Press Releases
Senator Lankford Releases Initial #CutRedTape Findings
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) released the first details from his bipartisan #CutRedTape Initiative, an online portal for American families and businesses to communicate with the Senate about federal regulations that impact them. Since the launch of the #CutRedTape Initiative in March, Lankford's Subcommittee on Regulatory Affairs and Federal Management has received 260 submissions. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was mentioned most frequently, followed by Medicare and… Continue Reading
08.09.15
VIDEO: As Senate Begins Iran Nuclear Agreement Debate, Senator Lankford Outlines Objections on Senate Floor
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today spoke on the Senate floor during debate regarding the President's Nuclear Agreement with Iran. The Senate is considering a resolution that would disapprove of the Iran Agreement, technically called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which has been negotiated by the United States, China, France, Germany, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and the Islamic Republic of Iran. If the disapproval resolution passes both the House and S… Continue Reading
08.07.15
Lankford Letter - August 7
CLICK HERE for the August 7, 2015 Lankford Letter.… Continue Reading
08.06.15
Senator Lankford Introduces Bill To Reduce Illegal Drug Use On Tribal Lands
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today announced the introduction of the KIDS Act, a bill to help reduce illegal drug use on Tribal lands. KIDS Act (S. 1984) stands for 'Keeping out Illegal Drugs Act of 2015.' Specifically, the bill would prohibit Indian tribes and tribal organizations that cultivate, manufacture, or distribute illegal marijuana on Indian land from receiving any federal funds. Currently,some tribes around America are experimenting with various forms of illegal mar… Continue Reading
08.06.15
Senator Lankford’s Bill To Reduce Fraud In Federal Retirement Benefits Passes Senate
WASHINGTON, DC- Senators James Lankford's (R-OK) and Heidi Heitkamp's (D-ND) Representative Payee Fraud Prevention Act of 2015, a bill that would crack down on federal retirement benefit fraud and misuse, passed the Senate on Wednesday by unanimous consent. The bill was introduced by the Senators on June 15 and approved by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on June 24. "I'm pleased the Senate has passed this bill to protect the retirement and annuities of federal em… Continue Reading
08.06.15
Senator Lankford Provides Public Copy of Iran Nuclear Agreement for Oklahomans to Read
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today provided a public copy of the Iran Nuclear Agreement being debated in the Senate on his public website for Oklahomans to read and analyze for themselves. On August 5, Lankford deliverred a speech on the floor of the U.S. Senate about the agreement and his opposition to it. Lankford, who is a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, has grave concerns about its implications for security and proliferation. During the speech, Lankford expres… Continue Reading
08.05.15
Senators Lankford, Feinstein Introduce Bill to Make Financial Service Provider Licensing More Efficient
WASHINGTON, DC - Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) today led a bipartisan group of Senators in introducing the State Licensing Efficiency Act of 2015, a bill to streamline the licensing process for financial service providers. "I am proud to sponsor this commonsense bipartisan fix that will leverage existing resources to help state regulators expedite background checks for financial services providers," said Lankford. "By providing the FBI the explicit authori… Continue Reading
08.05.15
Senators Lankford and Inhofe Challenge ‘Waters of the U.S.’ Regulatory Process
WASHINGTON, DC - Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Jim Inhofe (R-OK) sent a letter today to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to seek clarification regarding the 'Waters of the United States' rule's compliance with regulatory process guidelines. Specifically, the Senators questioned whether it's notice-and-comment procedures violated the Regulatory Flexibility Act, the Small Business Enforcement Fairness Act, and Executive Order 13132 on Federalism. The Senators' Committees are conducti… Continue Reading
08.05.15
VIDEO: Senator Lankford Slams Iran Nuclear Agreement On Senate Floor
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today delivered a speech on the floor of the U.S. Senate about President Obama's nuclear agreement with Iran. Lankford, who is a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, has fully read the deal and has grave concerns about its implications for security and proliferation. During the speech, Lankford expressed concerns with the deal leading to Iran's ability to delay inspections of suspect nuclear sites for weeks and an end to the U.N. conventiona… Continue Reading
08.04.15
Senator Lankford Introduces Bill to Protect Conscience Rights of Americans
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) and thirteen other Senators today introduced the Health Care Conscience Rights Act, a bill that would ensure that organizations, private businesses, institutions of higher education, health care providers, and insurance companies are not forced to sponsor insurance coverage that violates their religious or moral beliefs. "Our nation is divided on various issues, but the fabric of America is built on the First Amendment rights of free speech and the… Continue Reading
08.04.15
