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In The Know is your daily briefing on Oklahoma policy-related news. OK Policy encourages the support of Oklahoma’s state and local media, which are vital to an informed citizenry. Inclusion of a story does not necessarily mean endorsement by the Oklahoma Policy Institute. Some stories included here are behind paywall or require subscription. Subscribe to In The Know and see past editions.
Oklahoma News
Oklahomans speak against checking students’ immigration status in schools: A proposal to require Oklahoma students to verify their immigration status while enrolling in public schools drew more than an hour of opposition during a hearing Friday. The Oklahoma State Board of Education is expected to vote Jan. 28 on the proposed rule, along with six other suggested changes to the state’s administrative codes, which have the force of law once enacted. [Oklahoma Voice]
- ‘Deserve to be taught’: Advocates take aim at OSDE rules on student immigration status [Fox 25]
- Oklahomans speak against checking students’ immigration status in schools [KGOU]
- Vast majority of speakers at hearings oppose Ryan Walters’ administrative rules proposals [Tulsa World]
- US Grant students walk out in response to Ryan Walter’s proposal on undocumented students [The Oklahoman]
Second ethics probe examines Ryan Walters for social media, political activity: With his handling of 2022 campaign funds already being questioned, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters is also being investigated over whether certain posts on social media and certain comments on issues mostly concerning President-elect Donald Trump violate ethics rules about the use of state money, property or time. [NonDoc]
- Ethics Commission to subpoena Ryan Walters for campaign records [NonDoc]
- Oklahoma Superintendent Ryan Walters hit with a new ethics probe [KFOR]
- Ethics Commission investigating Ryan Walters over support of Trump on social media account [The Oklahoman]
- Oklahoma Ethics Commission confirms investigations of Ryan Walters, Todd Hiett [The Oklahoman]
Accused of conflict, Todd Hiett calls Ethics Commission investigation ‘a political witch hunt’: With an independent misconduct probe authorized by the Oklahoma Corporation Commission ongoing, Commissioner Todd Hiett is also being investigated by the Oklahoma Ethics Commission on complaints he violated conflict-of-interest ethics rules by giving his approval to issues involving Oklahoma Gas & Electric, including an interim order in November approving the utility’s proposed $126.6 million rate hike. [NonDoc]
Roundup: Tulsa Race Massacre report released, Stavian Rodriguez suit settled, Keyes case kicked:
It has been a fraught few weeks for Oklahoma’s relationship with the U.S. Department of Justice. Days after releasing a report calling Oklahoma City, Oklahoma County and the state itself “discriminatory” against those with mental illness, the federal agency released a report finding that the brutality of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre was “state-sanctioned.” [NonDoc]
State Government News
How Ryan Walters’ rhetoric, politics impact Oklahomans: Ryan Walters often uses language that stokes fear and division among his constituents. School communities say they’re fed up; Experts say it’s dangerous. [KOSU]
Oklahoma lawmakers to consider more than 3,000 bills for 2025 legislative session: Oklahoma lawmakers soon will begin the cumbersome process of reviewing more than 3,000 bills and resolutions filed for the first session of the 60th Oklahoma Legislature. [The Oklahoman]
- Doctor registry, home delivery among marijuana bills proposed at the Legislature [Tulsa World]
- Oklahoma lawmakers will look at these 4 water issues in 2025 [KOSU]
Oklahoma sues the Environmental Protection Agency over an emissions tax: Attorney General Gentner Drummond joined a lawsuit alongside 22 other states over a rule known as the Waste Emissions Charge, planned by the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), that would require oil and gas companies to pay a fine after exceeding a certain amount of methane emissions. The measure was embedded in the Clean Air Act. [KGOU]
Marriage and child incentive bills look to curb divorce rate: A lawmaker is proposing two laws involving marriage. One incentivizes it, the other, he says, will curb the state’s divorce rate, which ranks fifth in the country. However, opponents say this is an example of the state overstepping its bounds. [KFOR]
- Attempts to increase age of consent, ban childhood marriage revived in Oklahoma Legislature [The Oklahoman]
State commission continues fight to preserve wetlands: Oklahoma is trying to understand its wetlands better. The Oklahoma Conservation Commission is wrapping up a five-year plan focused on these delicate ecosystems. [Public Radio Tulsa]
Opinion: Can we get an ethics check in the Oklahoma House?: Because other than legislators being required to self-disclose potential financial conflicts of interest, it feels a lot like nobody is watching the hen house. [Janelle Stecklein / Oklahoma Voice]
Opinion: Capitol Insider: Lawmakers finish bill filing for upcoming legislative session: Bill filing for the first session of the 60th Oklahoma legislature is over. The deadline was Thursday, and legislators have a lot of things on their mind. [KGOU]
