House Leaders Speak On Top Issues Ahead Of State Of State Address

OKC-News 9

Gov. Kevin Stitt will kick off the 2022 legislative session with his State Of The State Address Monday afternoon.

The Stitt administration and other legislative leaders are going to dive into several topics that impact Oklahomans.

Addressing the recent COVID-19 spike and the effect it’s having on local schools and teachers, Gov. Stitt is expected to talk Monday about ways to get more teachers in classrooms.

Other topics will likely include tax reform and medical marijuana enforcement.

The House leaders from both parties spoke to News 9 about what they would like to hear today and they said the economy and COVID-19 are the top issues.

“I hope it has a focus on workforce development, on economic freedom and personal freedom, talking about how we get in a post-COVID economy. How do we graduate more teachers, how do we graduate nurses…,” said Rep. Jon Echols, R-Majority Leader said,

Rep. Emily Virgin, D – Minority Leader said,

“We hope to hear some agreement with him on tax issues and education issues. I know that we will probably hear some things from him on attacking tribal nations again unfortunately, so we stand ready to push back on that issue.”

House Minority Leader Democrat Emily Virgin also said her caucus will focus on things like recruiting teachers, as well as government transparency and ending the sales tax on groceries.

The State Of The State begins at 12:45 Monday afternoon.