Oklahoma House Passes Workers’ Comp Judge Resolution

A resolution that would ask voters to require Senate confirmation of Oklahoma Worker’s Compensation Court judges has passed the Oklahoma House less than a month after Gov. Brad Henry vetoed similar legislation.

The House voted 60-37 for the bill and sent it to the Senate for final consideration in spite of opponents who said it would replace Oklahoma’s nonpartisan appointment process with the gridlocked, highly politicized process of Washington, D.C., where partisan disputes in the U.S. Senate often delay judicial appointments.

“You can either run the Washington style of candidate nomination or you can do it the way Oklahoma has done it for years,” said Rep. Scott Inman, D-Del City. “Justice isn’t important in Washington. This doesn’t make any sense.”

Currently, state district court judges are directly elected, and civil and criminal appeals court judges and Supreme Court justices appear on a retention ballot at the end of their appointed term. But worker’s comp judges are appointed by the governor and never appear on a ballot.

The bill’s author, Rep. Dan Sullivan, R-Tulsa, said requiring Senate confirmation of the judges will bring common sense and accountability to the system. The measure would ask voters to approve a constitutional amendment to authorize the change.

“Worker’s comp judges are the only judges to never appear on a ballot,” Sullivan said. “This legislation will help ensure injured workers across the state are given their day in court in front of judges that are approved by their representative government.”

Rep. Richard Morrissette, D-Oklahoma City, said the resolution was merely an attempt to do an end run around Henry’s veto and accomplish the goals of its GOP supporters with a statewide referendum.

“This is purely a political question,” Morrissette said.

In his veto message, Henry said Oklahoma’s system had functioned better than the one in Washington and that it was not in the best interest of the state or its citizens “to adopt the flawed, federal appointment process.”

Rep. Ryan Kiesel, D-Seminole, said the bill is a Republican attempt to dismantle the state’s worker’s compensation system and block injured Oklahomans from having access to the court. Both the House and the Senate are controlled by the GOP.

“… This bill is not solving a real problem,” he said. “It’s just another imaginary crisis that the other side has invented to make themselves look more powerful.”