Category: Media

Oklahoma boosters advise bad news is bad for business

By Brianna Bailey Like many Oklahomans, people in the economic development business cringed after blurry cellphone video of the University of Oklahoma fraternity Sigma Alpha Epsilon’s racist chant went viral and made national headlines last week. When trying to lure… Read more [More...]

Ginnie Graham: Listen in on your lawmakers; you might be surprised

By Ginnie Graham It’s not fair to say, “Laws are like sausages — it’s better not to see them being made.” That’s a libel against pork. German leader Otto von Bismarck and poet John Godfrey Saxe have had this quote… Read more [More...]

How Do You Solve a $611M Shortfall?

By Michael Cross The State of Oklahoma is facing a $611 million dollar shortfall in the 2016 budget year which starts July First. On Wednesday, February 26th, KOSU held its monthly On Tap series to focus on how to deal… Read more [More...]

Oklahoma debate over US history overshadows education cuts, critics say

By Renee Lewis While Oklahoma lawmakers debate controversial funding cuts for an Advanced Placement (AP) United States history course, critics say the measure is a politicized distraction. Instead, they say, the legislators should focus on the more pressing issue of… Read more [More...]

Oklahoma Equalization Board Certifies $611 Million Shortfall (KGOU)

By Associated Press and KGOU Staff State agencies in Oklahoma are being told to brace for budget cuts after a state board led by Gov. Mary Fallin certified that the Legislature will have $611 million less to spend this year.… Read more [More...]

Oklahoma Budget Hole: $611.3 Million

By KWGS News Oklahoma’s budget shortfall is deeper than what officials expected. The state Equalization Board today said state lawmakers will have $611.3-million dollars less to spend this year than last. The  state says the decrease is brought on by… Read more [More...]

STATEMENT: Bleak revenue estimate shows need to look at all options

Oklahoma Policy Institute released the following statement in response to state officials certifying that Oklahoma faces a $611.3 million budget shortfall in the coming year: This news that Oklahoma’s revenue picture has gone from bad to worse cannot be blamed… Read more [More...]

Medicaid expansion gets no traction in state Legislature (NewsOK)

By Rick Green One of the strategic objectives on the state’s new “performance transparency website” calls for sharply decreasing the number of Oklahomans without health insurance.   The state could go a long way toward achieving this objective by expanding Oklahoma’s… Read more [More...]

Fallin’s Oklahoma-Meter Picks Up Praise, Skepticism (Duncan Banner)

By Janelle Stecklein Gov. Mary Fallin on Monday unveiled an online barometer of health, crime, education and other factors in the quality of life in Oklahoma — an initiative that she says will hold government accountable for spending. But leaders… Read more [More...]

STATEMENT: Governor Fallin’s proposed budget leaves Oklahoma’s best tools on the shelf

Oklahoma Policy Institute released the following statement in response to Governor Fallin’s proposed state budget for 2016: Governor Fallin rightly recognizes that Oklahoma needs to boost education funding, reduce incarceration, rein in tax breaks, and improve our citizens’ health, and… Read more [More...]