by Miranda Dabney
On Friday, April 1, the Senate and House of Oklahoma Intercollegiate Legislature (OIL) held their freshman bill competitions, to great success.
Each session of OIL, freshmen delegates compete in the Freshman Bill, authored, argued and amended by freshmen delegates. Freshmen delegates have attended a maximum of one previous OIL session.
This session, the freshmen senators selected a bill authored by freshman senator Reagan Tifft of Oral Roberts University (ORU) to be the Freshman Bill. Tifft’s bill discussed discrimination and religious expression in the case of faith-based adoption agencies in Oklahoma and allowed for faith-based adoption agencies to deny a person adoption from their agency if the agent had a “conscientious objection” to the person, which could be a conflict of religion, lifestyle or concern over the safety of the child in the home.
The exciting draw to the Freshman Bill is that all older members are cleared from the Senate Chamber in order to allow the freshmen senators to interact with each other and experience parliamentary procedure without the interruption or interference of the older and more experienced members. There are a few older members present in the case of questions or confusion on the part of the rookie senators, but they are not granted full floor, or speaking, privileges to the body as a whole.
Tifft’s bill received contrasting views and opinions from the freshman senators, gaining passionate followers on either side of the argument. Those who argued in favor of the bill defended 2nd Amendment rights for a faith-based organization to legally discriminate if it means that the organization would otherwise be forced to work against their set morals and values.
Various amendments were made to the bill to limit the discriminatory power of the adoption agencies. Senator Caleb Bacca credits one such amendment as saving the bill, which ultimately passed. The amendment, made by Senator Miranda Dabney, required a conscientious objection from at least two members of the agency before a family could be denied adoption. A further amendment from Bacca provided that an objection would have to be vetted by members of the Department of Human Services. Bacca said, “Without these amendments, the discriminatory power would have been vested in the opinion of one individual person and I believe that would have killed the bill in the final vote.”
The debate was between a handful of senators debating in favor of the bill versus a group almost double debating in opposition. Incredible points were made on both sides, with the opposition citing constitutional laws against discrimination based on sexuality and the proponency arguing for the right of a person to stick to their core beliefs and for an organization to maintain their values in all decisions they make.
Senator Joseph Williams, who debated in opposition to the bill, said, “The most common discrimination is sexual orientation in America. I believe that giving private organizations the right to discriminate is absurd.”
In the end, the bill passed with a vote of 12 in favor and 10 against. Author of the bill Tifft said, “With the passage of this bill, I believe it will maintain the right for religious expression in Oklahoma and set a precedent that protects people of faith.”
This bill comes after years of debate across the country in different instances of alleged religious discrimination, mostly citing discrimination based on sexuality. The decision of the Senate body clearly provides for checks and balances to ensure that discrimination is not based on sexuality, race or gender.
Senator Emily Shaw said, “The majority of the senators left in the chamber participated in the debate, which showed the excitement and increased involvement of this freshman class.”
Overall, the Freshman Bill showcased the talent and rising leadership of the rookie senators. President Pro Tempore Derek Wietelman stated that the freshman bill debate was among one of the best that he has seen. In fact, Governor Jacob Murphy later spoke at the Governor’s Gala crediting this session’s freshman class as one of the most impressive OIL has seen in recent memory.
Head Freshman Liaison Cainan Balagia’s job is to help the freshmen senators acclimate to the environment of the Senate. Senator Balagia has completed three sessions in the OIL Senate and is running for President Pro Tempore of the Senate.
Balagia said, “This is my fourth session in OIL, and this freshman class is the best I have ever seen. Not only are they getting involved, learning parliamentary procedure and passing legislation, but they are encouraging each other every step of the way and working together. This freshman class embodies the core values of OIL and is moving this organization in the right direction.”
Things are bright for the future of OIL and the OIL Senate with this group of talented and eager legislators preparing for a long and illustrious tenure both in OIL and at the State and National levels in the future.