Legislative Life Cycle

Oklahoma Representative John Talley-District 33.

By Rep. John Talley

At the State Capitol last week, legislators held the final interim studies of the year and are looking ahead at their long to-do lists before the next session.

After the general election on November 5, the Oklahoma State Election Board has two weeks to certify the results. During this time, current lawmakers will remain in office until November 19. The 60th Legislature will gather at the State Capitol on Wednesday, November 20 to take their oaths of office.

Afterward, new representatives will receive a few days of orientation by House staff. This is offered for all members as a resource to explain to them how the building operates on the administrative side of things, introduce them to many staffers, and give them an idea of what services the House can provide to assist them in their roles as lawmakers.

With new legislators also come new office assignments, and lawmakers and their assistants will spend several weeks moving offices.

Once the 60th Legislature takes their oaths of office, the work begins in earnest. They have until December 6 to request bills and until January 16 to formally introduce them. Session begins on February 3 with Governor Stitt’s annual State of the State address to the Legislature and guests.

One thing that makes this interim even busier is that both the House and Senate will soon have new leadership. House Speaker Charles McCall and Senate Pro Tempore Greg Treat have led their respective chambers for several years, but they were both term-limited this year.

On January 7, the Legislature will hold its semi-annual Organizational Day, which is always held on the first Monday of January after a general election. On Organizational Day, lawmakers will adopt their chamber’s Rules for the year, which governs decorum in the chamber, and elect their leadership for the upcoming term.

This past March, the House Republican Caucus elected our current Speaker Pro Tempore Kyle Hilbert to serve as the Speaker-Designate. Next month, the House Republican Caucus of the 60th Legislature will again vote internally to formalize his nomination, as well as elect their nominee for the next Speaker Pro Tempore.

On Organizational Day, all representatives will have the opportunity to vote for one of the nominees for each position. At that point, the leadership is officially named. This is significant because the Speaker has the responsibility of selecting additional nonelected leadership positions in the House, such as the Floor Leader and the chair and vice chair of each committee.

There is always a lot of work to be done in a short amount of time preparing for session, especially when a new legislature is being organized after an election.

Please don’t hesitate to call my office at (405) 557-7304 or email me at [email protected] if there’s anything I can help with. Thank you for the honor of representing House District 33.

Rep. John Talley, a Republican, serves District 33 in the Oklahoma House of Representatives, which covers Logan and Payne Counties.