State Chamber Member Boeing Set To Move Up To 1,000 Jobs To Oklahoma – Boeing announced plans this week to close its decades-old operation in Wichita, KS and move up to 1,000 jobs to Oklahoma City.  The move includes 800 to 900 jobs from Wichita and another 100 jobs from Puget Sound, WA. 

Oklahoma Congressman James Lankford said: “Boeing’s decision to move the engineering division of its Defense, Space and Security operations to Oklahoma City continues to show that this is one of the most competitive places in the nation to do business. Oklahoma values and the Oklahoma work ethic are a winning combination for businesses that want to expand and grow. Federal, state and local governments have worked with the private sector to build a pro-growth environment that is leading directly to an expanding job market in Oklahoma. This provides an example to Washington, D.C., and the rest of the nation as we seek to strengthen the private sector economy.”

To read a news article about the announcement, click here.

2011 Brought Improved Economic Health To Oklahoma – State Treasurer Ken Miller said in a press release on January 4th that our economic doctors say 2012 is looking even better.  “December was 11.1 percent better than the prior year, the fourth quarter was 10.5 percent ahead of the final three months of 2010, and total year collections surpassed the previous year by 9.6 percent,” Miller said. “We saw healthy growth each month ranging from four to 16 percent with an average at the double-digit mark.” Click here to read the entire press release.  Treasurer Miller has also released his Economic Report for December, click here to read that report.  Highlights include: must be doin’ something right; Treasurer’s commentary: getting taxes right; state economy continues growth; preliminary revenue estimate made; and economic indicators.

The State Chamber Of Oklahoma's Business Roundtable is a TV show presented by Cox Communications that tells the business story of Oklahoma and how legislation affects Oklahoma's economy. State Chamber President Fred Morgan hosts weekly Roundtable guests including Oklahoma's business leaders and legislators. This week, Matt Beckham, CEO of QuiBids, is the guest.

Feds Reject Oklahoma Health Care Law Waiver Request – The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) this week rejected waiver requests from both Oklahoma and Kansas in an attempt to shield some insurance companies from the federal law requiring at least 80% of health insurance premiums go toward policy administration.  The waiver request asked that the federal government allow this mandate, called the Medical Loss Ratio (MLR), be delayed and implemented gradually until 2014 when most provisions of the law are to take effect.  The MLR also includes commissions to insurance agents as they are considered part of a policy’s administration.  HHS has also denied waivers from several other states as well.  To see a copy of The Oklahoman article regarding this issue, click here.
Contact Matt Robison

Congress Agrees On Two Month Payroll Tax Cut Extension - On December 23rd, both the House and Senate approved a two-month extension of the expiring payroll tax provisions, extended unemployment benefits, the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program, and avoided a scheduled 27.4 percent reduction in Medicare reimbursement rates. Overall, the legislation resolved few of the outstanding issues, but rather provided additional time to negotiate. Republicans and Democrats have yet to reach an agreement about how to offset the additional cost of extending these provisions for the other 10 months of 2012.
Contact Mike Seney

National Labor Relations Board Delays “Notice Posting” Again – The NLRB announced December 23rd that they are postponing the notice posting rule once again, this time until April 30, 2012. The Board is fighting off legal challenges to the notice posting rule and this second postponement is to avoid an injunction preventing the rule from going into effect during litigation.
Contact Mike Seney

National Labor Relations Board Issues Final Rule On “Ambush Elections” – On December 21st, The NLRB issued its final rule on ambush elections. You can read the NLRB's announcement and the final rule by clicking here.
Contact Mike Seney

Save The Date - The State Chamber's Annual Legislative Reception will be held on February 15th at the Oklahoma History Center from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. More details and registration information coming soon!