Opinion: This Week in Oklahoma Politics: Student-athlete NIL, Ryan Walters lawsuit, Drummond running for governor and more: The panel talks about Gov. Kevin Stitt signing an executive order allowing colleges and foundations to pay for student athletes name, image or likeness and Superintendent Ryan Walters announcing a lawsuit against federal officials for costs associate with educating immigrant children. [KOSU]
Opinion: Oklahoma lawmakers must take our state’s mental health struggles seriously and ramp up funding: We’re lucky that we have nonprofits willing to step in to fill the gap, but there’s only so much they can do without increased legislative intervention and a candid self-assessment that something is incredibly broken. [John Thompson / Oklahoma Voice]
Federal Government News
Interior nominee Burgum promises to pursue ‘energy dominance’ in Trump administration: Former North Dakota Republican Gov. Doug Burgum on Thursday got a step closer to securing his spot as secretary of the Department of the Interior following a rather breezy confirmation hearing before a U.S. Senate panel. [Oklahoma Voice]
Trump officials outline planned immigration crackdown: After his inauguration as the 47th president, Donald Trump late Monday signed dozens of executive orders that will begin his immigration crackdown at the southern border. Among the most prominent of the orders Trump signed was a declaration of a national emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border. [Oklahoma Voice]
- Trump’s return fuels anxiety, fear in Tulsa’s immigrants. What their advocates are hearing [Tulsa World]
People’s March: Rallying against Trump’s fascist agenda: Winter weather was enough to force President-elect Donald Trump’s Monday inauguration indoors, but freezing air didn’t stop tens of thousands of Americans from converging at the People’s March in the nation’s capital on Saturday to voice their dissent against what they consider an incoming fascist Trump administration and ineffective action from Democrats. [The Black Wall Street Times]
Hundreds of OK women protest at Capitol in advance of Trump inauguration: More than 250 protestors − braving bitter cold and harsh wind − stood on the south entrance of the State Capitol early Saturday afternoon to push back against what they say is a rising tide of political extremism on women’s issues. [The Oklahoman]
Elon Musk’s DOGE faces lawsuit as Donald Trump is inaugurated: A sweeping federal cost-cutting effort led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), is facing multiple lawsuits, with the litigation coinciding with President Trump’s January inauguration. [CBS]
Opinion: I want to know the answer to Sen. Markwayne Mullin’s question: Oklahoma’s Sen. Markwayne Mullin posed a question to Congress that every American now wants to know: “How many senators have showed up drunk to vote at night?” [Ginnie Graham / Tulsa World]
Tribal Nations News
Kiowa Tribe seeks contractor to investigate Westwin Elements Refinery’s technology, process: After Westwin Elements held its ribbon cutting last August, the Kiowa Tribe is taking action to ensure the nickel-processing plant is not a threat to the communities in southwest Oklahoma. [KOSU]
Department of Interior: United Keetoowah Band shares Cherokee Nation reservation: The U.S. Department of the Interior says two tribes should share the Cherokee Reservation. The U.S. Department of the Interior’s legal opinion allows the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians (UKB) to build a casino in Tahlequah. [KOSU]
- Keetoowahs can take land into trust, Department of the Interior says [Tulsa World]
Cherokee Nation proposes tribal justice center after reaching $80 million settlement: The settlement is the largest in Cherokee Nation history and stems from the federal government’s misuse of tribal resources during the 20th century. [KOSU]
Chickasaw Nation to help manage tribal casino resort in Northern California: A tribal casino resort in northern California’s wine country got the green light last week, and the Chickasaw Nation of Oklahoma will help with its development and operations. [KOSU]
Voting and Election News
Oklahoma lawmakers propose changes to elections: Lawmakers have filed a number of measures that seek to alter Oklahoma’s election processes. [Oklahoma Voice]
Education News
Education Bills to Watch in This Year’s Legislature: Newly filed bills show lawmakers are looking to boost teacher pay, ban student cellphones and revamp the state Board of Education, among other education initiatives. [Oklahoma Watch]
Sen. Mann proposes bills to shield Oklahoma schools from political interference: Sen. Mark Mann, D-Oklahoma City, has introduced two bills to protect public schools and teachers from political interference, allowing them to concentrate on educating children. [Fox 25]
Oklahoma Senate to consider bills establishing School of American Civic Thought and Leadership at OU: Two bills that would establish a new entity called the School of American Civic Thought and Leadership on OU’s campus have been pre-filed for the upcoming Oklahoma legislative session. [OU Daily]
Tulsa Union’s Teacher of the Year told her mom to skip event since she wasn’t likely to win: A fifth grade teacher at Andersen Elementary School, Cory Allen was announced Friday morning as Union Public Schools’ 2024-25 Teacher of the Year. [Tulsa World]
