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TOP HEADLINES
ICYMI: 2017 Legislative Preview: Taxes, water and education:
Facing a nearly $900 million budget shortfall, state revenue problems again will cast an overwhelming shadow on this year’s session. Everything from farming exemptions to ad valorem tax increases and expansions are be talked about as lawmakers tackle the extreme budget crisis [OKAgPolicy].
Gov. Fallin to lay out 2017 focus as lawmakers return to Capitol to craft budget, policy:
In her seventh State of the State address to lawmakers, Fallin is expected to call for an overhaul of the state’s tax system, a teacher pay raise and seek support for revenue-raising measures [Tulsa World].
STATE
Fallin urges lawmakers to work with her to find new revenue:
If the Oklahoma Legislature wants to keep funding critical services like education, public safety and infrastructure, Gov. Mary Fallin says lawmakers should work with her to come up with permanent ways to fund those priorities [AP].
New Oklahoma House speaker wants early focus on budget:
McCall welcomes the idea of overseeing the House for four years and believes it could be a span when the state’s budget rebounds and the Legislature approves comprehensive changes to spending and tax structures [The Oklahoman].
What your legislators think is important: Teacher raises, state astronomical object and school uniforms for all:
More than 2,100 pieces of legislation were filed by the Jan. 20 deadline for the first session of the 56th Legislature, including 831 in the Senate bills and 1,340 in the House.Tulsa World paged through all those measures to give you an idea of what your lawmakers are working on this year [Tulsa World].
Capitol influence: Voters still have a say in the lawmaking process:
With all the money and power in politics, voters often feel they have no real say in government. Politicians themselves, especially those at the state and local level, say otherwise [Tulsa World].
FEDERAL
Scott Pruitt is seen cutting the EPA with a scalpel, not a cleaver:
Mr. Pruitt, a lawyer who made a career suing the E.P.A., is not likely to start with the kind of shock and awe that Mr. Trump has used to disorient Washington. Instead, he will use the legal tools at his disposal to pare back the agency’s reach and power, and trim its budget selectively [New York Times].
Trump signs order to begin rolling back Wall Street regulations:
In an executive order, Trump ordered a review of the laws and regulations that govern the U.S. financial system in an opening bid to upend 2010’s financial overhaul law, known as Dodd-Frank. The complicated legislation, which took months to negotiate, touches nearly every aspect of the way banks operate and includes hundreds of rules, some of which have yet to be implemented [Washington Post].
Washington Week Ahead: Japanese leader visits Trump, lawmakers seek to kill BLM rule:
On Capitol Hill this week, lawmakers will consider killing a rule finalized in the last weeks of the Obama administration that changes Bureau of Land Management’s planning procedures, and Senate Republicans continue pushing some of Trump’s nominees toward confirmation [Agri-Pulse].
MISCELLANEOUS
3 things immigration reform is not:
Immigration is the story of America. It’s the story of my family, and I’d wager it’s the story of yours. But when we lose sight of this, it’s easy to muddy the waters of an already complex issue, forget what it’s actually about, and focus instead on what it isn’t [AFBF].
Could farm downturn hit bottom this year?:
The farm downturn is likely to continue this year — and possibly last into 2018 — with operating costs slow to decline and record production filling the nation’s grain bins [Des Moines Register].
