Legislation backed by the governor and leaders of the House and Senate would give Board of Education members the power to add items to meeting agendas.

An amendment to House Bill 1492 by Rep. Ronny Johns, RAda, allows a member of the board to place an item on the board agenda if requested in writing by at least two members of the board.

House Speaker Kyle Hilbert said this is a longstanding issue that needs to be fixed.

At the Board of Education’s Feb. 27 meeting, newly-appointed member Chris VanDenhende asked to pause an administrative rule related to students’ citizenship documentation but was rebuffed because the item wasn’t on the agenda.

Then, during the discussion under the new business agenda item, the other two new members — Mike Tinney and Ryan Deatherage — chimed in to ask legal counsel how board members could add items to the agenda. The board’s attorney shut down the conversation, saying it was not appropriate under new business.

Also this week, attorneys asked the Oklahoma Supreme Court to block Superintendent Ryan Walters’ latest attempt to buy Bible materials, this time through character manuals for public schools. They say the new request would violate the state constitution’s religious freedom protections and use state funds to support Walters’ mandate to teach the Bible, which they argue is unlawful.