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In The Know is your daily briefing on Oklahoma policy-related news. OK Policy encourages the support of Oklahoma’s state and local media, which are vital to an informed citizenry. Inclusion of a story does not necessarily mean endorsement by the Oklahoma Policy Institute. Some stories included here are behind paywall or require subscription. Subscribe to In The Know and see past editions.
Oklahoma News
Which private schools are getting tuition paid with tax credits? That’s confidential: Oklahoma is set to spend $600 million in the first three years of a new tax credit program to cover private school tuition and fees. But the state agency running the program says how many of those dollars each private school ultimately receives must be kept secret under current state law. [Tulsa World]
State Officials Tout Voter List Maintenance Efforts: The most controversial provision of the state’s voter roll law is the inactivity clause. Some voter advocacy groups have criticized this practice as “use it or lose it” voter registration that disproportionately impacts minority groups. But the state defends it as a useful practice that helps keep its voter lists as up to date as possible. [Oklahoma Watch]
- Oklahoma Governor highlights recent voter purge as latest in ongoing election integrity efforts [KOSU]
- Move from county top reason for voter registration cancelation, Tulsa World analysis shows [Tulsa World]
Jail fight raises questions about zoning power in Oklahoma: Can counties overrule cities?: Could Oklahoma County commissioners’ court fight with Oklahoma City over the site of a new county jail spill over into the state’s other 76 counties, empowering them, if the commissioners succeed in wresting away OKC’s power over zoning in the city limits? It’s more complicated than that, but the case raises questions about the limits of legal authority of Oklahoma municipalities and counties. [The Oklahoman]
State Government News
How much are taxpayers spending to defend Ryan Walters and OSDE? Partial records give an idea: During a four-month span, the Oklahoma State Department of Education paid more than $51,000 in legal fees to one Oklahoma City-based firm, including more than $20,000 on a high-profile Oklahoma Supreme Court case that the state agency lost, public records show. [The Oklahoman]
Federal judge gives preliminary approval to resolve Oklahoma mental health lawsuit: A federal judge on Thursday gave provisional approval to a plan to resolve a class action lawsuit against the state alleging competency restoration services for defendants awaiting trial take too long. [Oklahoma Voice]
Are there actually that many expired tags in Oklahoma? New registration law, what to know: Oklahoma drivers stuck in traffic are used to seeing paper tags on neighboring vehicles, but too often those tags have a date past expiration. Though it feels like an overly familiar sight, does Oklahoma actually have an issue with expired paper tags on vehicles? Do the police enforce it? [The Oklahoman]
Capitol Insider: As general election nears, state strikes ineligible voters from rolls: Less than 50 days remain before the November general election and state officials have announced that the number of names on the state’s voter rolls has been reduced significantly in the last three years. [KGOU]
Federal Government News
The Fed says its long-awaited rate cut is apolitical, even close to the presidential election:
The Federal Reserve’s first key interest rate cut in four years coincides with another major four-year event: the homestretch of the presidential election. [Oklahoma Voice]
- Markets expected rate cut followed by upswing [Journal Record]
Tribal Nations News
Lucas-backed farm bill would block return of Fort Reno to Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes: Tucked away on Page 547 of the 942-page Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2024 is a provision that would permanently prohibit the federal government from returning Fort Reno‘s land to the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, a pair of sovereign nations combined by treaty with the United States in 1867 who maintain they are the rightful legal owners of the western Oklahoma property. [NonDoc]
Muscogee Nation renews lawsuit over casino built on sacred historic burial site: The Muscogee Nation renewed a lawsuit first filed in 2012 against the Poarch Band of Creek Indians in Alabama for building a casino resort on the site of sacred historic burial grounds. [Tulsa World]
How the expansion of Cherokee Film Studios’ campus means real jobs, economic opportunities: The Cherokee Nation is still rolling as it expands its footprint in the film industry. State, local and tribal leaders recently gathered for a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the latest expansion of the Cherokee Film Studios in Owasso, particularly the completion of a new building to house a second soundstage on the tribe’s growing film campus. [The Oklahoman]
Opinion: New Indian Health Service funding for UKB redundant, confusing for patients: Indian Health Service recently signed an agreement with the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma granting them $5.6 million to establish a tribal health system. With the health, safety and convenience of all Oklahoma tribal citizens at the forefront of our minds, we believe this funding is unwarranted, unnecessary and redundant. [Dr. R. Stephen Jones / Tulsa World]
