State Rep. Glen "Bud" Smithson (D-Sallisaw) was also scheduled to visit with residents, but had to attend budget meetings at the state Capitol.
In Roland, Corn spoke to a group of about 20 county and city leaders and residents about various issues facing the state this year.
Corn said the number one issue is the budget, although the state is in better financial shape this year compared to recent years.
He listed funding shortages for various departments and services, including the Department of Corrections, district attorneys' offices across the state, the Oklahoma Indigent Defense System, the Department of Human Services, and Medicaid.
Corn said there are immediate funding needs. He said the state House of Representatives is currently lagging behind on performing budget reports. He said the Senate has finished its' process, and the money can't be appropriated unless reports are finished.
Corn said another big recurring issue this year will a school consolidation plan from the state House of Representatives, which he noted was under new leadership.
Corn said the Senate is not in favor of consolidation. He said with consolidation, only about 1 percent would be saved, not calculating the cost of transportation.
He said the Senate has looked at rural Oklahoma, and in some towns, the only thing left is the schools. If those are taken away, the only thing left will be cemeteries. This situation can be seen in the western part of the state, Corn said.
"It would kill rural Oklahoma and small towns," Corn said.
Corn said he grew up in Howe, and he said he knows if the school went, so would the town.
"The Senate is preparing for battle on education," Corn said.
Corn also talked to residents about Carl Albert State College (CASC) and a proposed higher education bond issue. He said CASC's Sallisaw campus is overcrowded and in need of more space. He said the money used to pay for that bond will be the higher education portion of the state lottery. A sales tax will also be needed, CASC officials have said.
"We're not robbing common education to give to higher education," Corn assured the residents.
Corn also touched on various other topics during the brief meeting, including the need for workman's compensation reform, and a prescription drug plan proposed by Gov. Brad Henry and backed by the Senate.
Corn said the plan will allow re-importation of prescription drugs from Canada because the cost of prescription drugs has skyrocketed in recent years. He said the state's plan would be in violation of federal law, but he hopes the plan would mean substantial savings in the state's budget.
Another issue the state is facing is whether or not special project money will be set aside to help communities across the states with various needs, such as building community parks and repairing fire trucks.
Corn said the House doesn't believe the state should help communities with special needs, but communities should support themselves.
"The House and Senate disagree," Corn said.
Corn said a number of things have been done with special project money.
"This will be an issue fought over bitterly this session," Corn said.
Corn fielded questions from the audience. District 1 County Commissioner Bruce Tabor asked Corn about the issue of taking tag money away from schools. Corn assured Tabor that the state Senate was opposed to taking any money from schools. He said taking money away will only create more problems.
"The legislature is resistant to anything that takes away from schools," Corn said.