VIDEO: Senator Lankford Advocates For Pro-Growth, Fact-Based Energy Policy On Senate Floor
CLICK HERE to view the video WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today delivered a speech on the floor of the U.S. Senate about domestic energy production, the Keystone Pipeline decision delay, and yesterday's EPA Climate Action Plan announcement. Below is the transcript from the speech: "I come from an energy state, Oklahoma. We truly do all of the above. We do coal, oil, gas, wind, solar, hydro, geothermal. We're just missing nuclear. Quite frankly, we probably have nuclear if … Continue Reading
08.03.15
Senator Lankford Statement on EPA Power Plan Rule
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today released the following statement on the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) latest rule to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants: "The latest and final emissions rule for power plants released by the EPA has minimal environmental benefits with major economic repercussions to Americans," said Lankford. "This regulation appears to be more messaging than solution, but the pain to the American consumer will be profound. The rule… Continue Reading
07.29.15
VIDEO: Senators Lankford, Ernst and Paul Introduce New Bill To Redirect Planned Parenthood Funding To Community Health Centers
WASHINGTON, D.C.- Senators James Lankford (R-OK), Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Rand Paul (R-KY) today introduced a new bill to defund Planned Parenthood and redirect its taxpayer funding to other entities that provide women's health care services, including community health centers. Lankford, Ernst, and Paul led a working group for this bill (S.1881), which has support from Oklahoma's senior Senator Jim Inhofe (R-OK) and the majority of the Republican Conference. Today, Majority Leader Mitch McConnel… Continue Reading
07.23.15
VIDEO: Lankford Calls For Dodd-Frank Reforms at 5-Year Anniversary, Discusses Regulatory Relief Proposal
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) delivered a speech Wednesday on the floor of the U.S. Senate about the five-year anniversary of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, often referred to as Dodd-Frank, and the dire need for reform. During today's Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, Lankford discussed a framework proposal for traditional bank regulatory relief legislation that could be offered as a bill in the coming months. Dodd-Frank is a massive law c… Continue Reading
07.22.15
Senator Lankford Response To Social Security Trustees Annual Report: We Must Reform SSDI Now
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today released the following statement on the Social Security and Medicare Board of Trustees Annual Report regarding the financial outlook of Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). "The release of the Social Security and Medicare Board of Trustees Report is yet another warning that now is the time to reform SSDI," said Lankford. "We cannot continue down a path where we put seniors and disabled Americans at risk of losing their benefits. It's … Continue Reading
07.22.15
Senator Lankford Introduces Bill To Defund Planned Parenthood During Investigation
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today introduced a bill to end taxpayer funding for Planned Parenthood for a year while they are investigated for possible illegal practices. Specifically, the bill, Defund Planned Parenthood Act (S.1836) would set a one-year moratorium on Planned Parenthood funding from the government, unless the organization ceases performing abortions. This would allow more federal dollars to go toward organizations like community health centers, which serve low… Continue Reading
07.20.15
Senators Lankford, Heitkamp Introduce Regulatory Improvement Bills
WASHINGTON, DC - Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) today announced they introduced three bills that will facilitate greater transparency and accountability in the federal rulemaking process. The Smarter Regulations Through Advance Planning and Review Act would require agencies to plan for and conduct regular mandatory retrospective reviews; the Early Participation in Regulations Act of 2015 would allow Americans to participate in the regulatory process earlier; and the Pr… Continue Reading
07.20.15
VIDEO: Senator Lankford Explains Objection To Export-Import Bank Reauthorization
WASHINGTON, DC - Ahead of President Obama's Wednesday meeting with small business owners on the reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank, and a possible vote on it in the Senate this week, Senator James Lankford (R-OK) released a video statement explaining his objection to the reauthorization, and possible reforms he would like to see. On June 30th, the Export-Import Bank's authorization expired. The Export-Import Bank is one of twenty federal agencies that participate in trade and export prom… Continue Reading
07.17.15
Lankford Letter - July 17
CLICK HERE for the July 17, 2015 Lankford Letter.… Continue Reading
07.17.15
Senator Lankford on FoxNews.com: We cannot be a nation that does this to our children
by By Senator James Lankford
On Tuesday, an undercover video was posted online and reported on by various news outlets that showed a Planned Parenthood executive talking about the organization's operation of selling body parts of aborted children. After learning about it, I was immediately struck with deep emotion. It is hard to believe this is occurring in the United States of America. I realize that our nation remains divided on the issue of abortion, but surely we are not divided on the procurement and sale of human org… Continue Reading
