Oklahoma school shelter advocates nearing deadline

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – Supporters of an initiative petition to place storm shelters in every Oklahoma public school say they are short of the number of signatures required to put the measure on a statewide ballot with just four weeks left to gather them.

Attorney David Slane said Tuesday that Take Shelter Oklahoma is launching a final push to get the signatures of about 155,000 registered voters needed to get the measure on the ballot. Slane says the organization has an Oct. 20 deadline to turn the petitions in to the Secretary of State.

The effort marks the second time petitions have been circulated since seven children died when a tornado slammed into a school in Moore in 2013. The first effort was abandoned in April.