Latest news with #LisaStandridge
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘Buffer Zones': Senate passes bill banning new homeless shelters near schools
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – On Tuesday, the Oklahoma Senate advanced a new proposed measure that would require new homeless shelters to be within 3,000 feet of schools around children. Senate Bill 484, authored by Sen. Lisa Standridge, R-Norman, seeks compliance prohibiting new homeless shelters from being located within 3,000 feet of schools in areas with fewer than 300,000 residents. 'Senate Bill 484 has undergone significant changes since I first introduced it, but at its core, this measure remains focused on preserving public safety,' Standridge said. 'I've spoken with countless parents, educators, and school officials in my district who strongly support creating buffer zones between local schools and homeless shelters, which can become hotspots for drug use, crime, and other activities that threaten the safety and well-being of our children.' Standridge noted, violence shelters and youth shelters are exempt. OKC citizens will still review viral OKCPD use of force investigation following resignation 'This legislation will not close any homeless shelters because it does not affect existing facilities, and it does not apply to shelters operating within churches or other places of worship. I firmly believe that this bill strikes a thoughtful balance between providing community services to those in need while ensuring our schools have a safe and secure environment for kids to learn and play,' said Standridge. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bill would ban opening new homeless shelters near schools in most Oklahoma cities
A "tent city" is seen on August 21, 2013 in Camden, N.J. Camden had at least three "tent cities," where many homeless in the Southern New Jersey region live. Community leaders say Camden draws in a disproportionately large homeless population due to the numerous services, soup kitchens and shelters in the city, which other cities in the area do not offer. (Photo by) (This image cannot be republished unless you have a Getty subscription.) OKLAHOMA CITY – The Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that would bar new homeless shelters from opening within 3,000 feet of a school. Senate Bill 484 would apply to every city and town in the state that has populations under 300,000. Only Oklahoma City and Tulsa had populations over that threshold, according to the most recent U.S. Census data. It would allow churches to open homeless shelters regardless of distance from a school. Existing homeless shelters already within that slightly more than half-mile distance would be grandfathered in, meaning they could still operate. It would not apply to domestic violence or youth shelters. Sen. Lisa Standridge, R-Norman, the author of the legislation, made significant changes to the bill to make it less restrictive. It no longer applies to libraries, churches and preschools, she said. Standridge said the measure is necessary to protect children. Some nonprofit groups are distributing clean needles, condoms and bongs to homeless shelters, she said. The items should not be around children, she said. Standridge said the measure applied to cities and towns under 300,000 people because larger cities have more resources to help the homeless. Sen. Regina Goodwin, D-Tulsa, said the buffer zone between sex offender residences and schools is 2,000 feet. Sen. Mark Mann, D-Oklahoma City, said there will still be drug activity in neighborhoods surrounding schools. He questioned whether the bill was broad state overreach. Sen. Paul Rosino, R-Oklahoma City, said city councils can pass ordinances governing the issue. 'This bill acts like it solves a problem but it doesn't,' said Sen. Mary Boren, D-Norman. It creates the 'illusion' that it is doing something, Boren said. Sen. Carri Hicks, D-Oklahoma City, said the measure does not do anything to address the causes of homelessness such as addiction, poverty and mental illness. She said some homeless students are living in the shelters. 'All this is is a spacing bill,' Standridge said. 'This does not close homeless shelters.' The bill narrowly passed by a vote of 26-20 and is available for consideration in the House. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bill requiring homeless shelters be 3,000 ft. from schools, originally banning them, passes committee
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – A bill prohibiting public funds from going to homeless outreach caused quite the stir when it was originally introduced. That bill has been changed since then. 'The state makes laws everyday,' Sen. Lisa Standridge, R-Norman, said during debate in committee Tuesday afternoon. 'This law will protect children and that's paramount that the state do.' RELATED STORY: Norman community, city leaders discuss recent bill aimed at eliminating homeless outreach by cities The debate continued for about an hour Tuesday on Standridge's proposal that would outlaw homeless shelters in any community with less than 300,000 residents. In Oklahoma, only Tulsa and Oklahoma City are larger than that. However, new tweaks to the bill has made it only require shelters to be at least 3,000 feet from a place where 'children congregate.' 'We've got to protect our children and keep homeless shelters out of their vicinity,' Standridge said. 'I have grave concerns with the way we are using language of spacing to tell a story of no homeless shelters within a community,' Sen. Nikki Nice, D-Oklahoma City, said in the same debate Tuesday. Back in January, Standridge appeared on a local radio show, Freedom 96.9, and compared Norman to San Francisco. She also said 'it's like giving a bird a bread crumb. Turn around you've got a whole flock behind you' when speaking about the homeless population. Both city leaders and nonprofits spoke out against the dehumanizing language at the time. 'I feel this bill is very divisive and I want to say that homelessness is a nonpartisan issue,' Ward 4 City Norman Councilwoman Helen Grant said. 'We all work together to try to resolve all these issues and to help people,' Angela-Jimenez-Calhoun, founder of the nonprofit Beacon Project, said at the time. The changes to the bill came after Standridge admitted that domestic violence victims would have no place to go if shelters closed. She argued that keeping the homeless from children is a valid safety concern. Others argued that homeless individuals are people to. 