Former Executive Director David Blatt joined OK Policy in 2008 and served as its Executive Director from 2010 to 2019. He previously served as Director of Public Policy for Community Action Project of Tulsa County and as a budget analyst for the Oklahoma State Senate. He has a Ph.D. in political science from Cornell University and a B.A. from the University of Alberta. David has been selected as Political Scientist of the Year by the Oklahoma Political Science Association, Local Social Justice Champion by the Dan Allen Center for Social Justice, and Public Citizen of the Year by the National Association of Social Workers.
By: David Blatt
April 16, 2009 // Updated: May 2, 2019
As the economic downturn hits the Sooner State, we are seeing a steadily increasing number of hard-pressed families turning to the Food Stamp Program (now renamed the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) for help in making ends meet. Food stamp participation… Read more [More...]
By: David Blatt
April 14, 2009 // Updated: October 17, 2012
As the economic downturn worsens, Oklahoma’s budget has begun to resemble a boxer up against the ropes. The news from the March revenue report released today by the Office of State Finance just dealt another blow. General Revenue (GR) collections… Read more [More...]
By: David Blatt
April 10, 2009 // Updated: October 17, 2012
A new report from the American Journalism Review provides some concrete data to back up what is readily evident to anyone who follows state politics and (still) reads a newspaper these days: Capitol press corps are shrinking. The NCSL blog… Read more [More...]
By: David Blatt
April 9, 2009 // Updated: May 2, 2019
As states across the nation face a worsening fiscal crisis and the prospect of deep spending cuts, some policymakers and advocates are attempting to shine additional light on the traditionally dark corner in which reside the large and ever-growing array… Read more [More...]
By: David Blatt
April 8, 2009 // Updated: May 2, 2019
During the months of March and April, the Oklahoma Asset Building Coalition (OkABC), a group with the goal of identifying and establishing practices and policies to help families achieve economic security, hosted a series of listening sessions across the state… Read more [More...]
In addition to the multiple funding streams made available to state governments by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), tribal governments are also in line to receive substantial assistance for programs serving Native Americans. This website of the National… Read more [More...]
By: David Blatt
April 7, 2009 // Updated: October 17, 2012
Oklahoma’s Constitution includes several fiscally prudent budgeting measures aimed at averting or minimizing budget shortfalls. One of these is the 95 percent appropriations rule: the Legislature may only appropriate up to 95 percent of the certified estimate for the upcoming… Read more [More...]
During the last state fiscal crisis, from 2002 -04, funding for Oklahoma’s Medicaid program was hit hard. In FY ’02 and FY ’03, as revenues began to plummet, the Oklahoma Health Care Authority (OHCA) put coverage of almost all non-mandatory… Read more [More...]
By: David Blatt
April 6, 2009 // Updated: May 2, 2019
Mickey’s Musings, the policy blog of UCO Economics Professor Mickey Hepner, is consistently one of the best local sources for credible information and thoughtful opinion on economic and fiscal issues facing Oklahoma and the nation. One of Mickey’s favorite themes,… Read more [More...]
“The sky is falling!” clearly would make a more compelling headline, but in the case of state agencies trying to deal with the continuing pressures of rising costs, increasing responsibilities, and flat funding, the reality is less dramatic but no… Read more [More...]
OKPOLICY.ORG
As the economic downturn hits the Sooner State, we are seeing a steadily increasing number of hard-pressed families turning to the Food Stamp Program (now renamed the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) for help in making ends meet. Food stamp participation… Read more [More...]
As the economic downturn worsens, Oklahoma’s budget has begun to resemble a boxer up against the ropes. The news from the March revenue report released today by the Office of State Finance just dealt another blow. General Revenue (GR) collections… Read more [More...]
Oklahoma’s Constitution includes several fiscally prudent budgeting measures aimed at averting or minimizing budget shortfalls. One of these is the 95 percent appropriations rule: the Legislature may only appropriate up to 95 percent of the certified estimate for the upcoming… Read more [More...]
“The sky is falling!” clearly would make a more compelling headline, but in the case of state agencies trying to deal with the continuing pressures of rising costs, increasing responsibilities, and flat funding, the reality is less dramatic but no… Read more [More...]
