Kyle Hilbert (born March 23, 1994) is a Republican member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives and the current speaker pro tempore. He has represented 29th district of the Oklahoma House of Representatives since 2016 and is the Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives-elect.

Kyle Hilbert
Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives-elect
Assuming office
January 2025
SucceedingCharles McCall
Speaker pro tempore of the Oklahoma House of Representatives
Assumed office
February 8, 2022
Preceded byTerry O'Donnell
Member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives
from the 29th district
Assumed office
January 2017
Preceded byJames Leewright
Personal details
Born1993 or 1994 (age 30–31)
Depew, Oklahoma, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
EducationOklahoma State University, Stillwater (BS)

Education and family

edit

Hilbert attended Depew High School, where he served as president of the Depew Future Farmers of America chapter. In 2011, he won the national championship for public speaking at the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis.[1]

Hilbert earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Agribusiness from Oklahoma State University.[2] While at OSU, Kyle served as president of the Student Government Association and was named a 2016 OSU Outstanding Senior.[3][4]

He currently lives in Bristow with his wife and their two daughters.[2]

Legislative Career

edit

Hilbert was first elected to serve House District 29, which includes portions of Creek County and Tulsa County, in November 2016.[5] He was first elected at 22 years old.[6]

56th Legislature

edit

As a first-term legislator, Hilbert carried eight bills that were signed into law, was an assistant majority whip and served on three appropriations subcommittees.[7]

57th Legislature

edit

In January 2019, Hilbert was named vice chair of the House Appropriations & Budget Committee as a second-term legislator. He also served as chair of the House Rural Caucus, a bipartisan group of representatives who meet regularly to discuss issues important to rural communities.[8]

Hilbert authored a bill creating a sales tax exemption for medical devices used in the home and prescribed by a medical practitioner.[9] He also introduced legislation allowing voters to take a picture of or with their ballot, which was previously illegal.[10] Hilbert was the House author of Senate Bill 271, which required all state agencies to annually disclose and rank all federally affiliated funds, programs and priorities.[11]

58th Legislature

edit

Hilbert championed several major pieces of legislation, including Senate Bill 609, which overhauled Oklahoma's ad valorem tax reimbursement system,[12] and The DRIVE Act, which established an equitable tax structure for electric vehicles in the state of Oklahoma.[13]

In 2021, he served as the House author of Senate Bill 229, which created the Redbud School Funding Act.[14] The bill directs a portion of medical marijuana excise tax revenue for annual distribution to eligible public school districts for acquiring and improving school buildings.[15]

Hilbert authored House Bill 2078, which modernized the education funding formula by basing per-pupil funding on the most recent enrollment data. The previous system gave school districts multiple enrollment figures from which to base their funding, causing some districts to receive state funds for students who were no longer enrolled.[16]

He was elected as the speaker pro tempore of the Oklahoma House of Representatives for the second session on February 8, 2022, becoming the youngest Oklahoma speaker pro tempore in modern history at 27 years old.[17] The position was vacated by Terry O'Donnell after his indictment in a tax agency scandal.[18]

In 2022, he authored legislation requiring school library programs to be reflective of community standards when evaluating new and existing materials.[19]

59th Legislature

edit

Hilbert was reelected to his fourth term in November 2022 and was reelected to his first full term as Speaker Pro Tempore in 2023.[20] In mid-April 2023, House Floor Leader Jon Echols steered SB 519 through committee. It "would give charter schools right of first refusal for leasing Commissioners of the Land Office property." During the committee vote, Speaker Pro Tem Kyle Hilbert of Bristow "had to be tracked down to break a 5-5 tie and keep the bill moving."[21]

In March 2024, he was voted as the Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives-elect to succeed Charles McCall in 2025 by the Republican house caucus. He is set to be the youngest speaker in Oklahoma history.[22]

References

edit
  1. ^ "Kyle Hilbert Wins the National Extemporaneous Speech Contest at the 2011 National FFA Convention". Oklahoma Farm Report. Retrieved 21 October 2011.
  2. ^ a b "Speaker-Elect Kyle Hilbert". okhouse.gov. Oklahoma House of Representatives. Retrieved November 28, 2024.
  3. ^ Martinez-Keel, Nuria. "Q&A with SGA President Kyle Hilbert". The O'Colly. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  4. ^ "Kyle Hilbert - 2016 OSU Outstanding Senior". OKState. Retrieved 5 March 2018.
  5. ^ "A 22-year-old will be elected to the Legislature in House District 29 race | Local News | tulsaworld.com".
  6. ^ "Bristow Republican Kyle Hilbert will be youngest House Speaker in Oklahoma history". KOSU. 2024-03-04. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
  7. ^ "Hilbert passes 7 bills through house". Sapulpa Times. Sapulpa Times. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
  8. ^ Forman, Carmen. "Oklahoma House elects new speaker pro tempore to succeed embattled Rep. Terry O'Donnell". The Oklahoman. The Oklahoman. Retrieved 9 February 2022.
  9. ^ "Governor Signs Two Bills Authored by Hilbert". Sapulpa Times. Sapulpa Times. Retrieved 14 August 2019.
  10. ^ Forman, Carmen. "Stitt signs bill lifting ban on ballot selfies". The Oklahoman. The Oklahoman. Retrieved 30 May 2019.
  11. ^ "Gov. Stitt Signs Dahm, Hilbert Bill to Track Federal Dollars in State Agencies". Southwest Ledger. Southwest Ledger. Retrieved 19 August 2019.
  12. ^ "Commerce Honors Senator Coleman for Work on Incentive Legislation". OK Dept. of Commerce. OK Dept. of Commerce. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
  13. ^ "Sen. Taylor wins approval for DRIVE Act to address transportation infrastructure and electric vehicles". Oklahoma Senate. Oklahoma Senate. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
  14. ^ Korth, Robby. "Redbud School Funding Act Unanimously Passes Oklahoma House". KOSU. KOSU. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  15. ^ "Redbud School Grants". OK State Dept. of Education. OK State Dept. of Education. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  16. ^ "Governor Stitt Signs Most Transformative Education Reform in State History Into Law". Office of the Governor. Office of the Governor. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  17. ^ "House Republicans pick Bristow lawmaker for No. 2 post". Associated Press. Associated Press. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
  18. ^ Krehbiel, Randy (8 February 2022). "Rep. Kyle Hilbert chosen to be Oklahoma House's new speaker pro tem". Tulsa World. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  19. ^ Gore, Hogan. "Gov. Kevin Stitt signs bill requiring K-12 library books to meet 'community standards'". The Oklahoman. The Oklahoman. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
  20. ^ Cunningham, Mandy. "Rep. Hilbert elected first full term as Speaker Pro Tempore of the OK House of Representatives". KSWO. KSWO. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  21. ^ World, Randy Krehbiel Tulsa. "Senate education bills kept alive in Oklahoma House committee votes". Tulsa World. Retrieved 2023-04-13.
  22. ^ Ramos, Lionel (March 5, 2024). "Bristow Republican Kyle Hilbert will be youngest House Speaker in Oklahoma history". KGOU. Retrieved November 28, 2024.
Oklahoma House of Representatives
Preceded by Speaker pro tempore of the Oklahoma House of Representatives
2022–present
Incumbent