'This bill in no way closes shelters. This bill in no way restricts cities from building shelters. It just says they shall be away from where children would congregate,' Standridge said. LOCAL NEWS: Bill aiming to ban corporal punishment passes senate 'If we could somehow relate to other folks in a way, and get a better understanding of their circumstances we might be a little more open to come up with solutions and not treating them as if they're not fully human,' Sen. Regina Goodwin, D-Tulsa, said in debate Tuesday. Sen. Standridge provided the following statement Wednesday on the committee passage of her amended version of SB 484. I filed Senate Bill 484 on behalf of concerned constituents who feel increasingly unsafe in Norman because the growing homeless population is making residents scared to visit local retailers and families frightened to visit neighborhood parks. This issue is creating countless headaches for local business owners as aggressive panhandlers scare away their patrons and vandalism has become the norm. Public safety was my top priority as I filed this legislation on behalf of constituents. Ensuring there is significant distance between homeless shelters and schools, parks, child care facilities and other places where kids gather is crucial to keeping our children safe. I received a significant amount of feedback on my original bill and amended my legislation with that community input in mind. Existing homeless shelters will not be affected by this legislation, nor will youth and domestic violence shelters, which play a crucial role in our communities. My bill does not close homeless shelters or prevent cities or local nonprofits from building shelters, it simply seeks to ensure greater oversight of their zoning. I introduced this bill to keep our residents and children safe, these amendments ensure that goal is realized in a thoughtful way. Sen. Lisa Standridge (R-Norman) The bill passed out of committee by a 6-3 vote. The full debate can be watched here. You can click on Calendar-Day/Month, select Feb. 25 and scroll to Local County and Government (Room 230). When you click on it, the debate begins around the 4:40 p.m. mark. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
13-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bills affect homeless, addresses wildfires, makes OK a Second Amendment sanctuary state
Four bills currently wending their way through committees are tackling the "homeless" problem in Oklahoma, making electric utilities more responsible in relation to fires, and further strengthening Oklahoma as a sanctuary state with Second Amendment rights. Senate Bill 484 was referred for a second reading to the Senate Local and County Government Committee Feb. 4, chaired by Sen. Warren Hamilton, R-District 7, who also co-authored the bill. The bill states that no municipality with a population under 300,000 shall provide programs or services to homeless persons, including but not limited to owning or leasing land for the purpose of building or maintaining a shelter. If the bill is signed into law, any municipality providing this kind of support "shall immediately terminate such services and, if the municipality currently owns or leases land for the purpose of building or maintaining a homeless shelter, cease using the land for such purpose." In its current language, the definition of the term "homeless" includes those "persons and families who do not have access to normal accommodations as a result of violence or the threat of violence from a cohabitant." State Sen. Lisa Standridge, R-District 15, who is the author of the bill with Hamilton, said Feb. 13 that the bill is in the process of being rewritten and will be available soon. "It does carve out domestic shelters and youth shelters [as services that cannot be extended by a municipality]," said Susan Wallace, Standridge's executive assistant. In concert with this effort against the homeless, House Bill 1764, which makes it illegal for the homeless to camp on any land owned by a city, county or the state, has made it to the Judiciary and Public Safety Oversight committee, with a policy recommendation and a "Do Pass" given. A "do pass" motion means the bill moves out of the committee and is passed on to the floor. State Sen. Tom Woods, R-District 4, has introduced several bills that are heading through the different committees. One of special note is S.B. 1071, which was referred for a second reading in the Senate Energy Committee. This one is of interest in relation to what has happened in two major wildfire events that have been connected to fires starting due to sparks from electrical lines: one in Lahaina, Hawaii, in August 2023, and the latest ones in Southern California. The bill requires electrical companies to have a fire protection plan, among other elements of the bill, such as allowing utility companies to recover costs under certain circumstances. Glen Clark, director of Marketing and Member Services with Lake Regional Electric Cooperative, said the utility supports the proposed legislation in its current state. "With the recent events on the West Coast and even our neighboring states, we are paying close attention to wildfires now, more than ever," Clark said. "Wildland fires are something we hope to avoid. Fortunately, for the most part, we do not experience extreme high winds for an extended timeframe. However, the local threat increases when the winds are high and the vegetation is dry." Clark said LREC takes several steps to keep its system safe and reliable, including inspection of poles on a rolling cycle. The cooperative also sprays the system for brush and vegetation with a herbicide over a rotational period along the 3,100 miles of electrical lines in the system. "LREC constantly modifies our facilities; we have a short- and long-range work plan that upgrades construction standards," Clark said. "We also have a tree and vegetation right-of-way management [plan]; we clear our ROWs every few years and it is a job that never ends." At press time, Tahlequah Public Works Authority had not responded to a request to comment on the bill. Woods has also introduced S.B. 526, an act relating to firearms, and among other things protects certain rights of law-abiding citizens and prohibiting law enforcement officers from obeying or enforcing certain orders. The bill was referred for a second reading to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Feb. 4. The bill makes the confiscation of firearms, accessories or ammunition an infringement on the rights of citizens to keep and bear arms. "No law enforcement officer shall obey or enforce any direct or indirect order which violates the Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States; Article II, Section 26 of the Oklahoma Constitution; or the law enforcement oath of the law enforcement officer," states part A under Section 3 of the new law. The bill also would prohibit the termination of any law enforcement officer who refuses to obey or enforce any order that violates the Second Amendment or Section 26 of the Oklahoma Constitution. If passed, the law would make any county or municipality a Second Amendment sanctuary county or municipality. Cherokee County Sheriff Jason Chennault said the way he understands the bill is that it declares the entire state of Oklahoma a Second Amendment Sanctuary, a statewide declaration most country sheriffs, including himself, made in 2021. "The bill goes a little further, and if passed into law, will keep law enforcement officers from being retaliated against by their local governments for not violating the rights of legal firearms owners," Chennault said.
