Politics and Government

Republican Sens. Rob Portman of Ohio and Tom Coburn of Oklahoma are seeking information about Department of Veterans Affairs employees who they say perform full-time union duties instead of their government work.

They sent a letter Wednesday to the head of the VA suggesting employees doing other duties could hinder the VA in its goal of eliminating the backlog of veterans' disability claims.

The Oklahoma Water Resources Board is a big advocate for regional water planning, the idea that local control over who uses what water and where it’s sent will lead to better conservation.

But the move toward regional planning signed into law Friday by Gov. Mary Fallin isn’t exactly what the board had in mind.

“We had nothing to do with this bill,” OWRB Executive Director J.D. Strong says.

The Oklahoma Supreme Court says a law adopted in 2009 to reform Oklahoma's civil justice system is unconstitutional.

The state's highest court handed down the decision Tuesday in a divided 7-2 ruling. In a separate decision, the court said a requirement that injured people submit a certificate of merit before they can file professional malpractice lawsuits is unconstitutional.

Gov. Mary Fallin gave lawmakers an 'A' grade for approving much of her agenda during the recently concluded legislative session, but at least one key issue remains unresolved, which is how the state plans to address the more than 630,000 Oklahomans without health insurance.

Fallin rejected the opportunity under the federal health care law to expand Medicaid coverage to nearly 200,000 people without health insurance, saying last November that doing so would prove too costly to the state and the country.

  The Oklahoma Legislature has adjourned the 2013 Legislature one week earlier than required and handed Gov. Mary Fallin a major political victory by passing an income tax cut. The House dropped the gavel at 7:33 p.m. Friday and adjourned Sine Die, a Latin phrase that literally means "without day." The Senate had adjourned at 12:23 p.m. By adjourning a week early, the Legislature saved about $140,000 in expenses for lawmakers and other session costs. Lawmakers must adjourn by the last Friday in May.

Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin has signed legislation that requires abortion providers to take additional steps to notify the parents of a minor who is seeking an abortion. The measure was among 21 bills Fallin signed into law on Friday, when the Legislature planned to adjourn its 2013 legislative session. The bill prohibits a minor from getting an abortion until at least 48 hours after written notice has been provided to her parent or guardian, except in cases of a medical emergency. In that case, the physician must verbally inform a parent within 24 hours after the abortion and send a written notice to the parent's last known address. The bill includes an exemption for girls who are the victims of sexual or physical abuse.

The Absentee Shawnee Tribe’s Little Axe Resource Center is surrounded by greenery and gently rolling hills making it a beautiful backdrop for what has become a place to get help and some of the necessities of life for the surrounding residents.