Alcoholic Beverage Laws and Enforcement

This chapter looks at Article XXVIII-A of the Oklahoma constitution, which greatly loosens Oklahoma’s previously tight, conservative grip on the use and distribution of alcoholic beverages. Section 1 sets out the definition of alcohol in a self-explanatory way: “All beverages that contain alcohol, unless otherwise defined by law, shall be considered alcoholic beverages by this state and therefore governed by this Article and all other applicable laws.” Section 2 states that “the Legislature shall enact laws providing for the strict regulation, control, licensing and taxation of the manufacture, sale, distribution, possession, transportation and consumption of alcoholic beverages, consistent with the provisions of this Article.” Under the old law, Oklahoma citizens could not receive direct shipments of wine; this change in law allows the legislature to authorize direct shipments to consumers of wine. Additionally, grocery stores and other retail locations are allowed to sell wine and beer under this article, which previously was not the case. Section 3 directs the legislature to create licenses for the sale of alcoholic beverages to consumers for consumption off the premises. However, Section 5 prohibits the sale of alcoholic beverage to a person under twenty-one years of age, and to insane, mentally deficient, or intoxicated persons. Section 7 deals with the taxation of alcoholic beverages

Education

This chapter addresses Article XIII of the Oklahoma constitution, which concerns education. Section 1 mandates establishment and maintenance of a public school system but does not guarantee an equal educational opportunity in the sense of equal expenditures of money for each and every pupil in the state. Section 2 states that “the Legislature shall provide for the establishment and support of institutions for the care and education of persons within the state who are deaf, deaf and mute, or blind.” Meanwhile, Section 3—which was entitled “Separate Schools for White and Colored Children”—was repealed on May 3, 1966. Section 4 states that “the Legislature shall provide for the compulsory attendance at some public or other school, unless other means of education are provided.” Section 5 grants power to the State Board of Education to supervise the instruction in public schools. Section 6 provides for the establishment of a uniform system of textbooks to be used in the public schools, making it clear that the books must be free to students.

Corporations

This chapter examines Article IX of the Oklahoma constitution, which concerns the powers, limits, and regulation of corporations. The prodigious length of the article reflects the importance of corporations in the economic life of Oklahoma, and the determination of the framers to bring them under regulatory control, to the point of micromanagement. Concern about discriminatory rates charged by railroads and pipelines was foremost, but the authority conferred by Article IX is broad enough to allow the legislature to regulate a variety of other enterprises as well, including electric, gas, and water companies; oil and natural gas production; and conservation, cotton gins, motor carriers, telephone and telegraph lines; and even ice plants. The framers borrowed freely from the constitutions and statutes of other states—especially the Virginia constitution, the Texas constitution, and the Texas Railway Act—as models for Article IX. Whole sections were often copied verbatim. Moreover, often competing strains of waning Populism and rising Progressivism of the early 1900s pervade this article.

Impeachment and Removal from Office

This chapter discusses Article VIII of the Oklahoma constitution, which concerns impeachment and removal from office. Section 1 states that “the Governor and other elective state officers, including the Justices of the Supreme Court, shall be liable and subject to impeachment for wilful neglect of duty, corruption in office, habitual drunkenness, incompetency, or any offense involving moral turpitude committed while in office.” Moreover, “all elected state officers, including Justices of the Supreme Court and Judges of the Court of Criminal Appeals, shall be automatically suspended from office upon their being declared guilty of a felony by a court of competent jurisdiction.” Two other methods for removing elected officials not mentioned in Section 1 are specified in state law pursuant to Section 2. The first provides for a grand jury to accuse an official and present its findings to a district judge. The second allows the governor to instruct the attorney general to investigate an official and, if official misconduct is found, to institute proceedings in court. Section 3 designates the chief justice of the Oklahoma Supreme Court as the presiding officer in an impeachment trial. Lastly, Section 4 requires senators to take an oath and specifies a two-thirds vote of those present in order to convict.

