House Bill 2331 would allow police to take advantage of a new electronic insurance notification system to see if a car is legal with the state.

Representative Steve Martin says right now 28% of cars on Oklahoma roads are uninsured, and, in an accident, the cost to the victim averages to $11,000.

“I really think that this is the most consistent outcry that I’ve had from my constituents since i was elected and that is get the uninsured motorists off the road.”

The Bartlesville Republican says the officer would be able to pull the car over if it’s in violation of the law.

“Upon stopping the car, if the person driving the car is not able to establish that they have liability insurance the officer may have the car impounded and have the car taken to an impoundment lot.”

The bill passed the House 87 to eight, and now heads to the Senate.

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House Bill 2968 would require all sex offenders to provide a physical address rather than a PO Box on the registry.

Representative Mike Sanders says a mappable address must be provided regardless of the situation.

“Whether they live under a bench, on a bench, under a bridge, whatever the case might be, it’s their responsibility to go to the DA or local law enforcement and say ‘this is where I’m going every night’.”

An amendment to the bill by Democratic Minority Leader Danny Morgan would ban sex offenders from living in a church or youth camp.

The bill now heads to the Senate where a similar measure was passed last month.

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House Bill 3393 would create the Scholarship for Students with Disabilities Program to use Individualized Education Program funds to change schools.

Representative Jason Nelson says the money from the state can be used to get help from any institution which provides the best service.

Whether it’s a different public school or private school, I think the vote demonstrates that it’s encouraging to me. I think it’s encouraging to the families.”

The measure passed out of the House by a vote of 78 to 19.

The bill also expands a program where families can get a budget to deal with special needs issues rather than the Department of Human Service going through a third-party.

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To help food insecure families in Oklahoma, the Regional Food Bank is teaming up with Disney Parks and Resorts to bring volunteers in for a day of service.

It’s Thursday afternoon, and I’m standing with seven of my family members in the new warehouse of the Regional Food Bank in Southwest Oklahoma City getting directions from Dan, one of the workers.

We’re taking part in Disney’s “Give a Day, Get a Disney Day” program.

People who volunteer their services at places like the Food Bank get a one-day ticket to Disney World or Disneyland.

Volunteer Recruiter Jamie Treadaway says since it began more and more people have been coming in to help.

“We’re going to probably reach 800 tickets we’re going to give out. Our regular volunteers varies, our biggest days are on Saturdays. We have upwards of 200 people on Saturday to volunteer. Today we’ve averaged probably close to 100 volunteers.”

Disney is hoping to give out a million tickets and in just the first few months the program has given out nearly 900,000.

While the Disney Day of Service opens people up to volunteering, Treadaway says some people are taking the giving to a whole new level.

“Part of Disney’s program, you can get that voucher and use it for your family, but the other cool thing about it which we have people coming in here and doing is they can give it to charity.”

Pretty soon we are put to work on food for kids which provides backpacks for young people to take home for the weekend.

My Dad, Step Mom, brother and sister and their children work on an assembly line packing bags with essentials like milk, juice, cereal, beans and nuts.

My sister, Lora Souza, says this gives her children a chance to understand about working for others.

“They actually go to a school where some of these backpacks get handed out and so it’s good that they see that not all children from little kids all the way up that they don’t have the same things that they have.”

While the kids are working to get tickets to the Happiest Place on Earth, the trip to Disney World this summer wasn’t on the mind of her 10-year-old son, Stephen Souza.

“I was thinking about the kids that didn’t have any food and couldn’t eat on the weekends.”

The same goes for my brother’s 10-year-old daughter, Mara Cross, who admits it is hard work, but worth it.

“I felt pretty good because I knew I was helping other children. I was going to get a ticket to Disney World which that was pretty fun, but I think the most important thing was that I was helping the children that didn’t have any food.”

And, the numbers are staggering in Oklahoma where one in five children goes hungry every day.

The Regional Food Bank says the demand for food is rising, but donations are falling.

Distribution for the first five months of the 2010 fiscal year starting last July increased 22% or nearly five million pounds of food.

By the time we finish, we’ve packed more than 300 cases for food for kids which is equivalent to nearly 9,000 meals.

While we’re glad to get the tickets to Disney World, we all agree that we need to do it again, even if with no incentive but helping others.

And, my niece Mara makes one final wish.

“I just hope the food gets to the people that don’t have it. And, hope they’re safe right now.”