Opinion, Rep. John Waldron: Proposed changes to social studies standards cheat to narrow book options: The way we teach the story of us to our children matters. We owe them an honest account of the past so that they can understand the present and build a better future. This year, the Oklahoma Legislature will review new standards for public school students in social studies. As a state representative and former social studies teacher, I have cause for concern. [Rep. John Waldron / Tulsa World]
Opinion: Oklahoma legislators should learn from decades of education reform: In a political landscape increasingly dominated by ‘culture war’ debates and attention-grabbing legislation, I urge my fellow Republicans to rise above distractions. [Mike Hunter / The Oklahoman]
Health News
Judge refuses to issue injunction blocking nursing home staff mandates: A group of Republican attorneys general have lost their bid for a temporary injunction that would have blocked the federal government from imposing new staffing level requirements on nursing homes. [Oklahoma Voice]
Oklahoma Medicaid Director Traylor Rains to leave OHCA this month: Oklahoma Medicaid Director Traylor Rains is leaving the agency at the end of the month. [KGOU]
Criminal Justice News
Ahead of special board meeting, OSBI director Aungela Spurlock resigning: Two weeks ahead of a special meeting with her agency’s governing board to discuss “performance” concerns, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation executive director Aungela Spurlock announced today she is retiring from the agency amid continued rumors about OSBI employee unrest. [NonDoc]
- OSBI Director Aungela Spurlock announces she is stepping down [The Oklahoman]
Oklahoma sees increase in number of inmates dying in state prisons: The number of inmates that died in Oklahoma prisons rose in 2024, despite Department of Corrections officials saying they had reduced violence and improved conditions across the system. According to records obtained from corrections officials through an open records request, 140 inmates died in 2024, outpacing 2023 when 126 inmates died. [The Oklahoman]
Motion in limine: Prosecutors call Court of Criminal Appeals order ‘ridiculous’: A new Court of Criminal Appeals order limiting challenges to pretrial evidentiary motions sparked fiery discussion at today’s meeting of the Oklahoma District Attorneys Council, with several prosecutors calling the decision “ridiculous” and one DA calling a judge a “moron” and questioning whether the appellate judges have spines. [NonDoc]
Budget Board asks: Where will OK County get money to run a new county jail, care center?: What’s the plan for raising the estimated $75 million to $80 million a year to pay for day-to-day operations of a new Oklahoma County jail — twice the cost of running the present jail? [The Oklahoman]
- ‘Something needs to be done.’ County commissioner candidates assail jail inspection report [The Oklahoman]
- Oklahoma County jail bookings the lowest since 2021; other 2024 stats show mixed progress0 [The Oklahoman]
Man pronounced dead after being found unresponsive in Oklahoma County jail: An inmate has died in the Oklahoma County jail, according to a jail spokesman. Vincent Riggie, 37, was found to be unresponsive during sight checks at around 7:10 p.m. Saturday night, officials said. [The Oklahoman]
Notable finds from DOJ’s cold case review of Tulsa Race Massacre: While the U.S. Department of Justice’s Cold Case Unit review and evaluation of Tulsa’s 1921 Race Massacre, released Jan. 10, did not greatly alter the general narrative of that disastrous event’s narrative, it did bring to light new material and reinforce some existing evidence. [Tulsa World]
Opinion, Sarah Stitt: Oklahoma can no longer overlook struggles of women in criminal justice system: As a girl growing up in Tulsa, I watched helplessly as my mother’s untreated mental health challenges destabilized our family. That journey shaped my determination as Oklahoma first lady to improve mental health services and trauma-informed care for those in need. [Sarah Stitt / Tulsa World]
- Sarah Stitt comments on Oklahoma’s stalled incarceration rate, still fourth highest in nation [Public Radio Tulsa]
Editorial: Tulsa Police Department wrong for delaying release of 911 data: When a Tulsa resident calls 911, it’s assumed that everything moves fast with an accuracy resulting in first responders appearing within minutes. That is a life-or-death public service, often with no leeway for error. But the expected precision isn’t happening with all calls, and that’s a problem. [Editorial / Tulsa World]
Editorial: TPD showing cameras as transformative in crime fighting, but urge transparency: Tulsa purchased more than 200 license-plate readers at a cost of about $700,000. The results using these readers are obvious and overwhelming; the investment is paying off. However, with this new technology comes another expectation of transparency. Residents may be more accepting of cameras in public places, but they want to have knowledge of locations. Otherwise, it feels like an invasion of privacy and erodes trust. [Editorial / Tulsa World]
Housing & Economic Opportunity News
OKC targets affordable housing with new plan: City leaders plan to create a position and form a citizen advisory group to oversee a new action plan to address the lack of affordable housing in Oklahoma City. A consultant presented the Housing Affordability Implementation Plan to the City Council at its Jan. 14 meeting. [The Journal Record]
