Greg Treat

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Greg Treat
President pro tempore of the Oklahoma Senate
Assumed office
January 3, 2019
Preceded byMike Schulz
Majority Leader of the Oklahoma Senate
In office
January 3, 2017 – January 3, 2019
Preceded byMike Schulz
Succeeded byKim David
Member of the Oklahoma Senate
from the 47th district
Assumed office
January 10, 2011
Preceded byTodd Lamb
Personal details
Born (1978-05-09) May 9, 1978 (age 45)
Political partyRepublican
SpouseMaressa Treat
EducationUniversity of Oklahoma (BA)

Greg Treat (born May 9, 1978) is an American Republican politician from Oklahoma and the current President Pro Tempore of the Oklahoma Senate. He represents district 47, which includes parts of Oklahoma City, Edmond, Deer Creek, and Bethany. He has served in the Senate since 2011.[1]

Treat is an Oklahoma City resident and an alumnus of the University of Oklahoma. Prior to taking office, he was a campaign director for several Republican campaigns in the state.[1]

Personal life

He is a graduate of Catoosa High School and "attended the University of Oklahoma earning a political science and history degree...Treat also was awarded the Cortez A.M. Ewing Fellowship while at OU, which allowed him to intern for then-U.S. Rep. Tom Coburn, M.D., in Washington, D.C." He is married to Maressa Treat and has three children.[2]

Career

Elections

Treat was first elected to his seat in a 2011 special election to replace Todd Lamb, who left his seat to become Oklahoma's lieutenant governor. He defeated four other candidates in the Republican primary and did not face a Democratic opponent. He was reelected in 2012 without opposition and defeated Democrat Judy Mullen Hopper in 2016 with 66.35% of the vote.[3]

Legislation

Fiscal transparency

In 2019, Treat authored a bill to create the Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency,[4] an entity to increase transparency and accountability in state government by providing the public and lawmakers independent, objective data on state spending and program performance. Treat also authored several landmark government accountability] measures that give the governor the ability to hire and fire the director of five of the largest state agencies.[5] Treat authored Senate Bill 1848 in 2014, which required abortion providers to have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles (48 km) of their practice. The law was struck down by the Oklahoma Supreme Court in 2016, with the court citing Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt as a precedent.[6][7]

Tribal compacts

In June 2023, Treat criticized senators who did not show up for a tribal compact vote to override Governor Kevin Stitt's previous veto.[8] The next month, he called the Governor "ineffective" and said they were one vote shy of overriding.[9] When the override vote was called again, they were able to get enough votes, but Stitt called it an "illegitimate process."[10]

Taxes

In 2023 after a special session, Treat "claimed senators chose to block action on the issue because Gov. Kevin Stitt, who called the special session on taxation, had not handed senators a specific legislation-ready plan," even though the governor "has no direct role in the legislative budget process."[11]

Domestic violence

In 2024, he authored Senate Bill 1470 along with Representative Jon Echols of the House, called the Oklahoma Survivors' Act. It passed the senate with no nay votes, and then the house with only 3.[12][13] The bill "would permit courts to reduce sentences for domestic violence survivors for crimes they committed relating to that abuse," such as criminalized survivor April Wilkens, who was able to watch the vote pass the House along with other incarcerated women in Mabel Bassett.[14] But Governor Kevin Stitt vetoed the bill along with ten other bills. Chris Boring, president of the District Attorneys Council, applauded the veto but advocates for the measure believed it "is critical to address systemic failures in criminal justice for women in Oklahoma."[15] [16] The very next day after Stitt's veto, Treat called for a Senate veto override.[17] The Oklahoma Survivor Justice Coalition advocates said that the governor had been "mislead" by the DAs into thinking it was a bad bill.[18] They claimed that they had "heard this misinformation from the state’s prosecutors and the District Attorneys Council for two years" during their efforts to get a bill passed.[19] In a press release, they accused prosecutors of “continuously and mercilessly prosecuting survivors of domestic violence, and seeking harsh, maximum punishments, while simultaneously letting their abusers plead out and face minimal consequences.”[20] A previous attempt at similar legislation was Toni Hasenbeck's and Julie Daniel's HB 1639 in 2023.[21] Treat accused the DAs of going back on a deal he struct with them and saying that another bill had been drafted to ensure criminals couldn't abuse the system,[22] addressing any concerns prosecutors had with the bill.[23] Treat accused the governor of having "zero communication" with him or any discussion on the bill. He said, "There's an absolute target on senate bills from the governor, he has already vetoed 8 of them." News Channel 8 Tulsa also said that the Oklahoma District Attorneys Association has "refused or ignored repeated requests for comment on the legislation for more than a year."[24] The Senate veto override passed and it was the first veto override of the session.[25] Advocates "encouraged the House to also override the veto, which is necessary for the measure to become law."[26] If both chambers override Stitt's veto, the bill will become a law effective November 1.[27] Co-author Echols said he was "very surprised at the veto" but that, “We’re going to pass protections for domestic violence victims this year... either...through another bill or through an override of this bill.” Representative Monroe Nichols said in a statement that “In my eight years in office, I’ve rarely been more frustrated and confused by a governor’s veto."[28]

