Author: Steve Lewis

OIDS budget request signals new focus on diversion and rural defense (Capitol Update)

Last week, the Senate Appropriations Public Safety and Judiciary Subcommittee — chaired by Sen. Todd Gollihare, R-Kellyville — held budget hearings from several agencies, including the Oklahoma Indigent Defense System (OIDS). Executive Director Debbie Maddox, on the job for less… Read more [More...]

Three new bills target rising home insurance costs in Oklahoma (Capitol Update)

Senate Minority Leader Julia Kirt, D-Oklahoma City, has introduced three consumer-focused insurance reform bills aimed at responding to the recent significant increases in property insurance rates across Oklahoma. The first is Senate Bill 1435, which was passed out of the… Read more [More...]

Agency budgets are a piece of a larger state fiscal puzzle (Capitol Update)

First, a correction: Last week, I mistakenly reported the Office of Juvenile Affairs had requested an additional $7 million in their proposed budget for next fiscal year for level E group homes . The level E group homes are for… Read more [More...]

New Office of Juvenile Affairs budget request prioritizes importance of early treatment (Capitol Update)

NOTE: This piece was updated 2/2/2026 to correct the proposed budget request for level E group homes for youth in OJA custody who need intensive behavioral health treatment while living outside their homes. – – – The Office of Juvenile… Read more [More...]

What Oklahoma got right with tobacco lawsuit settlement money (Capitol Update)

Last spring, Oklahoma’s Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET) announced its investment returns had allowed for an additional $150 million that would be awarded statewide under a “Legacy Grants” program. Following a selection process with 167 applicants, TSET began funding health… Read more [More...]

Proposed bill could increase support for children-focused nonprofits (Capitol Update)

Sen. Jerry Alvord, R-Wilson, has pre-filed Senate Bill 1398, an interesting and, I believe, good bill creating the “Children’s Promise Act.” The bill would create a 100 percent tax credit, up to 50 percent of a donor’s income tax liability,… Read more [More...]

SB 1381 aims to curb unnecessary pretrial detention (Capitol Update)

Sen. Dave Rader, R-Tulsa, has pre-filed Senate Bill 1381, to be known as the Pretrial Modernization Act of 2026. The bill, if passed, could help curb unnecessary detention in both county jail and Department of Corrections facilities. Oklahoma’s pretrial system… Read more [More...]

Is ‘stable revenue’ enough for Oklahoma’s future growth? (Capitol Update)

•Read the analysis from OK Policy’s Aanahita Ervin •Watch the Dec. 19, 2025 Board of Equalization meeting (YouTube) •Proposed FY 2027 Revenue Certification •Learn more about Revenue Certification On December 19, the Oklahoma State Board of Equalization certified an estimated… Read more [More...]

ClassWallet case highlights ongoing power struggle between Gov, AG (Capitol Update)

The sour relationship between Gov. Kevin Stitt and Attorney General Gentner Drummond made news again last Friday when Drummond withdrew from Gov. Stitt’s lawsuit to recover COVID-19 era funds from Florida company ClassWallet. In 2020, the Trump Administration released $39.9… Read more [More...]

Oklahoma agencies outline big needs for next fiscal year (Capitol Update)

See OK Policy’s FY 2026 Budget Highlights In his last year in office, Governor Kevin Stitt’s usual admonition to state agencies to submit a flat budget, or budget cuts, for legislative consideration during the upcoming session seems to have had… Read more [More...]