Lawmakers propose hosting Oklahoma constitutional convention

OKLAHOMA CITY —  House lawmakers advanced a bill that would let Oklahomans decide if a constitutional convention should be held to make changes to the state Constitution despite concerns that the proposal excludes tribes and those not represented by Republicans. 

House Joint Resolution 1089, authored by the leader of the House and the Senate, would ask voters if they want lawmakers to host a convention to make changes to the Oklahoma Constitution. 

The Oklahoma Constitution requires that lawmakers propose hosting a convention every 20 years. However this hasn’t happened since 1970. In 1994, they also voted down a state question seeking to repeal the requirement that a convention be proposed every two decades, according to the resolution’s language. 

House Speaker Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow said the resolution poses a three step process. First, Oklahomans would need to vote to hold a convention. Next, the convention would meet for over a year gathering public input and drafting proposed changes to the Constitution. Finally voters would again go to the ballot box to approve the proposed changes, he said. 

“Really, all I’m asking us to do is follow the oath that we took when we got into office and put a vote on people for a constitutional convention,” Hilbert said Thursday. 

Delegates, who would be comprised of the members of the Legislature, would first meet as early as Jan. 5, 2027, and must complete their work by May 28, 2028, according to the measure’s language. 

The Constitutional Convention Commission would be tasked with conducting public hearings across Oklahoma for input on issues to be addressed at the convention. The Commission would include the governor, chief justice of the Oklahoma Supreme Court, the House speaker, Senate president pro tem and two members appointed by each legislative chamber, according to the bill language. The bill does not require those members be from different parties or be independents.

“If Democrats want more seats at the table, they need to win elections,” Hilbert said after his chamber’s minority expressed concerns about being excluded from the process. 

Hilbert said proposed alterations to the Constitution don’t necessarily need to be major changes. He said other states have taken out duplicative or outdated language from their constitutions. 

“So we could simply do that and not substantively change things, just reduce and confine and make it more streamlined,” he said. 

Voters would either accept or reject the changes to the Constitution during the November 2028 general election. 

Senate Minority Leader Julia Kirt, D-Oklahoma City, said she thinks it would be “super political” and seems to be “thrown together” rather than well thought out.

“Given the way we’re running government right now, I sure think it’d be a dangerous time to have a constitutional convention,” she said. “I mean, you have to have a thoughtful plan. You have to truly include people.”

Senate President Pro Tem Lonnie Paxton, R-Tuttle, said any constitutional convention needs to be representative. Paxton, the Senate bill author, said the convention is still in its “infancy” right now, but he still needs to review the details of the legislation. 

“It should represent what is in Oklahoma right now,” Paxton said. “Absolutely tribes, absolutely Democrats, absolutely Republicans. The concept is maybe you make it up of the current Legislature which is pretty representative of the state as a whole. You have a lot of tribal members in the Legislature right now.”

It was not clear Friday how many tribal members serve in the Oklahoma Legislature as the governing body does not require those disclosures or list those citizenships publicly.

If the Senate and Gov. Kevin Stitt approve the resolution, it would then be submitted to the Secretary of State and placed on the next general election ballot, according to the bill language. 

The legislation does not yet have an estimated fiscal impact, but delegates would not be compensated beyond mileage reimbursement and a per diem. The Legislature would be required to provide funding for any other expenses, such as holding elections. 

The House passed the Constitutional Convention bill by a vote of 72-23 vote just after midnight Thursday, sending it to the Senate for consideration.