STATE OF OKLAHOMA

1st Session of the 53rd Legislature (2011)

SENATE JOINT
RESOLUTION 26	By:	Brecheen

AS INTRODUCED

A Joint Resolution directing the Secretary of State to refer to the people for their approval or rejection a proposed amendment to Section 21 of Article V of the Oklahoma Constitution; stating legislative intent and findings; setting limitation upon amount of compensation for members of the Legislature as set by the Board on Legislative Compensation; specifying certain duties of Board; providing for noncodification; providing ballot title; and directing filing.

BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE AND THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE 1ST SESSION OF THE 53RD OKLAHOMA LEGISLATURE:
SECTION 1.     NEW LAW     A new section of law not to be codified in the Oklahoma Statutes reads as follows:
It is the intent of the Legislature to present a question to the people for a vote, which would require the Board on Legislative Compensation to limit legislative salaries to the average salary paid to members of the legislatures in states surrounding Oklahoma.  The Legislature finds that this will operate to reduce the salaries paid to members of the Legislature in this state, and further finds that salaries would be reduced even more if legislative salaries were reduced to those in states comparable to Oklahoma in terms of state population, size of the Legislature and average length of the legislative session.
SECTION 2.  The Secretary of State shall refer to the people for their approval or rejection, as and in the manner provided by law, the following proposed amendment to Section 21 of Article V of the Oklahoma Constitution to read as follows:
Section 21.  A.  The Legislature shall enact laws to prohibit members of the Legislature from engaging in activities or having interests which conflict with the proper discharge of their duties and responsibilities.
B.  1.  The Board on Legislative Compensation is hereby created.  ~~Said~~ The Board shall be composed of five members appointed by the Governor, two members appointed by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, and two members appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.  The members appointed by the Governor shall be from religious organizations, communications media, nonstate-supported educational institutions, labor organizations, and retail business; the members appointed by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate shall be from agricultural and civic organizations; and the members appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall be from manufacturing and from professional fields not otherwise specified.  No member of the Legislature may be appointed to or serve on the Board.  In addition to the members above provided for, the ~~Chairman~~ Chair of the Oklahoma Tax Commission and the Director of State Finance shall serve as ex officio nonvoting members of ~~said~~ the Board.
2.  The Chairman of ~~said~~ the Board shall be designated by the Governor.
3.  Members of the Legislature shall receive such compensation as shall be fixed by the Board on Legislative Compensation, subject to the limitations specified in this section.  The maximum amount of compensation fixed by the Board shall not exceed the average amount of compensation paid to members of the legislatures in states immediately surrounding Oklahoma.  For each surrounding state, the Board shall obtain the amount of compensation paid to members of its legislature in the most recent preceding calendar year for which such information is available and shall determine the average amount of such compensation by adding up each amount obtained and dividing by the number of states on the list.
4.  If a member of the Legislature is incarcerated due to being charged with a criminal offense and subsequently is found guilty of the offense or pleads guilty or nolo contendere to the offense, the legislator shall return to the state any compensation the legislator received from the state while the legislator was incarcerated prior to the guilty verdict or plea or nolo contendere plea and shall not receive any compensation from the state during any incarceration following such verdict or plea.
5.  ~~Said~~ The Board shall each two years review the compensation paid to the members of the Legislature and shall be empowered to change such compensation subject to the limitations specified in this section; such change to become effective on the fifteenth day following the succeeding general election.
6.  The members of the Board shall serve without compensation, but shall be entitled to receive necessary travel and subsistence expense as provided by law for other state officers.
SECTION 3.  The Ballot Title for the proposed Constitutional amendment as set forth in SECTION 2 of this resolution shall be in the following form:
BALLOT TITLE
Legislative Referendum No. ____	State Question No. ____
THE GIST OF THE PROPOSITION IS AS FOLLOWS:
This measure would amend Section 21 of Article V of the State Constitution.  This section creates the Board on Legislative Compensation.  This Board meets every two years to set the salaries for members of the Senate and House of Representatives.  This measure would limit the maximum amount.  The Board would obtain the salaries of members of the legislatures in states surrounding Oklahoma.  The Board would add up each amount and divide by the number of states.  The resulting amount would be the maximum amount of compensation that could be paid.
SHALL THE PROPOSAL BE APPROVED?
FOR THE PROPOSAL — YES	_____________
AGAINST THE PROPOSAL — NO 	_____________
SECTION 4.  The President Pro Tempore of the Senate shall, immediately after the passage of this resolution, prepare and file one copy thereof, including the Ballot Title set forth in SECTION 3 hereof, with the Secretary of State and one copy with the Attorney General.

53-1-105	CD	1/18/2011 3:01:20 PM