Lawton legislator pre-files lottery bill

<br>LAWTON, Okla. (AP) _ A Lawton legislator has pre-filed a lottery bill that is similar to a measure Gov. Brad Henry tried to push through the Legislature last year. <br><br>Rep. Ron Kirby, a Democrat,

Tuesday, January 14th 2003, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

LAWTON, Okla. (AP) _ A Lawton legislator has pre-filed a lottery bill that is similar to a measure Gov. Brad Henry tried to push through the Legislature last year.

Rep. Ron Kirby, a Democrat, was Henry's House author of a bill to create a lottery and dedicate the proceeds to education. The measure never got through the Senate.

The pre-filed measure requires lottery revenues be dedicated to public education, Kirby said. If the bill passes, it will set up a statewide referendum allowing voters to decide the issue.

Kirby said he discussed the measure briefly with Henry and that the two agreed to meet again to discuss strategy for getting the measure passed in the Legislature.

Kirby said as long as Oklahomans are going to spend money on lottery tickets, the state should try to capture some of that revenue instead of it going to other states.

``A lot of people run down to Texas to get their lottery tickets,'' Kirby said.

Kirby also has prefiled a bill that would designate English as the ``official language of the State of Oklahoma.''

A similar bill by Kirby passed the House in 1997 but died in the Senate after Sen. Kelly Haney, D-Seminole, then-chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, refused to allow it to have a hearing in committee.

Since Haney left the Senate last year to run unsuccessfully for governor, Kirby said the measure has another chance.

The measure requires that all official business of the state, including official documents, will be in English, ``absent compelling circumstances.''

He said that as far he knows, English is the only language used now for state documents and publications. The bill will not bar anyone from speaking, teaching or learning any language publicly or privately, he said.

``There's no budget impact as far as I know,'' Kirby said. ``It's a pre-emptive strike.''