While Disney is getting to close to its millionth ticket, the Regional Food Bank is still taking volunteers.

Other charities taking part in the Disney Day of Service include Mobile Meals, Habitat for Humanity, Oklahoma Blood Institute, and Salvation Army.

You can find out more on the Disney Parks website.

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When the housing crisis hit almost two years ago, both Oklahoma’s home and commercial properties continued to hold steady. Foreclosures ran rampant in states such as California and Florida, but not Oklahoma. While those states now worry about a second round of foreclosures, known as shadow inventory, Oklahoma officials say foreclosures total less than one percent.

Doug Emde is president of the Oklahoma Association of Realtors. From his office in Stillwater, he confidently said the state never saw that huge housing bubble burst like so many others experienced. Oklahoma showed a slow and steady increase in home values while other states set prices on market speculation. Consequently, it did not bode well for home buyers.

“And they never got out of economic debt, and so now it’s time to pay the piper again and so you’re going to see more foreclosures in those states because they’re just kind of putting off the inevitable,” Emde said.

That’s not the case in Oklahoma because it entered the recession two quarters behind the rest of the nation. Oklahoma ranks 33^rd in the nation for total foreclosures, and Emde said he thinks the state’s housing market has already hit bottom.

“Our real estate market hasn’t suffered drastically,” he said. “The number of units sold has dropped, but I think that’s kind of a sign of the times.”

A sign of the times and a sign of Oklahoma’s hard winter – Emde said housing sales have been weaker over the past couple of months, compared to a 19 percent increase in the 4^th quarter of 2009, He blames the lower numbers on dreary winter weather when people are less apt to check out a new home, but with spring around the corner, he expects sales to increase.

“With the extended homebuyer tax credit, which expires April 30, we’ll see a surge of house sales before April 30 and then another surge that will close before June 30,” Emde said.

Unlike other tourist states such as Nevada and Florida, Emde says people buy houses in Oklahoma to live and work – not to hire contractors for some big flip and then try to make a huge profit. So as long as the state’s unemployment rate can maintain itself or even improve, residents can expect a reliable housing market with minimal foreclosures.

One other trend Emde said he’s noticed is the average price of a home has dropped, and more people are now looking to buy in the 100,000 to 150,000 dollar range. Also, there’s still time to take advantage of the federal government’s $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit. A home must be under contract by April 30 to qualify.

As for commercial real estate, foreclosures may not be a big issue either, but businesses have definitely seen a slow down. Mike Craddock is a commercial real estate broker in Tulsa.

“Businesses are having a very hard time getting financing to expand their business, to be able to buy inventory for their businesses, to start new businesses,” Craddock said. “There’s been a severe lack of financing.”

Today’s economy offers up the worst lending times since the 1940s so many businesses are simply hanging on to what they’ve got and not expanding. Retail shops, office buildings, hotels and motels – these all fall under the category of “commercial real estate.” These properties involve greater risk because the economy has more of a direct effect. As Oklahoma continues to work its way out of recession conditions, Craddock said he predicts commercial property sales may get worse this year before they’re better.

“I know the hotel industry is starting to have some challenges,” he said. “There will be other asset classes, other property types that will have some issues. I don’t think they’re going to be huge by any means.”

The Tulsa real estate broker said overall, Oklahoma’s commercial real estate property market will hold stable when compared to other states.

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The deals came after three day of wrangling where Democrats accused the Republicans of not funding a senior nutrition program, and Republicans blamed Democrats for opposing two bills which helped avoid furloughs for corrections officers and highway patrol.

The AARP welcomed lawmakers to the capitol on the very day the Senate is set to take up the 2010 budget and whether to fund two-point-five million dollars to senior nutrition programs.

Volunteers handed out paper plates to legislators from both chambers to remind them of the plight of Oklahoma’s elderly.

James Spencer attends the center in Shawnee and says he’s noticed fewer and fewer people getting help.

“Some of them this was the only meal that they would get that day other than just small snacks for the rest of the day. So this was their main nutrition program for the day.”

The day wears on as Senators take on other pieces of legislation.

Eventually, the Senate recesses to figure out how to find middle ground between the needs of the seniors and two budget bills which would fund $30 million to avoid furloughs for agencies like corrections and highway patrol troopers.

Negotiations lasted more than an hour.

The deal: Democrats would vote in favor of the emergency clause for the two bills.

