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Too many Oklahoma families are one emergency away from financial disaster

This week is America Saves Week when many community organizations promote saving money and encourage people to look at the state of their own finances. For many Oklahoma families, this would be a disheartening exercise. Four in ten Oklahomans don’t have the… Read more [More...]

Capital gains deduction is an expensive loophole benefiting a small number of Oklahomans (Guest post: Cynthia Rogers, Ph.D)

Cynthia Rogers, PhD, is a professor of economics at the University of Oklahoma and a commissioner on the State of Oklahoma’s Incentive Evaluation Commission. The Capital Gains Tax Deduction allows Oklahoma taxpayers to avoid paying taxes on income from the… Read more [More...]

The Weekly Wonk: Education cuts hitting all aspects of public education

What’s up this week at Oklahoma Policy Institute? The Weekly Wonk shares our most recent publications and other resources to help you stay informed about Oklahoma. Numbers of the Day and Policy Notes are from our daily news briefing, In… Read more [More...]

Try, fail, repeat, success? (Capitol Update)

Steve Lewis served as Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1989-1991. He currently practices law in Tulsa and represents clients at the Capitol. With what was termed the last hope for raising revenue this session, HB 1033XX, failed… Read more [More...]

‘This is not OK’: Cuts are hitting all aspects of public education

Miami Public Schools in Ottawa County serves about 2,500 K-12 students in seven schools. This year, four school librarian positions were eliminated, leaving the district without a single librarian. In Newkirk, there is no librarian and no speech or drama… Read more [More...]

‘This is not OK’ Infographic

Read the related blog post here.… Read more [More...]

Bill Watch: Teacher pay and charter school oversight top the education agenda for this year’s Legislature

This post is the last in a series highlighting key bills in several issues areas that we’re following. Previous posts looked at legislation affecting economic opportunity for Oklahoma families, legislation to reform our criminal justice system, and legislation affecting Oklahomans’ access… Read more [More...]

SQ 780 is already reshaping Oklahoma’s justice system

Oklahoma has long been among the most punitive states in the country for drug crimes. For years, severe mandatory minimums and tough-on-crime attitudes contributed to simple drug possession being the most common charge for state prison admissions. In 2016, fed-up… Read more [More...]

The Weekly Wonk: Key bills we’ll be watching this legislative session

What’s up this week at Oklahoma Policy Institute? The Weekly Wonk shares our most recent publications and other resources to help you stay informed about Oklahoma. Numbers of the Day and Policy Notes are from our daily news briefing, In… Read more [More...]

Bill Watch: Legislation threatens to cut Oklahomans’ access to health care

This post is the third in a series highlighting key bills in several issues areas that we’re following. Previous posts looked at legislation affecting economic opportunity for Oklahoma families and legislation to reform our criminal justice system. A greater share of… Read more [More...]

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