By:
Damion Shade
December 9, 2020 // Updated: December 10, 2020
While much of this conversation has been focused on municipal budgets and inadequate funding for mental health and social services, it’s also critical that lawmakers consider how the system of court fines and fees contributes to racial disparities in both policing and incarceration.
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By:
Steve Lewis
December 7, 2020 // Updated: December 7, 2020
There are some early bill filings by Senators for the upcoming session. House members usually do not file their bills until the final day for filing. A couple of bills by Senate leaders caught my attention because of their potential…
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By:
Dave Hamby
December 6, 2020 // Updated: August 21, 2025
How are Oklahoma children doing?; There are many reasons to call a special session and, contrary to claim from the Governor’s office, no reasons not to; Policy Matters: Redistricting meetings don’t account for pandemic, rural geography.
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By:
Steve Lewis
December 1, 2020 // Updated: December 1, 2020
With interim studies, elections, and Thanksgiving now in the past, organizing for the next legislative session will get underway in earnest. House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, and Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City, have both been re-elected to…
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OK Policy is now hiring for a Justice Data Analyst. The Justice Data Analyst will use Open Justice Oklahoma’s (OJO) database of court, prison, and jail records to open the black box of our justice system.
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By:
Steve Lewis
November 24, 2020 // Updated: November 24, 2020
The Legislature faces a troubling challenge in attempting to limit the reliance of law enforcement agencies and the courts on fines and fees owed by defendants in criminal cases. As the state faced budget gaps or added programs without funding…
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By:
Paul Shinn
November 23, 2020 // Updated: November 23, 2020
Gov. Stitt’s office recently told one of my colleagues that the Governor could not call a special session for a single purpose, implying he was powerless to call lawmakers together to address the mounting human and economic damage from the…
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By:
Dave Hamby
November 22, 2020 // Updated: August 21, 2025
Public being denied opportunity for input about significant change to Oklahoma health care policy; Oklahoma’s fines and fees system worsening the economic crisis for families and courts; Managed care will have a disproportionate impact on Indigenous communities; Policy Matters: When ‘pretty please’ isn’t enough.
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By:
Emma Morris
November 18, 2020 // Updated: February 18, 2021
About this Series
This is the third of three analysis pieces about the plan to introduce managed care organizations (MCOs) to oversee Oklahoma’s Medicaid program. Part one focused on managed care being a bad investment for Oklahoma, and part two…
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By:
Ashley Harvey
November 17, 2020 // Updated: November 17, 2020
Although Oklahoma courts suspended most of their activities back in March, they have continued to collect fines and fees. So far this year, about $33.7 million in court debt has been collected from felony and misdemeanor cases alone, compared to about $40 million collected by this time last year.
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