Controversies

Treat accepted money from a private pro-cockfighting lobbyist group with misleading name, the so-called "Oklahoma Gamefowl Commission" political action committee.[29]

In April 2023, a "week before the deadline for bills to be heard in the opposite chamber's committees," Treat and the Speaker of the House, Charles McCall, were said to "continue to throw jabs at each other's education plans," leading parents and educators to be concerned there wouldn't be a solution that session.[30] As the session neared its end, both McCall and Treat still had not come to an agreement.[31] It was reported that the "two sides didn't even agree on how much they had been talking about education."[32] McCall reportedly thought the talks were going well, while Treat said he didn't feel "very hopeful."[33]

For school vouchers in a bill introduced in 2023, Treat acknowledged that "private schools wouldn’t be forced to admit all students, but he believes schools would expand enrollment when more families can afford it." Democrats have had concerns that "there are no assurances that low-income students would be admitted into a private school." Treat has also accused House Speaker Charles McCall of "refusing to negotiate and said the Senate’s income cap was a “more responsible” school choice plan."[34]

In June 2023, after severe storms hit parts of Oklahoma that involved hurricane-force winds and tornadic activity that knocked out power for days for more than 350,000 energy customers during severe heat waves,[35] Treat was informed he was the acting Governor who could declare a state of emergency, which he did days after the event. He was not informed ahead of time he was acting Governor, when Stitt was in Paris and the Lieutenant Governor, Matt Pinnell, was also out of state. Stitt had not responded to Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum's calls.[36][37][38][39]

