Hamilton’s bills assigned to Senate committees

Sen. Warren Hamilton, R-McCurtain, has authored 14 bills that have been referred to their respective committees and will be up for consideration in the next few weeks.

“I’ve filed these bills to protect our constitutional rights, protect Oklahoma children, and make improvements across the state in a variety of areas,” Hamilton said.

Senate Bill 181 has been assigned to the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee and directs the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry to review methods of remote viewing or other digital inspection technology for meat and poultry product inspections.

SB 397 will be considered by the Education Committee and requires schools to inventory library materials and designate them as elementary, junior high, under 16, or juniors and seniors. Materials would then be placed in respective sections based on age to restrict students access to media materials.

Three additional bills will go before the Health and Human Services Committee. SB 217 would require practitioners to administer a pharmacogenomic test to a patient before prescribing psychotropic drugs. This would determine how their genes would react to the medications. SB 287 and 402 relate to abortion and would allow prosecution of a woman in the death of her unborn child through the Prenatal Equal Protection Act.

The Judiciary Committee has been assigned SB 248, a measure that would allow a mother to terminate her parental rights to her biological child without going to court. Presently, mothers must go before a judge to relinquish their parental rights, whereas the father does not. This bill allows the mother to do this through a notary without a court hearing and makes the process easier to place children up for adoption.

Hamilton added that the adoption process is extensive and expensive and hopes that this bill will be a small step in encouraging mothers to choose life.

The Judiciary Committee has also been assigned SB 290, which would increase pay for poll workers. Election inspectors would be compensated $225, up from $110, while election judges and clerks would be paid $200, an increase from $100.

Any person who knowingly acquires title to land in violation of the prohibition on foreign entities directly or indirectly acquiring land in the state would be guilty of a felony under SB 464. SB 565 provides that civil disputes related to work performed on real property should be brought into the county where the property is located or where the person or entity providing the work is located. These measures have also been assigned to the Judiciary Committee.

The Public Safety Committee will consider SB 260, 269, and 324, which relate to firearms. These measures would stop programs or orders from offering the buy-back of firearms, remove restrictions on .45 caliber ammunition, repeal sections of law that restrict possession and manufacturing of ammo designed to penetrate body armor and would add additional prison time for the use of body armor while committing a felony.

SB 615 will also go through Public Safety and would increase the age of consent to 18.

Hamilton also authored SB 345, which would prohibit anyone under 21 from undergoing gender reassignment treatment. This bill has been assigned to the Senate Rules Committee.