson
Anderson proposes selling SORC and NORCE
campuses
Sen. Patrick
Anderson has authored legislation that would enable the state
to sell the campuses of the Southern Oklahoma Resources Center
(SORC) in Pauls Valley, and the Northern Oklahoma Resources Center
(NORCE) in Enid. Both facilities, which are slated to be closed
by the state, provide care for the severely mentally disabled.
SORC is set to close this April and NORCE in August, 2015.
Anderson said that after the 2012 decision to close the facilities,
residents are now being forced to relocate to for-profit group
homes.
“The end result is going to be two empty, state-owned properties,”
said Anderson, R-Enid. “These campuses contain wonderful
facilities that have been constructed for the specific purpose
of caring for the special needs of their unique populations. It
would be a shame to let these facilities sit empty and not be
utilized.”
Senate Bill 1598 proposes that the campus locations be offered
for sale to the municipalities where they are located. Under the
Oklahoma Constitution, the state cannot give these properties
to a municipality, but can instead sell them. Anderson’s
measure proposes that each campus be offered for sale to the Enid
and Pauls Valley communities for the sum of $100,000.
“If the local municipality choses to buy the property, the
municipality would control the property and could elect to lease
it to a private contractor who could operate the facility for
the benefit of the current residents,” Anderson said. “This
would give the residents’ families true options as to where
they want their loved ones to reside. It would also support the
local economy in each community by keeping the facilities open
and saving the jobs of the men and women who work there. This
proposal would be good for the state, good for the communities
and great for the families whose loved ones are currently cared
for in these facilities.”
For more information contact:
Sen. Anderson: (405) 521-5630
