2016 Activity Report

TO:                  ALL RESIDENTS OF OKLAHOMA

FROM:            GREG SLAVONIC (REAR ADMIRAL NAVY-RETIRED), CHIEF-OF-STAFF, SENATOR LANKFORD

SUBJECT:      OFFICE OF SENATOR JAMES LANKFORD 2016 ACTIVITY REPORT

DATE:             JANUARY 11, 2017

Fellow Oklahomans,

What a year this has been. The nation elected a new President and signaled a bold new direction. In addition, the people of Oklahoma reelected Senator Lankford and made some history along the way.  Last week, Lankford was sworn-in to his first full six year term. 

This is a pivotal time for the United States of America, as our nation faces many threats and challenges, but before we look ahead, this memo highlights the service of Lankford on behalf of Oklahomans during this last year. 

With a federal deficit for Fiscal Year 2016 totaling $587 billion, and an overall debt that is now $19.5 Trillion, Lankford has continued to fight government waste all year long. Lankford’s latest waste report, Federal Fumbles: 100 ways the government dropped the ball, included $247 billion in wasteful and inefficient federal spending and regulations. In addition to the many outrageous examples of waste, Lankford included solutions, and was able to eliminate some previous examples of waste from his 2015 report. For example, Lankford secured a provision to include a three-year phasedown of the subsidized wind energy tax credit. 

Religious freedom continued to be a priority for Lankford, and thankfully, we enjoyed some legislative successes. He co-sponsored an international religious freedom bill that was signed into law in December. The law aims to strengthen the United States’ effort to combat persecution of religious minorities around the world. Lankford also had the opportunity to give two major speeches on religious freedom at the annual Values Voter Summit and CPAC conference. In addition, Lankford joined Senators Tim Scott, Joni Ernst, Marco Rubio and others to launch the Senate Opportunity Coalition, a new initiative that aims to reduce poverty and ensure that every family across the nation has access to the American Dream. One of Lankford’s signature transparency bills, the Taxpayers Right-to-Know Act, passed the House and enjoyed broad bipartisan support in the Senate—we are optimistic that it will be signed into law this year. Lankford also worked hard on regulatory reform, national security and pro-life work throughout 2016; with a new president this year, we are eager to see even more legislative successes. 

In 2017, we are excited to continue working hard on behalf of Oklahomans. Traveling the entire state is a priority for us, so we hope to visit with you soon, no matter where you live. If there is ever anything we can do to help you, please contact our offices in Oklahoma or in Washington D.C. 

Here is some additional information about 2016:

Traveling the Sooner State:

• Visited 39 counties and 3 military bases (Altus Air Force Base, McAlester Army Ammunition Plant, and Vance Air Force Base).
  • Total visited as Senator (since January 2015): 66 counties and 5 military bases
• Held 55 state listening events, community conversations, townhalls and roundtables.
• Visited 7 college campuses: Northeastern State University, Oklahoma State University, Oklahoma Wesleyan University, East Central University, Oklahoma Christian University, Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology, and Tulsa University.
  • Total visited as Senator (since January 2015): 11 colleges 

Constituent Service to Oklahomans:

• Assisted Oklahomans with 1,800 federal-processing related constituent service cases.
• Processed 589 veterans and military constituent cases, 295 citizenship-related constituent cases, 286 social security constituent cases, and 66 Medicare and healthcare-related cases.

Connecting with Oklahomans in DC:

• Held 138 policy meetings with constituents in Washington, DC.
• Responded to approximately 30,000 pieces of constituent mail, emails, and faxes.
• Welcomed over 630 Oklahomans at weekly “Java with James” coffee open house receptions.

Legislative Activities:

• Attended over 165 committee hearings and meetings.
• Chaired 10 Subcommittee on Regulatory Affairs and Federal Management hearings and roundtables:
  • Hearings: Examining Two GAO Reports Regarding the Renewable Fuel Standard; Understanding the Millennial Perspective in Deciding to Pursue and Remain in Federal Employment; Continued Review of Agency Regulatory Guidance, Part III; Reviewing Independent Agency Rulemaking; Examining the Use of Agency Regulatory Guidance, Part II; Examining Agency Discretion in Setting and Enforcing Regulatory Fines and Penalties; The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act: Opportunities for Improvement to Support State and Local Governments; Examining Agency Use of Deference, Part II; and Examining Due Process in Administrative Hearings. (ROUNDTABLE: Improving the USAJOBS Website)
• Examples of Appropriation provisions secured by Lankford:
  • State, Foreign Operations Appropriations Iran Payments Oversight – Required the Obama Administration to provide more details on its $1.7 billion legal settlement payment to Iran in January. 
  • State, Foreign Operations Appropriations Natural Gas Exports – Encourages State Department to facilitate natural gas exports to Ukraine to lessen its dependence on Russian energy. 
  • Energy and Water Development Appropriations National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Oversight – Requires NNSA to routinely assess performance on major projects in an effort to identify problems in cost and timeline estimates early and streamline project management. 
• Bills/Amendments Introduced: 10
  • (S.2966) District of Columbia Judicial Financial Transparency Act *signed into law*
  • (S.2972) Grant Reform and New Transparency (GRANT) Act *passed committee*
  • (S.2798) Free Market Flights Act of 2016
  • (S.2927) Conscience Protection Act of 2016
  • (S.3462) Regulatory Relief for Small Businesses, Schools and Nonprofits Act 
  • (S.3213) Judgment Fund Transparency and Terrorism Financing Prevention Act
  • (S.3306) Dismemberment Abortion Ban Act
  • (S.3050) Stop Settlements Slush Fund Act of 2016 
  • (S.RES.348) Resolution supporting efforts to place a woman on US currency    
  • (S.RES.414) Resolution supporting the reimposition of sanctions on Iran if they violate the nuclear deal
• Bills co-sponsored: 32 (below are just a few)
  • (S.1798) Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act *signed into law*
  • (S.3217) Annuity Supplement for Air Traffic Controllers *signed into law*
  • (S.302) Conscience Protection Act *similar version passed the House*
  • (S.3329) JCPOA Enforcement Transparency Act
  • (S.2554) Department of Veterans Affairs Accountability Act of 2016 (introduced by Sen. Inhofe) 
  • (S.2646) Veterans Choice Improvement Act of 2016
  • (S.2724) Separation of Powers Restoration Act of 2016  
  • (S.2736) Patient Access to Durable Medical Equipment Act of 2016
  • (S.2740) A bill to prohibit the transfer of GITMO detainees to state sponsors of terrorism 
  • (S.3034) Protecting Internet Freedom Act