“It Feels Like Death Row:” Long-term residents face eviction as OU Motel set to close: Dozens of Norman residents, many who have called the OU Motel home for years, are on the verge of eviction by Feb. 1 as the property’s sale forces closure. [Norman Transcript]
- Residents of affordable housing motel in Norman being evicted after property sale [KFOR]
Rocks under OKC bridges stir debate: What to know on ‘hostile architecture,’ housing programs: Boulders spread underneath overpasses and bridges throughout Oklahoma City are stirring up debate online about the best strategies to tackle homelessness. Many critics have blasted the move as anti-homeless and an example of what is sometimes called “hostile architecture,” a design strategy meant to limit the use of public spaces. Other terms used by critics include “defensive architecture” or “exclusionary design,” which detractors say targets the homeless population specifically. [The Oklahoman]
Bill would ban most Oklahoma towns from funding homeless shelters: Tulsa and Oklahoma City would be the only cities in the state allowed to fund shelters for people struggling with homelessness if a bill filed by a Republican lawmaker from Norman passes into law. [Tulsa World]
Economy & Business News
Canoo Inc. files for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, ceases operations: Canoo Inc. has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, marking the end of its operations. The filing was made with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for Delaware, leading to the appointment of a Bankruptcy Trustee to oversee the liquidation of the company’s assets and distribution of proceeds to creditors. [Fox 25]
Energy survey shows mixed results for region, but companies anticipate a rebound: Energy industry activity for the region that includes Oklahoma declined in the fourth quarter, but companies anticipate a rebound, the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City said. [Tulsa World]
- Oklahoma appears to be bucking a downward trend for Midwest economy [Tulsa World]
State insurance official disputes federal report linking climate change to high home insurance costs: Oklahoma’s top insurance official is criticizing the findings of a federal report on home insurance coverage and severe weather fueled by climate change. [Public Radio Tulsa]
Large solar array planned for Oklahoma will help power Google’s data center: Dallas-based Leeward Renewable Energy is constructing the project in Mayes County starting in mid-January. [KGOU]
Community News
MLK in Tulsa: ‘We must all live together as brothers or we will die together as fools’: Almost 64 years ago, Martin Luther King Jr. came to Tulsa. A crowd of 1,500 showed up — the largest ever at that time for First Baptist Church North Tulsa. They squeezed in to hear King, a 31-year-old pastor who was changing America. [Tulsa World]
My Black is beautiful: How to erase hundreds of years of programming: Week 2 of our 12 week Series, “Black Women Living Well 2025” is focused on mental health and how self-perceptions of who we are affect our psyche. [The Black Wall Street Times]
Local Headlines
- Forensic audit uncovers decades of mismanagement, misconduct in Yukon [KGOU]
- Audit reveals Yukon leaders allowed decades of financial mismanagement, misconduct [The Oklahoman]
- Edmond officially removes discriminatory language from plat documents [KOSU]
- Tulsa council removes invocations before meetings; instates ‘moment of silent prayer or personal reflection’ [Public Radio Tulsa]
- An all-time high number of passengers flew in and out of OKC in 2024 [The Oklahoman]
- OKC Downtown Design Commission approves design plans for Clara Luper Sit-in Plaza [The Oklahoman]
Quote of the Day
“I think the political science perspective is that, throughout history, you see the use of this extreme rhetoric to create this us versus them dynamic. And it’s much easier to go after the ‘other’ when you no longer think they are like you.”
-Steven Nemeth, an associate political science professor at Oklahoma State University, speaking about research that show that for large democratic countries with high ethnic diversity, matters of ethnic inclusion and representation are “more than an abstract democratic value, but a matter of national security.” [KOSU]
Number of the Day
$4.2 trillion
Extending the expiring 2017 federal tax cuts would cost $4.2 trillion over the decade 2026-2035. Roughly half the benefits would go to people with incomes in the top 5 percent of the income distribution, and 30 percent to households with incomes in the top 1 percent. [U.S. Department of the Treasury]
Policy Note
Federal Policy Debates in 2025 Carry High Stakes: A series of high-stakes federal policy debates will take place this year as President Trump and a Republican-controlled Congress seek to implement their policy agenda and address looming deadlines in areas such as the debt limit and the federal tax code. The decisions that policymakers make — possibly starting early in the year and through both legislation and executive action — could leave many millions of people much worse off while extending and increasing tax breaks for wealthy households and profitable businesses. [Center on Budget and Policy Priorities]
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