Oklahoma Corrections Professionals

 A bill that would provide one and a half days of annual leave for each furlough day an employee works passed the House of Representatives last week.  Representative Terrill and Senator Bingman are the authors of House Bill 3385, which would offer that incentive to employees of the Department of Corrections, along with seven other agencies.  OCP appreciates the efforts of Rep. Terrill and Sen. Bingman to make the best of a bad situation and offer some benefit to state employees who are furloughed.  OCP lobbied many legislators to amend the bill to include the Pardon and Parole Board, but, ultimately, no amendment was offered.  Those efforts will be continued as the bill makes its way through the Senate in the coming weeks.   

Update on Furlough Funding:  Success at the Capitol!

OCP would like to thank the many legislative leaders for their work in forming an agreement to secure the DOC supplemental funding.  Once again, the furloughs have been avoided.  Tough decisions had to be made, but in the end, the legislature found a way to fund the DOC as they had previously agreed, AND pledged to fund senior nutrition centers in FY11.  As always, Representative Terrill and Senator Sykes, chairs of the Public Safety Appropriations Committees, deserve a big thank you for their continued commitment to Oklahoma’s public safety. 

OCP made a BIG showing at the Capitol on Wednesday!  Thanks very much to those members who were able to come to Oklahoma City and show their support.  Our group met with many legislators in the Rotunda of the Capitol while negotiations on the funding were taking place.  Seeing all those DOC employees, along with a great turnout of State Troopers as well, was a good reminder to our lawmakers that the decisions they were making would have major impacts on public safety in the State.  And once an agreement for funding was met, our OCP members stood with those lawmakers in the press conference to announce it. 

OCP would like to thank the many members from JHCC and LARC who made the trip, as well as some from as far as Tulsa and Fredrick!  Check the site again soon to see the pictures from that day.  Not only did they show up in force, they looked and acted professional and truly were model representatives of the agency.  Thanks also to those of you who couldn’t make it but took the time to call or email your legislators.  By Wednesday afternoon, when the big decisions were being made, there was no question where OCP stood on the issue. 

Now that funding for FY10 is secure, it’s on to the FY11 budget negotiations.  Keep an eye on the website for updates as the legislative session progresses.

2/26/10 Update to Action Alert: 

Thanks to the MANY of you who called, emailed, and sent letters to Representative Billy last week. Unfortunately, despite our best efforts at the Capitol and with all that member correspondence - Representative Billy still refused to give HB2465 a hearing.  Not only that, but she also refused to allow the bill to be reassigned for a hearing in another committee.  So for the time being, HB2465 is dead.    

For those of you who are getting responses this week from the Representative's office saying that she didn't hear the bill because it would have cost the state money, don't be fooled.  While the Office of Personnel Management said our original version of the bill might have cost their agency some money to administer it, we met with OPM and came up with a compromise and submitted a bill to Representative Billy that OPM guaranteed would cost them no money.  While the Representative knew of this, she still refused. 

We may be down, but we're not out!  

While 2465 is dead, there will be many opportunities this session to amend existing bills to include language similar to the language in 2465.  We will continue to fight to ensure that OCP is granted the same rights as every other existing association in the State: to allow retirees to be members and to be free of membership requirements that apply only to us.  This was OCP's first time to officially ask all you members to get involved by contacting the legislature on a specific issue.  While we didn't get the outcome we hoped for, don't be discouraged.  The word is spreading around the Capitol that OCP's members are willing to get involved and do what's necessary for the betterment of their careers.  As that word is spreading, we're only getting stronger. 

There will be an OCP Board meeting on Monday, February 22, 2010 at 1:00 PM at the Southeast District Community Corrections Conference Room located at 903 North West Street in McAlester, Oklahoma.

The major items on the agenda include a presentation by the Oklahoma State Troopers Association and a final contract for our Membership Grievance Representative.  We will also be developing an agenda committee in an attempt to have agendas posted sooner to the web site so members can be present to have input into subjects. Any member, or potential member, is always welcome to come to a meeting and bring cares, concerns or commendations.

We would love to see you there!

The Oklahoma Corrections Professionals would like to congratulate its many members who have been visiting with, calling and writing their elected officials tirelessly over the past months.  It paid off in a big way!  This week Governor Henry, Speaker Benge, and President Pro Tempore Coffee announced an agreement on supplemental funding for FY10, which included $7.2 million for the Department of Corrections.  DOC Director Justin Jones indicated that this funding will allow the agency to avoid the upcoming furloughs and should be seen as recognition by the Legislature of the dedication of DOC employees.

“Since receiving State approval as an employee association late in 2009, OCP’s number one priority has been to eliminate the furloughs,” stated OCP President David Ramsey.  “OCP’s leadership has held countless meetings with elected officials around the State on this topic and our members have done their part by contacting their own local representatives.  This is a great example of what is possible when employees across the agency join together to work with the Legislature and agency leadership for a common purpose.” 

OCP expresses its sincere thanks to those legislative leaders who worked to fulfill their promise to put public safety first.  Along with the heads of both Houses, Representative Terrill and Senator Sykes, Chairs of the Public Safety Appropriations Committees, are commended for their diligence in finding creative solutions to the budget crisis.  “DOC employees have been asked to make many sacrifices this year and we’re willing to do our part,” Ramsey said, “but this shows that our leaders recognize that sacrifice and are working hard to meet us in the middle.” OCP also thanks DOC leadership for their role in this victory.  Their transparency with the agency's finances and efforts to find creative cost-savings measures played an integral role in demonstrating to the legislature that the DOC would make the most of this additional funding.

While this is a major victory for OCP and its members, we can’t stop here.  Our fellow members at the Pardon and Parole Board have been suffering through furloughs for months and the State’s financial situation is only expected to be worse when FY’11 begins this July.  Let’s keep this momentum going throughout the legislative session to ensure the State continues to provide the funding necessary to maintain essential public safety services. 

“When we stand together, no one can stand against us!”  

There will be an OCP Board meeting on Monday, January 25, 2010 at 11:00 AM in the North Conference Room in DOC Headquarters located at 3400 Martin Luther King Boulevard.

The major items on the agenda include a final contract for our Executive Director and approval of a Legislative Liaison and Membership Grievance Representative.  No less important than these topics will be approval of OCP's first Constitution which will serve as a foundational belief system for the association for the present and the future.

Come join us if you can for this important metamorphosis as OCP comes out of the cocoon and begins to fly.