In return Republicans promised to move the Senior Nutrition Program out of the Department of Human Services into another agency, and would ensure the program had fair funding for the 2011 budget starting July First.

At a press conference following the vote, the Democratic Leader explained the reason for the compromise to forego the two-point-five million originally called for on Monday.

Senator Charlie Laster says he spoke with many of the directors of the centers before making the decision.

“If they had their druthers, and they could have one or the other: funding for 2011 or funding just for the next four months that they wanted to have some assurance that they would get their funding for 2011.”

The definition of what exactly fair funding meant wasn’t clear except Senate leaders say they’ve come to a good faith agreement to keep the centers’ budgets in line with other agencies.

The other part of the deal would move the senior nutrition program to another agency.

Senator Laster says he has nothing against DHS, but the department gets a lot of federal funding and decisions on cuts are based off what is coming from Washington, DC.

“Howard Hendrick and those other people over there look at what to cut, and they’re going to cut $1 out of this program and it’s going to be $2.75 more or three dollars and something more cents more for federal match. They’re more tempted to cut programs that are dollar for dollar.”

As for which agency would get the program, Senate President Pro Tem Glenn Coffee says that decision remains up in the air.

“I think this program has been housed at the health department, at agriculture and DHS and commerce. So, there are lots of agencies that have been involved with it over the years, and we’re willing to look and see what makes sense.”

The press conference included many people who would be affected had the budget bills not passed such as corrections officers and highway patrol troopers.

And, Russell Knoke, the President of the Oklahoma State Troopers Association says his people are ready to patrol the streets.

“This is a good day for law enforcement and their families, but even better for the citizens of Oklahoma. On behalf of the troopers of the state, i would like to thank the legislature and the leadership for their hard work and resolving this issue. This will allow us to continue to serve the motoring public at 100%.”

In a press release, AARP officials say they are pleased that legislators stood strong on this issue that ensures seniors a place at the table.

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HB 3154 passed out of the House Chamber by a vote of 92 to 4.

Representative Leslie Osborn says part-time legislators could opt out of the state employees’ health and life insurance if they are already covered by another insurance plan.

“Then that money would go back to the state. So, say if a minimum of 25% legislators opted out health insurance it would save the state about half a million a year.”

The Tuttle Republican uses herself as an example as she and her husband are self-employed small business owners with access to insurance.

She says the state currently pays $13,000 a year for every lawmaker.

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Later today, Senate President Pro Tem Glenn Coffee plans to reconsider the emergency clause of two budget bill which failed to get any Democratic support on Monday.

Coffee says if the Democrats oppose them again it means money won’t be taken out of the unclaimed property fund for agencies such as corrections and public safety.

“If they don’t give the votes for the emergency then these bills will go to the governor. It will result in $30 million cut out of the state budget across the board, and there will be certain agencies out of the special cash fund that won’t receive their money.”

Democrats are refusing to support the measures unless $2.5 million goes to fund senior nutrition programs.

Senate Minority Leader Charlie Laster says it’s up to the Republicans to find the money.

“We are not in the majority. The democrats are not in the majority. The republicans are in the majority, and they manage this place. And, they can burn the place down or they can get those programs funded.”

Senator Laster is suggesting the money come from the Rainy Day Fund, unclaimed property or special cash reserves from other agencies.

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The US Supreme Court decided not to rule on a Ten Commandments monument which meant a lower court ruling that it had to be removed stood.

But, Representative Mike Ritze says his bill patterned the monument after one in Texas which passed constitutional muster.

“We’re not concerned about that it’s a total different subject in Haskell County than what ours was. Ours was patterned after a challenge where there’s was not.”

The Broken Arrow Republican says his legislation which passed last year was prepared for any challenges to not cost the state any money.

He says he expects to have the monument in place on the north side of the Capitol by May or June.

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ODOT is receiving the funds through the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery or TIGER Grants.

Transportation Secretary Gary Ridley says the I-244 Bridge was one of 50 projects across the US selected out of 1400 applicants.

“It was the ninth largest as far as dollar amount associated with the project at $49.5 million. The bridge will probably cost in the tune of $80 to $85 million.”

On Monday, the Transportation Commission approved a bid for Garver Engineers to begin a preliminary study on the construction.

The multi-level bridge will have a high-speed passenger rail under the Interstate as well as a commuter rail and walking/bicycle trail.

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