Year-to-date bankruptcy filings up 17% from all of 2000

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Dec 7, 2001

Bankruptcy filings at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Oklahoma for the first 11 months of this year exceeded the total for all 12 months of 2000 by 17.1 percent.

Filings at the court for the first 11 months of the year totaled 12,329, up from 10,526 for all of 2000. Filings for the first 11 months of the year were up 26.7 percent from 9,730 for the first 11 months of 2000.

For November, filings totaled 981, up 6.6 percent from 920 for November 2000. The 981 filings in November were the fewest for any month since February.

Heaton confirmed

Joe Heaton was confirmed by the Senate on Thursday for as a U.S. District Judge in Oklahoma City.

Heaton has worked in the U.S. Attorney's Office for six years, including nine months as its leader in the early 1990s. He served in the Oklahoma House of Representatives for seven years and rose to minority floor leader. Before taking his current post, Heaton was in private law practice in Oklahoma City.

Heaton was one of three nominees by President Bush confirmed by the Senate on Thursday.

New Mexico appellate judge Harris L. Hartz was confirmed for the Denver-based 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The 10th Circuit Court handles appeals from Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Kansas and Oklahoma.

Also approved by voice vote was U.S. District Judge Danny Reeves of Kentucky.

Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said there are six more judges awaiting Senate confirmation, and when those six are finished, the number of vacant judicial positions will drop below 100 for the first time since Democrats took over the Senate.

Cheney to visit

Vice President Dick Cheney is coming to Oklahoma City on Friday to attend a fund-raiser for U.S. Rep. J.C. Watts, the vice president's staff said.

Mary Matalin, counselor to the vice president, said Cheney is a "big fan" of the Norman Republican and has planned for a long time to attend a fund-raiser. But many political events have been postponed because of the Sept. 11 attacks, she said.

Cheney also will attend an event for House Majority Leader Dick Armey, R-Texas, this week, Matalin said.

She said the Oklahoma City event would be closed to the public. The vice president has made few public appearances since the terror attacks.

Homeland security

"Public safety should be a priority of government," House Speaker Larry Adair, D-Stilwell, said Thursday as he announced the creation of a standing House Homeland Security Committee.

The panel, chaired by Rep. Bill Paulk, D-OKC, was formed because of the growing importance of domestic safety and protection following the events of Sept. 11 and other recent terrorist acts.

Vice chair is Rep. Dan Webb, R-OKC. Other members include Rep. Larry Rice, D-Pryor; Rep. Dale W. Wells, D-Cushing, and Rep. John Nance, R-Bethany.

Paulk, Webb, Wells and Nance also are members of the Joint Homeland Security Task Force. That panel is reviewing the state's security strategy and recommending specific changes in state law that might assist Oklahoma in the global campaign being waged against terrorism.

Legislatures throughout the nation are examining their domestic security measures, making sure appropriate steps are being taken to ensure public safety and welfare, Adair said.

Events that have transpired in recent years have generated a gnawing anxiety among Oklahomans and other Americans, the speaker said.

He pointed to the bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building; the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, D.C.; the ongoing military activities in Afghanistan, and the recent suicide bombings in Israel.

Along with the new House committee and the joint task force on homeland security empanelled last month, two executive branch task forces are focusing on public security issues. Additionally, a legislative Task Force on Food Safety is weighing the ability of the public and private sectors to safeguard the food supply in Oklahoma from bacteria, disease and terrorists.

Adair said he expects some type of homeland security legislation to be introduced in the next regular session of the Legislature, which convenes Feb. 4.

Small business workshops

A small business funding assistance workshop is scheduled at 3 p.m. Thursday at the Terry Neese Center for Entrepreneurial Excellence, 2709 W. Interstate 44 Service Rd.

"How to Get Your Banker to Say Yes" is a two-hour session with presentations by representatives from the Small Business Administration. The fee is $10. Another workshop, "Listening to You Business," is scheduled at the center from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday. The fee is $39. Call 601-1930 for reservations for both workshops.