Voting and Election News
Oklahoma voters will decide 12 state Senate races in November: For the first time in more than a decade, Oklahoma voters will have the opportunity to dramatically change the makeup of the state Senate. [The Oklahoman]
- Voter registration is spiking, particularly among young adults [USA Today via The Oklahoman]
State tourism chairman endorses Tulsa candidate opposed to public funding for tourist draws: Lt. Gov. Matt Pinnell, whose primary job is to promote tourism in Oklahoma, is supporting a Tulsa City Council candidate who, in an ideal world, would like to see the city get out of the business of funding the arts, museums and entertainment venues like the BOK Center. [Tulsa World]
As Oklahoma laws change, Payne County officials remind poll workers how to avoid mishaps: Election laws in Oklahoma change just about every year, thanks to state lawmakers. At a poll worker training in Payne County last week, election officials offered reminders of their support for precinct volunteers. [KOSU]
Opinion: It might have come late, but let’s celebrate an Oklahoma win: Using campaign funds for child care: It’s worth celebrating a recent decision by our state’s Ethic’s Commission that allows candidates running for public office to use campaign funds to help cover the cost of paying for the care of their dependents. It’s not a carte blanc slush fund, but it can help candidates if they wouldn’t have incurred the costs but for their campaign or elected position. [Janelle Stecklein / Oklahoma Voice]
Education News
Oklahoma faces teacher shortage as emergency certifications surge: One month into the new school year, Oklahoma public schools don’t have enough teachers. K-12 public schools had to rely on more than 5,000 emergency certified teachers last school year, the highest number ever, and are on pace to meet or exceed that this year. [Journal Record]
Tishomingo grapples with racist incident at high school: A racist social media post from south-central Oklahoma is drawing nationwide scrutiny. [Public Radio Tulsa]
- Tishomingo Students Display Racist Slur During Spirit Week [The Black Wall Street Times]
- Tishomingo High School cancels homecoming after racial slur incident [Tulsa World]
‘I didn’t want to go to school’: Surge of threats has students, district leaders disturbed: Since the recent start of the semester, schools around the area and state have been targets of various unsubstantiated threats, including in Tulsa Public Schools. The threats have been made primarily over social media and have triggered a proliferation of social media–driven rumors and hearsay. [Tulsa World]
- Metal detectors, bag checks coming to Tulsa Public Schools after social media threats [Tulsa World]
Pennsylvania lawmaker sues Oklahoma historian for defamation, claims free speech violations: An Oklahoma historian being sued for defamation by a Pennsylvania state lawmaker is seeking to have the lawsuit dismissed on the grounds that the legislator is trying to curtail free speech rights. [Oklahoma Voice]
Union High School expands construction program with OSUIT: A new partnership between Union Public Schools and Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology to offer classes in electrical construction and air conditioning and refrigeration to juniors and seniors. [Tulsa World]
Opinion: Banned Books Week reminds us kids deserve to be challenged. Don’t censor that: Children need access to diverse perspectives to grow, and that includes those that are unpopular or uncomfortable. Just as falling off a swing can serve as a lesson, so can a challenging encounter with a book. Today we are too quick pull out the blunt tools of censorship and deny children that valuable experience. [Steven Zoeller / The Oklahoman]
Opinion: Inclusive access to books is not about promoting one ideology over another: Libraries are sanctuaries where children can freely explore the world through books, helping to shape how they view themselves and the people around them. The opportunity for children to engage with a diverse range of stories is one of the most powerful gifts we can offer, yet this gift is increasingly under threat. [Susan Smith / The Oklahoman]
Health News
Expert says youth mental healthcare ‘a huge need across Oklahoma’: As children in Oklahoma get through the first few weeks of the school year, one expert says addressing young people’s mental health is more important than ever. [Public Radio Tulsa]
Day off offered to Oklahoma’s unpaid caregivers: The state’s unpaid caregivers are being offered a day off by the Oklahoma Department of Human Services. The department will partner with the Oklahoma Caregiver Coalition to offer a conference on Nov. 7 for caregivers with vouchers available to pay for respite care and transportation to the event. [Tulsa World]
Opinion: Guns raise risk of suicide death. This National Suicide Prevention Month, let’s focus on safety: September marks National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, a time to remember the lives taken by suicide, honor the survivors of suicide loss, and promote hope and healing. Every September, Everytown for Gun Safety and its grassroots networks, Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action, recommit to honoring survivors of firearm suicide with action. [Cori Sherman North / Oklahoma Voice]