Legislative Department

This chapter assesses Article V of the Oklahoma constitution, which concerns the legislative department. Section 1 states that “the Legislative authority of the State shall be vested in a Legislature, consisting of a Senate and a House of Representatives.” However, “the people reserve to themselves the power to propose laws and amendments to the Constitution and to enact or reject the same at the polls independent of the Legislature, and also reserve power at their own option to approve or reject at the polls any act of the Legislature.” Section 2 provides for the designation and definition of reserved powers. Initiative means the power of the people to propose bills, and to enact or reject them at the polls. Referendum is the right of the people to have bills passed by the legislature submitted to the voters for their approval. Meanwhile, in May 1964, the Oklahoma constitution was amended to conform to the U.S. Supreme Court rulings. The amendment passed and Sections 9 through 16 were replaced with Sections 9A through 11E. The chapter then details the provisions for the Senate and the House of Representatives.

Preamble

Part Two provides a section-by-section commentary on the current Oklahoma Constitution. Historical records and legal documents have been utilized to prepare this commentary. Court decisions and Attorney General Opinions were consulted for interpretation of constitutional provisions, with the latest cases available included. The citations to cases discussed can be found in the Appendix (Table of Cases)....

Department of Wildlife Conservation

This chapter discusses Article XXVI of the Oklahoma constitution, which concerns the Department of Wildlife Conservation. Section 1 provides for the creation and membership of a Department of Wildlife Conservation of the State of Oklahoma and an Oklahoma Wildlife Conservation Commission. Section 2 states that “nothing in this Act shall repeal any existing laws now on the Statute, pertaining to game and fish.” Section 3 focuses on the appointment of the director of Wildlife Conservation, who has the power to govern the department. The legislature may not interfere with his or her authority by, for instance, imposing salary increases, because such legislative action would impermissibly encroach on the director’s authority. Lastly, Section 4 sets forth the requirement that funds accumulating from the commission’s actions and existence are to be used for the benefit of Oklahoma’s wildlife.

Constitutional Amendments

This chapter studies Article XXIV of the Oklahoma constitution, which concerns constitutional amendments. Section 1 gives the legislature power to submit constitutional amendments to a vote of the citizens of Oklahoma and sets forth legislative direction in the first paragraph. Subject to the requirements that a legislative joint resolution proposing an amendment to the constitution set forth the test of the amendment and a ballot title for the election ballot, the precise form and content of the resolution is a matter for the legislature to decide. Under Section 2, which is routinely ignored, a law providing for a constitutional convention must be submitted to the people for their approval, passed by the legislature, and approved by the governor, and it must contain the makeup and procedure of the convention. Section 3 deals with the power of the initiative amendment.

Manufacture and Commerce

This chapter assesses Article XX of the Oklahoma constitution. This article concerns manufacture and commerce. Section 1 states that “nothing herein shall prevent the manufacture or sale of denaturized alcohol under such regulations as may be prescribed by law.” “Denaturized alcohol” is alcohol that has been made unfit for drinking without impairing its usefulness for other purposes. Section 2 provides that “until changed by the Legislature, the flash test provided for under the laws of Oklahoma Territory for all kerosene oil for illuminating purposes shall be 115 degrees Fahrenheit; and the specific gravity test for all such oil shall be 40 degrees Baume.”

Municipal Corporations

This chapter focuses on Article XVIII of the Oklahoma constitution, which concerns municipal corporations. Section 1 recognizes the power of the legislature to create municipal corporations and define their powers, but puts certain limitations on that power. In Oklahoma, cities possess no inherent power or authority, but exercise only those powers expressly granted, or incidental to powers expressly granted, by the state of Oklahoma. Section 3(a) provides for the framing and adoption of a charter, while Section 3(b) focuses on the election of a board of freeholders. Meanwhile, Section 4(a) through Section 4(e) deals with the powers of the initiative and referendum. Section 5(a) provides that “no municipal corporation shall ever grant, extend, or renew a franchise, without the approval of a majority of the qualified electors residing within its corporate limits, who shall vote thereon at a general or special election.” Lastly, power over the city streets within municipalities is reserved to the state, but cities have been delegated full power to control and regulate the streets. Cities may, for instance, use this delegated power to regulate parking.