Category: Featured Blog

Plain language eviction summons can help Oklahomans in eviction court

Oklahoma’s civil courts should be fair and accessible for all residents. Tenants facing eviction, as well as their landlords, should have legal documents that clearly explain the process and the rights of the parties involved. The current eviction summons –… Read more [More...]

Housing is unaffordable for Oklahoma’s low-wage workers

Updated, 11/6/2023 to reflect updated statistics for Oklahoma from the National Low Income Housing Coalition.  — Oklahomans working a full-time job should be able to provide basic needs for themselves and their families, but 2 in 5 Oklahomans are unable… Read more [More...]

Expanding unemployment insurance to more workers would protect families and Oklahoma’s economy

Unemployment insurance became a lifeline to many Oklahomans during the pandemic. In a period of widespread job loss, the transfer payments that this program provided working people with the means to feed their families and pay the bills while they… Read more [More...]

Medicaid expansion improved access to care for Indigenous Oklahomans

Leading up to when Oklahoma expanded Medicaid coverage, Oklahoma had a large uninsured population of American Indian and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs). But as a consequence of Medicaid expansion and the Oklahoma Health Care Authority’s (OHCA) inclusion of — and consultation… Read more [More...]

Medicaid expansion improves housing stability

Oklahomans who voted for State Question 802 in 2020 knew that Medicaid expansion would bring greater access to quality health care, but what voters may not have known is that Medicaid expansion plays a role in keeping people safely housed.… Read more [More...]

Supporting immigration will boost Oklahoma’s economy 

Co-authors: Immigration Policy Analyst Gabriela Ramirez-Perez and Josie Phillips, former Policy Fellow – – – Immigrants are an integral part of Oklahoma’s economy. They work in essential industries, create jobs by starting businesses, care for our aging population, and contribute… Read more [More...]

Excluded in the Expansion: The persisting gaps in health care coverage for immigrant Oklahomans

Medicaid expansion in Oklahoma has allowed more than 300,000 residents to enroll for health care, but almost 82,000 Oklahomans who are immigrants remain uninsured. Since the mid-1990s, many immigrants are either partially or entirely ineligible for federal public benefits programs,… Read more [More...]

Effective democracy requires more transparency in Oklahoma state government

Oklahoma’s government is one of the least transparent in the nation. In contrast to other states, the general public is largely left out of the budget process and deprived of basic expectations of government such as public debate. Unfortunately, that… Read more [More...]

Medicaid Expansion in Oklahoma: Year One

Medicaid Expansion in Oklahoma: Year One: When Oklahoma voters passed Medicaid expansion in June 2020, they understood the benefits that expansion would bring to the state. They knew that providing health coverage to low-income, working-age adults would improve health outcomes,… Read more [More...]

Personal income tax cuts won’t deliver relief to low- and middle-class Oklahomans

Cuts to the individual income tax rate are unfair to low- and middle-class families since they return the largest benefit to the wealthiest Oklahomans. Tax cuts now can devastate state revenue and funding for services like public education in future years. [More...]