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OKLAHOMA CITY — The terms of the 17 new state representatives began on Wednesday with their swearing in on the House floor. Members took the oath of office under the guidance of Dustin P. Rowe, vice chief justice of the Oklahoma Supreme Court. After that, members introduced family and friends on the floor and publicly thanked the people who helped them win their recent elections. Of the 101 members of the Oklahoma House of Representatives, 84 are returning members. The Republican Party holds 81 seats, and Democrats hold 20 seats. There are 14 newly elected Republicans and three new Democrats. Two of these Republican representatives are from the Tulsa area: Rep. Derrick Hildebrant, R-Catoosa, and Rep. Gabe Woolley, R-Broken Arrow. Woolley said he was excited to jump right into the process. “In my classrooms we have done a lot of reenactments, but this time it was real,” said Woolley, referencing the mock elections he would hold in his history classes when he was a social studies teacher. Woolley is already looking into a constituent-requested tax cut for retired residents who have paid off their mortgages, but he said he hasn’t written or submitted a bill on the topic yet. Tax cuts are also a priority for the Republican Caucus. The newly elected speaker of the House, Rep. Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow, said members will be looking into tax cuts, among other concerns, in the upcoming session. “We’re going to continue to see what we can do to help Oklahomans with relief from inflation. But we also need to see where we can strategically invest,” said Hilbert. “We’re sitting on $5 billion of surplus as a state. So there are a lot of opportunities when you look at our state infrastructure system.” There are also two newly elected Democrats from the Tulsa area: Rep. Ron Stewart, D-Tulsa; and Rep. Michelle McCane, D-Tulsa. “Being elected and given the opportunity to serve the very district in which I grew up is beyond exciting and an honor that I do not take for granted,” Stewart said in a press release. McCane, a former teacher, also commented in the release, saying, “I am truly honored to have the privilege to serve the people of House District 72.” Rep. Melissa Provenzano, D-Tulsa, is returning to the Legislature. “I’m looking forward to my fourth term. I hope to find some kind of balance in the upcoming session and work with my colleagues on reasonable legislation,” she said. Provenzano is already looking at possible legislation for the upcoming session. A constituent request that she is considering would extend the veterans sales tax exemption to the immediate family of fully disabled veterans. Provenzano is also looking at putting forward a bill to force more transparency around the Parental Choice Tax Credit, possibly making information about what private schools are receiving money from the state public information.
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