Chamber Priorities
2011 Tulsa Metro Chamber Comprehensive Legislative Agenda
State
Business Retention & Expansion
Support amendment of the Quality Jobs Act to remove business classification code (NAICS) restrictions, allowing qualified businesses to apply for the program. This amendment encourages creation of additional high-paying, quality jobs.
Support the removal of the population restrictions from the Small Employer Quality Jobs program to allow equitable access for all Oklahoma companies.
Development, Economy and Taxes
Provide state resources to ensure accountability and performance from the OK Tax Commission in the collection of state and local sales taxes.
Education
Support and fund a math renaissance in the 3rd through 7th grades patterned after the existing Reading Sufficiency Act.
Promote and support the allocation of funds to enhance the quality and diversity of research facilities, the recruitment of higher education and research leaders and prevent the flight of top quality Oklahoma students, staff and faculty.
Energy and Environment
Support development of renewable and alternative energy source development, such as LNG, CNG, biofuels, nuclear, ethanol, windpower, solar and energy-containing industrial byproducts, in addition to encouraging continued development of conventional energy sources.
Support legislation that would fund application of cutting-edge technologies utilized for enhanced oil recovery.
Healthcare
Promote re-balancing of the Medicaid long-term care dollars toward preventive in-home support or home and community-based industries.
Labor/HR
Support a legislative task force to continue the research of the privatization or mutualization of CompSource.
Support the full and complete implementation of the recent tort reform measure to continue previous efforts towards a fair and balanced tort reform system.
Establish a legislative task force to research methods of partnership between education and the business community in Oklahoma to improve workforce development.
Support legislation that will enact positive changes to Oklahoma’s workers’ compensation system through significant, comprehensive reform legislation and a less adversarial system, including legislation to protect employers from workers compensation claims for injuries resulting from substance abuse.
Oppose advancing further state immigration legislation that place Oklahoma employers at a competitive disadvantage or subjects them to regulations beyond those required under federal law.
Regional Tourism
Ensure equal taxation of all professional/minor league sporting organizations.
Small Business
Support research and funding of the impact of an inclusive workforce on business growth and development, including programs such as and similar to Our Oklahoma.
Establish a legislative task force to research the implementation of talent recruitment and retention programs not tied to tax incentives.
Pending further research, expand Local Preference legislation, SB 1714, to target specific small business industries.
Transportation Taskforce
Support moving the remaining thirty percent of motor vehicle fees, which currently go into the state general revenue fund, to transportation priority areas which may include state highways, city and county streets, and public transit.
Support dedicated funding for public transportation annual operations and capital projects in
Oklahoma. Raise the annual apportionment to $10 million and ensure that it will be dedicated to public transportation.
Establish and protect mega load corridors, free of special permits, with a minimum height and width clearance of 35 feet, north, south, east and west from the Port of Catoosa through Tulsa and across the state.
Federal
Multi-Taskforce
MinimumWage
Oppose advances to increase the current federal minimum wage amount. Increases do more
harm through resulting job eliminations and shifting of entry-level jobs from lower-skilled
workers to higher-skilled workers, resulting in higher unemployment and higher costs to
business. - Labor/HR, and Small Business Taskforces
Education
Support changes in the method used to allocate Title I funds to the states to more equitably serve lowincome children in every state, using the free and reduced lunch counts.
Reauthorize the ESEA (Elementary and Secondary Education Act) this year; if reauthorization does not happen school district should be granted relief from the sanctions of No Child Left Behind.
Energy and Environment
Strengthen Existing Energy Businesses.
Healthcare
Support extension of the F-MAP (Federal Medical Assistance Percentage) stimulus rates into 2011.
Regional Tourism
Support local and statewide efforts to study and develop light rail transit and public transport.
Repurpose the Page Belcher Federal Building for uses to enhance the hospitality corridor created by the BOK Center.
Transportation Taskforce
Support appropriations to deepen the McClellan-Kerr waterway to 12’ and to widen the last 50 miles to the Port of Catoosa.
Support efforts to allocate US Department of Transportation section 5309 bus capital funding on an equitable formula basis.
