Senate Review by Senator Roland Pederson

We met our final committee deadline last week to advance House Bills approved in their chamber out of our Senate committees. The House sent us about 400 measures, and we approved approximately 300 of them. These bills are now eligible to be heard on the Senate floor. We’ll spend the next two weeks hearing and debating these bills ahead of the April 22 deadline for them to be approved from the floor.

I was honored to present three chaplains of the week from Senate District 19 last week. Pastor Mark McAdow from Willow View United Methodist Church in Enid was our Senate chaplain on Monday, Pastor Alan Seibel from Oakwood Christian Church in Enid was our chaplain on Tuesday, and my own pastor, Rod Rieger from Driftwood Christian Church in Cherokee, addressed the Senate on Wednesday and Thursday with a short message before we finished our legislative duties for the week. It was an honor to have these men represent the Lord and our district this past week.

One of the duties of the Senate each session is to vet and approve executive nominations made by the governor for boards and commission across the state. I had the pleasure of carrying the executive nomination of Brady Bond to the State Fire Marshal Commission to serve a five-year term ending in 2026. I know Brady will serve our state well in this capacity, and my Senate colleagues agreed, unanimously approving his nomination in the General Government Committee. His nomination now must go before the full Senate for final approval.

Aside from our work at the Capitol, I’ve been busy across the district participating in numerous meetings and activities. I recently had the pleasure of speaking to a civics class at the Oklahoma Bible Academy in Enid. We discussed state government and the legislative process, and I enjoyed being back in the classroom and seeing first-hand the bright minds that will lead our state in the next generation.

I’ve also been meeting with local leaders of the Marshallese community in Enid. This population of citizens from Micronesia will now be eligible to receive Medicaid, which will be a big boost to their community, as well as a help to our local hospitals in the area. These folks are hardworking and dedicated to their jobs, and I’m glad they’ll be receiving healthcare they need.

We have a busy few weeks ahead of us at the Capitol as we continue to work through legislation and negotiate and finalize the budget. I’ll keep you updated as our work progresses.

Thank you for allowing me to be your voice at our state Capitol. Please feel free to reach out if there is anything we can help you with. You can contact me at 405-521-5630 or via email at [email protected].