Capital update - By State Rep. Randy Randleman
Thursday, Jan. 21 was the bill filing deadline for the 58th Legislature. Lawmakers have filed all of their bills that will be considered in the upcoming legislative session, which begins Feb. 1.
Many bills are already online and can be viewed on the House website at www.okhouse.gov. Under the “Legislation” tab, click on “Advanced Bill Search.” From there, click on “Current Status” and retrieve the legislation for either chamber or for both. There were 1,942 bills filed in the House, which is higher than past years because so many bills had to be dropped last session due to COVID.
We’re hoping we can get a handle on the coronavirus and be together as a group at the Capitol to make the best decisions for our districts. In preparation for the upcoming session, the Appropriations & Budget subcommittees are conducting hearings with different state agencies who are presenting their budget requests.
I serve as the vice chair of the A&B Human Services Subcommittee, which heard from various entities within the Oklahoma Department of Human Services, including the Commission on Children and Youth, the Office of Disability Concerns, the Department of Rehabilitation Services and the Office of Juvenile Affairs. During their presentation, the Office of Juvenile Affairs indicated that if there were more mental health services provided to adolescents, there would be fewer youth breaking the law and going through the Office of Juvenile Affairs system. They recommended that more services be made available throughout the state. I have already been working on a bill to address this issue, and I filed the bill this week.
Currently, the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services has a rule restricting the number of community mental health centers to only one per service area. As a result, residents of House District 15 must travel to McAlester to seek these services, which is simply too far for many to travel. My bill, House Bill 1637, will remove this limitation to allow each service area in the state to have more than just one mental health center and stabilization unit for children and adults. I am continuing to work with other lawmakers on several bills to address mental health issues and to increase mental health services in eastern Oklahoma.
I joined 27 other legislators to announce the formation of a bipartisan, bicameral legislative caucus to focus on mental health. The caucus will work together to discuss bipartisan solutions to Oklahoma’s mental health and addiction crisis. As a licensed psychologist, I look forward to helping lead the way in the Legislature to improve the mental health of all Oklahomans. I am excited to work with the members of the caucus and other lawmakers from both the House and Senate who share this interest. The pandemic has deeply affected many Oklahomans’ mental health.
We’ve already seen an uptick in depression, anxiety and suicides among many people, and these issues will likely continue to increase even after we get control of the pandemic. People have been isolated for so long, and as the pandemic ends, we will have to make yet another adjustment back to a “new normal.” It’s important to ensure individuals are able to access the therapy or skills they need to handle their mental health disorders. Many people don’t have the skills or support necessary to manage depression and anxiety. They can come about so quickly, making it hard for people’s minds to adjust during difficult times.
As we draw closer to the legislative session, I look forward to addressing these issues and more on behalf of the people of House District 15. As always, feel free to reach out to me at randy.randleman@okhouse.gov or (405) 557-7375. Thank you for allowing me to represent you at the State Capitol.
Rep. Randy Randleman represents District 15 in the Oklahoma House of Representatives, which includes portions of Haskell, LeFlore, McIntosh, Muskogee, Pittsburg and Sequoyah counties. His column appears regularly in the Stigler News-Sentinel.