Tulsa World
By BARBARA HOBEROCK World Capitol Bureau
Published: 8/5/2010 4:34 AM
Last Modified: 8/5/2010 5:22 AM
OKLAHOMA CITY — The state insurance commissioner's lawyer argued Wednesday before an Oklahoma Supreme Court referee that a bill passed in the waning days of the last legislative session is an unconstitutional tax.
The attorney, Michael Ridgeway, told the referee that a 1 percent fee to be assessed on health-care claims is a tax that lawmakers passed in violation of a ban on revenue-raising measures in the last five days of a legislative session.
Insurance Commissioner Kim Holland is suing the state to overturn House Bill 2437, which is set to take effect Aug. 27.
Ridgeway, the State Insurance Department's general counsel, said the measure did not secure three-fourths support in both the House and Senate, the threshold needed to pass a tax without voter approval.
The referee, Barbara Swimley, took the oral arguments under advisement. She will issue a report to the full court, which can decline jurisdiction or accept the case and decide it... FULL ARTICLE
Posted on
Thu, August 5, 2010
by Crystal Drwenski