Mary Annette Pember
ICT
The Oklahoma state legislature overrode several of Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt’s vetoes included House Bill 1137, a critical amendment to Ida’s Law which addresses the high rates of missing and murdered Indigenous peoples in the state.
The bill, written by state Rep. Ronald Stewart, a citizen of the Choctaw Nation, and state Sen. Darrell Weaver removes the requirement that the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation first obtain federal funds before implementing the Office of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons created under Ida’s Law in 2021. The legislation, House Bill 1137, opens up the MMIP office to state funding.
The bill garnered overwhelming support from tribal nations, law enforcement, Native families, and community organizations nationwide. Ida’s Law is named after Ida Beard, a 29-year-old citizen of the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes and mother of four who went missing in 2015.
The state ranks second in the nation for unresolved missing and murdered Indigenous peoples cases, according to a statement issued by the United Nations of Oklahoma, an organization of Native peoples and tribal nations focused on protecting tribal sovereignty in Oklahoma through political engagement and education.
“This override tells Native families that their lives matter, their grief has been felt, and that Oklahoma is committed to justice for them and their loved ones,” said Ben Barnes, chief of the Shawnee Tribe and Chairperson for the organization. “Many hands helped lift this veto override over the finish line. We are so grateful to the State House and Senate members, Republicans and Democrats alike, who prioritized decency and law and order, over politics and prejudice. Missing and murdered Indigenous people had champions today.”
Larenda Morgan, government affairs director for the Cheyenne Arapaho tribes and founder of the tribes’ MMIP chapter, worked both to pass Ida’s Law and encourage legislators to override Gov. Stitt’s veto of the funding bill.
Gov. Stitt, a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, was supportive of Ida’s Law Morgan noted. “Originally the bill was slated for state funding but later the federal funding component was added,” she said.
In a Facebook video, Gov. Stitt said he vetoed House Bill 1137 because it duplicates state funding already in place for the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation for crimes affecting all citizens of the state. He also said that he vetoed it because he doesn’t endorse legislation that “singles out victims based solely on their race,” according to the Oklahoma Voice.
Morgan, a cousin to Beard, also helped draft language for the original Ida’s Law.
The state House voted 91-0 and the state Senate followed with a 40-4 vote. According to News 9, the state’s lawmakers 40 veto override votes was a record for the state.
Other vetoed legislation included addressing protections for domestic violence victims, mammogram coverage requirements, combating organized retail crime and creating penalties for falsely representing service animals.
