This TA consists of the engagement of stakeholders in OK as CJI works toward the passage of the legislation not passed in early 2017.
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While in Oklahoma, CJI staff met with Mark VanLandingham, Vice-President of Government Relations & Policy with the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, to discuss the next steps in facilitating support for the legislation and address concerns expressed to the Chamber by the District Attorneys Association. CJI staff also met with John Estus, Political Affairs Director at Saxum Communications, to discuss reinvigorating the criminal justice reform campaign that the communications group has worked on as a part of the SQ 780 ballot initiative. Following the visit, CJI staff worked with Mr. VanLandingham to answer the questions posited by the District Attorneys. During this process, CJI staff discussed the legislation with Fred Morgan, President and CEO of the Oklahoma State Chamber of Commerce, and Emily Shipley, the Chamber's Vice President of Government Affairs. CJI staff also worked with Right on Crime in preparing former Texas State Representative Jerry Madden for his testimony before the Interim Study Committee held by Representative O’Donnell on Criminal Justice Reform.
CJI has maintained constant communication with leadership within the legislature, the Governor’s office and members from the Task Force to develop new approaches and messaging for next session. CJI staff has remained up to date on the ongoing struggle for Oklahoma to reach a budget agreement. The state is primarily focused on the budget and special session is confined to resolving this issue. CJI staff has been working with these stakeholders to strategize on how respond to the political polarization that the budget debate has created and to prepare for shifting representatives within the legislature.
During the month of December, CJI spent several days in Oklahoma City meeting with the various stakeholders. CJI staff met with legislators, the Governor’s Office, the DOC, Saxum Communications, the Oklahoma City and State Chambers of Commerce, and Right on Crime. Upon meeting with Barrett Brown, the Governor’s Deputy General Counsel, and Chris Benge, the Governor’s Chief of Staff, it was apparent that the Executive branch is still very dedicated to the passage of the legislation. CJI also met with several DOC officials, including Director Joe Allbaugh; Director of Population, Programming, and Strategic Planning, Dr. Laura Pitman; and Legislative Liaison Marilyn Davison, to discuss the issues of under-staffing, poor facilities, and overcrowding in Oklahoma’s prisons and how to re-focus attention on the problem statement. Additionally, CJI staff met with Roy Williams, President of the Greater Oklahoma Chamber, as well as Mark VanLandingham, Vice President of Government Relations of the Chamber, to develop ways in which the Chamber can best utilize its resources for the reform effort. CJI then attended a meeting organized by the City Chamber that included Fred Morgan, President of the State Chamber, Kris Steele, former House Speaker, and other stakeholders to strategize on how to engage local communities throughout the state. Lastly, CJI staff met with Andrew Speno from Right on Crime as well as Houda Elyazgu and John Estus from Saxum, to establish an independent plan for media outreach and messaging for the problem statement and bills.
While visiting Oklahoma in January, CJI staff met with a variety of stakeholders. These included:
• David Bond, Vice President for Advocacy, and Trent England, Executive Vice President, of the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs (OCPA) to develop a strategy for their organization’s understanding of the problem statement identified last year and to support the policies recommended by the Task Force.
• Oklahoma State Chamber of Commerce and the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce
• Saxum, a communications firm
• Andrew Speno from Right on Crime
• Dr. Laura Pitman, the Director of Population, Programs, and Strategic Planning of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections
CJI helped Oklahoma DOC host a leadership forum on evidence-based practices on January 24th from 9am to 2pm. One hundred people were in attendance, including legislators, DOC senior leaders, members of the Board of Corrections, Parole Board members, contracted providers and other DOC partners. A BJA representative attended as well. Director Allbaugh kicked off the forum emphasizing his commitment to continuing to infuse proven practices into all of the DOC’s work so that the department can do a better job meeting its public safety mission. Dr. Ed Latessa presented on principles of evidence based correctional practices (risk, need, responsivity, and fidelity), cognitive interventions and core correctional practices.
CJI staff traveled to Oklahoma to meet with stakeholders about the progress of the bills. During the visits CJI staff met with several House members including Rep. Bobby Cleveland, Rep. Loring, Rep. Sears, and Rep. Babinec, as well as with several Senators including Sen. Shaw, Sen. Yen, and Sen. Paxton. CJI staff has been in communication with Jan Peery, CEO of the YWCA of Greater Oklahoma, who served as a Victim’s Advocate on the Task Force to discuss her continued support for the bills. CJI staff held meetings with Dr. Laura Pitman, the Department of Corrections Director of Population, Programs, and Strategic Planning, as well as the Department’s Director of Legislative Affairs Marilyn Davidson to discuss the department’s current situation and impact of the legislation. Additionally, CJI staff spoke with Roy Williams from the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce and Emily Shipley from the Oklahoma State Chamber of Commerce to assess the Chambers collective support. Lastly, CJI participated in a weekly call with the Coalition for Criminal Justice Reform established by John Estus of Saxum Communications to garner support from other local advocacy groups and stakeholders in the community.
During the month of March, CJI had two site visits where staff met with various stakeholders. CJI staff met with Dr. Laura Pitman from the Department of Corrections (DOC) on both visits to discuss the present problems plaguing Oklahoma’s prisons. CJI staff discussed the prospect of working with the DOC to administratively incorporate some of the Task Force recommendations that were amended out of the six bills. CJI Staff also met with staff from the Governor’s office to talk about the amendments and their impact. CJI staff routinely participates in a weekly criminal justice coalition call organized by John Estus with Saxum, which includes representatives from FWD.us, OKC and Tulsa Chambers of Commerce, ACLU of Oklahoma, Oklahoma Policy Institute, Kaiser Family Foundation, Justice Action Network, Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform, and Right on Crime. On the call CJI provides updates to the members on the progress of the legislation. Lastly, CJI staff has reached out to former Task Force members, such as Judge Drummond and Victim Advocate Jan Perry, to inform them about the status of the bills.
CJI staff continued outreach to the business, advocacy, victims, and law enforcement communities. CJI staff assisted in the drafting of various op-eds, press-releases, talking points for such stakeholders, and participated in a weekly phone call convened by a coalition of reform advocates. Throughout April, staff continued to build and develop relationships with the Department of Corrections, the Oklahoma State and City Chambers of Commerce, Saxum, Right on Crime, Fwd.us, Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform, Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs, ACLU, and others.
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