References

  1. ^ a b "Senator Greg Treat - District 47". Oklahoma State Legislature. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  2. ^ "Greg Treat | Oklahoma Senate". oksenate.gov. Retrieved 2023-07-26.
  3. ^ "Greg Treat". Ballotpedia. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  4. ^ "Oklahoma State Senate - News". Archived from the original on 2019-07-10. Retrieved 2019-07-10.
  5. ^ "Senate sends landmark government accountability bills to governor | Oklahoma Senate".
  6. ^ Hoberock, Barbara (June 28, 2016). "Supreme Court's abortion ruling expected to affect Oklahoma law". Tulsa World. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  7. ^ "Oklahoma court tosses abortion law on hospital privileges". The Oklahoman. Associated Press. December 13, 2016. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  8. ^ FERGUSON, TOM (2023-06-26). "'Others will have to explain why they weren't here': Oklahoma Senate fails to override veto on tribal tobacco compact". KOKH. Retrieved 2023-06-30.
  9. ^ Herrera, Allison (2023-07-24). "Treat: Governor 'ineffective,' Oklahoma Senate must override his vetoes of compacts with tribes". Public Radio Tulsa. Retrieved 2023-07-26.
  10. ^ Weber, Andy (2023-07-25). "Senate votes to override Gov. Kevin Stitt's vetoes regarding compacts with tribes". KOCO. Retrieved 2023-07-26.
  11. ^ Journalism, Ray Carter, Center for Independent (2023-10-06). "Oklahoma Senate President Greg Treat claims 'no plan' for tax repeal -- ignores own bill". Oklahoma City Sentinel. Retrieved 2023-10-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  12. ^ "Bill Information". www.oklegislature.gov. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  13. ^ "Oklahoma House passes sentencing reform for victims of domestic violence". KOSU. 2024-04-18. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  14. ^ "Oklahoma Survivor's Act clears House, offers new hope to criminalized survivors". Verified News Network. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  15. ^ "Governor vetoes 'Survivors Act' for domestic violence victims". KFOR.com Oklahoma City. 2024-04-24. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  16. ^ "Oklahoma Senate overrides veto of bill making domestic violence a mitigating factor in sentencing". www.fox23.com. 2024-04-24. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  17. ^ Weber, Andy (2024-04-25). "Oklahoma Senate votes to override governor's veto on domestic violence bill". KOCO. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  18. ^ "OK Senate overrides Stitt veto of 'Oklahoma Survivors' Act'". 2 News Oklahoma KJRH Tulsa. 2024-04-24. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  19. ^ "After fighting for Oklahoma Survivors act, artists and advocates awaited veto response with installation". The Oklahoman. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  20. ^ Hoberock, Barbara (2024-04-24). "Senate overrides veto of Oklahoma victims' bill • Oklahoma Voice". Oklahoma Voice. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  21. ^ "HB 1639 by Hasenbeck and Daniels" (Legislative database). oklegislature.gov. Oklahoma Legislature. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
  22. ^ Weber, Andy (2024-04-25). "Oklahoma Senate votes to override governor's veto on domestic violence bill". KOCO. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  23. ^ Hoberock, Barbara (2024-04-24). "Senate overrides veto of Oklahoma victims' bill • Oklahoma Voice". Oklahoma Voice. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  24. ^ Rose, Brenna (2024-04-24). "Oklahoma Senate overrides Governor's veto on domestic violence bill". KTUL. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  25. ^ Staff, A. O. L. (2024-04-24). "Senate overrides Stitt's veto of domestic violence bill Wednesday". www.aol.com. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  26. ^ "Oklahoma Senate overwhelmingly overrides Gov. Stitt veto of Oklahoma Survivors' Act". KOSU. 2024-04-25. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  27. ^ "Oklahoma lawmakers work to overturn Survivors' Act veto". www.kten.com. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  28. ^ World, Steve Metzer Tulsa (2024-04-24). "Senate votes to override Stitt veto of domestic abuse sentencing mitigation bill". Tulsa World. Retrieved 2024-04-25.
  29. ^ Savage, Mike Allen and Tres; Savage, Tres (2023-02-26). "Cockfighting fight turns back time at Oklahoma Capitol". NonDoc. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  30. ^ May, Payton (2023-04-07). "Oklahoma education standstill could head to a conference committee for negotiation". KOKH. Retrieved 2023-04-09.
  31. ^ "News 9". Oklahoma Session Nearing it's [sic] end, Lawmakers Still Disagree On Education. 13 April 2023.
  32. ^ Weber, Andy (2023-04-13). "Back-and-forth between House, Senate leaders continues amid education policy debate". KOCO. Retrieved 2023-04-15.
  33. ^ May, Payton (2023-04-13). "Education standstill continues with House and Senate on different pages over negotiations". KOKH. Retrieved 2023-04-15.
  34. ^ "Once focused on low-income students, Oklahoma's school choice effort goes 'universal'". The Oklahoman. Retrieved 2023-04-11.
  35. ^ Sandoval, Edgar; Jones, Judson (2023-06-21). "Extreme Heat and More Storms Threaten an Already Battered Oklahoma". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
  36. ^ Ferguson, Tom; Severin, Kevin (2023-06-20). "Pro Tem Treat signs executive order within hour of finding out he's acting governor". KOKH. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
  37. ^ Cashman, Shelby (2023-06-22), Sen. Greg Treat addresses disaster response, role as acting governor, retrieved 2023-06-23
  38. ^ "Treat: Oklahoma Legislature 'stands ready' to help in Tulsa's storm recovery". Public Radio Tulsa. 2023-06-22. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
  39. ^ "Tulsa officials hopeful for State of Emergency declaration". 2 News Oklahoma KJRH Tulsa. 2023-06-19. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
Oklahoma Senate
Preceded by Majority Leader of the Oklahoma Senate
2017–2019 		Succeeded by
President pro tempore of the Oklahoma Senate
2019–present 		Incumbent
Retrieved from "https://mdwiki.org/wiki/Greg_Treat"