Oklahoma Corporation Commissioner Bob Anthony is asking the state senate to kill a bill a state representative contends is a bill aimed at reforming the Commission.
In a letter delivered Monday to the senators, Anthony asked them to kill HB1556 and “stop its potentially disruptive and wasteful impact on the ability of the Oklahoma Corporation Commissioners to get our work done.”
He has publicly opposed Rep. Zack Taylor’s bill which originally was intended to eliminate the job of the commission’s General Administrator but later changed to replace the GA with a Director who would be required to meet a long list of actions on a daily basis with the commission.
“For the record, Representative Zack Taylor distributed the HB 1556 language without the prior knowledge or input of OCC Chairman Todd Hiett or Vice-Chairman Bob Anthony,” stated Anthony’s letter.
“HB 1556 would drag Corporation Commissioners themselves into day-to-day bureaucratic/administrative operations and waste precious time when we should be judicially or legislatively issuing 10,000 to 15,000 Commission orders annually, all of which require at least two commissioner signatures,” continued the letter.
Anthony and Commission chairman Todd Hiett publicly opposed the measure after it won approval in the House Rules Committee. Late last week, the full house approved the measure and sent it to the Senate.
Taylor is a legislator whose family runs an oil and gas company based in Seminole. He admitted to proposing the bill after personally experiencing what he felt was a problem with the administration at the Commission.
Here is the complete letter from Commissioner Anthony:
To: Honorable State Senators
From: Commissioner Bob Anthony
Two Corporation Commissioners say kill HB 1556
Please kill HB 1556 and stop its potentially disruptive and wasteful impact on the ability of the Oklahoma Corporation Commissioners to get our work done. Under existing law, we already have established a job description for our chief of staff.
For the record, Representative Zack Taylor distributed the HB 1556 language without the prior knowledge or input of OCC Chairman Todd Hiett or Vice-Chairman Bob Anthony.
Prior to the House 70-26 vote, sponsor Zach Taylor was asked what the Corporation Commissioners thought about HB 1556. A truthful response would have been that Bob Anthony strongly opposes it, and Todd Hiett, at a March 4, 2020 open public meeting of the agency said, “No. No. No, I don’t support it.” Later at the same meeting Hiett added, “If I were a legislator, I would be totally against it.”
Does the Legislature really want to subject commissioners to endless lawsuits by statutorily requiring commissioner “input” before various staff members might be terminated? Appropriately, the Oklahoma Constitution already allows statewide-elected commissioners enough authority to manage our agency. And yes, we currently have monthly meetings to give oversight to any and all aspects of the OCC.
HB 1556 would drag Corporation Commissioners themselves into day-to-day bureaucratic/administrative operations and waste precious time when we should be judicially or legislatively issuing 10,000 to 15,000 Commission orders annually, all of which require at least two commissioner signatures.
March 16, 2020