By Journalist Trevor Friesen (OSU)
Sergeant at Arms Ryker Baughman (SE) celebrating his Recent bill passing with supporter Representative Ashton Tate (OSU)
Continuing on his victorious Fall 2022 session, Sergeant at Arms Ryker Baughman (SE), and past winner of “best freshman in the house” is continuing to make waves.
On Thursday afternoon, March 30th, Baughman presented a bill “SE-501”, “an act relating to the fair distribution of the property tax”.
Unlike past bills, present aberration from composure remained largely limited, especially in comparison to early bills both for the respective day and for Baughman’s authorship as a whole.
Niche and complex in nature, the bill was backed with great support and favor by the general body, appraised for its “good intent” as quoted by Representative Betheline Sarfo (ORU).
Representative Callie Gray (OSU), heavily connects and relates to the bill, coming from a “family [that] owns a lot of mineral rights”, and is in full support of the bill.
However, discourse rides the fine line of labeling constant in O.I.L., and Baughman’s bill was met will vigor from the opponency.
Representative Noah Jones (ORU) was neither shy nor unprepared to stand by his opinions, with technical concerns to support his intensity of belief. The largest argument of which was based upon the government’s ownership of a large number of mineral rights, and the inability to tax these specific properties, nay the “losing out on revenue” that would occur given this occurrence. Jones voiced his concerns on the current “state of Oklahoma” as a whole, rendering this bill unnecessary in his belief, and certainly worth voting against.
Perhaps too complex to a rare virtuous assistance, the bill was met with large feelings of favor and acceptance. After a vote of 36 representatives in the affirmative and a mere 5 in the negative, swift passing took the course of action.
Met with discourse and varied opinions in the past, Baughman found himself a swift and boisterous success this afternoon, one that certainly did not go unnoticed by all in attendance.