Opinion: Tulsa boasts health care programs reaching ‘legacy’ status: This year, I have the opportunity to join celebrations of three true Tulsa legacies — two new and one well-established — where those in need have been the benefactor of something substantial from the dedicated work of many, now over two decades. [Gerard Clancy, M.D. / Tulsa World]
Criminal Justice News
Tulsa DA Kunzweiler defends plan for handling Oklahoma Survivors’ Act cases: Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler is defending his implementation of a plan to require those charged with certain crimes to declare at sentencing whether or not a law which grants sentencing relief to domestic violence victims applies to them. [Tulsa World]
- Oklahoma Prosecutors May Pressure Domestic Violence Survivors To Waive Their Rights [Huff Post via MSN]
- Kunzweiler clarifies Survivors’ Act views after legal form surfaces [Public Radio Tulsa]
Detainee deaths cast pall over positive reports of improvements at Oklahoma County jail: Detainee deaths dim the fairly glowing reviews of Oklahoma County jail operations recently given by a county commissioner and citizens advisory boards. Forty detainees have died since 2019, five this year. [The Oklahoman]
Alleged hate crime victim was actually aggressor, Norman PD says: “The reporting party, initially reported as the victim, was shown on video to be the aggressor of the fights and repeatedly engages the other individual showcasing a series of mutual combat,” Norman PD said in a statement Friday. [The Black Wall Street Times]
Housing & Economic Opportunity News
Collaborative Financing to Fuel Tenant Right-to-Counsel: Oklahoma does not have right-to-counsel laws in place, but tenant-rights advocate groups such as Legal Aid Services Oklahoma work to advance the potential for Oklahoma tenants to secure laws to guarantee free counsel in eviction cases. [Oklahoma Watch]
Economy & Business News
Black farmers face specific, outsized challenges in rural mental health crisis: Farming is a demanding job saddled with stressors like increasingly unpredictable weather, rising input costs and changing commodity prices. On top of those issues, producers of color deal with the impacts of racism, which is linked to mental health conditions like depression and PTSD. [KOSU]
Poll of Oklahoma business leaders shows workforce, education concerns: While business leaders in Oklahoma favor reducing or even eliminating the state’s income tax, they wouldn’t support any cut if it came at the expense of public education or other core services. [Tulsa World]
Community News
Refugees and immigrants learn English at Rising Village’s Conversation Cafe: Rising Village’s Anna Fu and Nathan Hughes is a place to hang out for refugees and immigrants who’ve already completed their English as a second language class, but still want to immerse themselves in a slower-paced language-learning environment. [Public Radio Tulsa]
These new vending machines let you buy food, supplies for charities and those in need: What if you could go to a vending machine to buy food and other items for individuals in need― all by making a donation at a vending machine? Such an apparatus exists, and it’s called a “Light the World Giving Machine.” Three will make their debut at Scissortail Park as part of the Oklahoma Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ Light of the World initiative. [The Oklahoman]
Opinion: End hate in our speech before it turns into actions: We need to disagree better. We need respect in disappointment. [Ginnie Graham / Tulsa World]
Editorial: Roadway fatality highlights dangers of pedestrians in medians, red light running: Previously, Tulsa had banned anyone — from panhandlers to fundraising students — from doing so in medians or roadsides. Public safety was the guiding principle behind the law. But, in 2020, a federal appellate court found that a similar prohibition in Oklahoma City was unconstitutional. [Tulsa World]
Local Headlines
- This is the richest town in Oklahoma, according to Census data. Here’s the median income [The Oklahoman]
Quote of the Day
“(The Oklahoma Tax Commission) told me no money went to Japan — and they were very uncomfortable when I asked.”
-Rep. Melissa Provenzano, discussing her inquiry about a foreign school (UWC ISAK located in Nagano, Japan) previously listed on the state’s registry of schools participating in Oklahoma’s new tax credit program to cover private school tuition and fees. [Tulsa World]
Number of the Day
1 in 10
More than 1 in 10 eligible voters have become U.S. citizens through naturalization, making them eligible to vote in November’s presidential election. The number of adults who are naturalized citizens has grown steadily in recent decades and stood at 23.8 million in 2022. [Pew Research]
Policy Note
What the Federal Reserve’s policy shift means for state and local budgets: The Federal Reserve intended for today’s interest rate cut of 0.5 percentage points to stimulate the broader economy, but this shift in monetary policy also represents a subtle but important change in the operating environment for state budgets. Interest rates affect every aspect of government finance, from revenue to infrastructure projects, and although the effects on state and local budgets will be gradual, the first rate cut in four years sends a message. [Route Fifty]
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