OKPOLICY.ORG
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
ICE has few options left for a detention center in OKC: Only a few warehouses remain available for lease or sale if the Department of Homeland Security hopes to find a new Oklahoma City location for a processing and detention center following the collapse of a deal to open an operation in the west part of the city. [The Oklahoman]
- Can I record police at protests? Don Lemon arrest sparks questions [The Oklahoman]
Data centers in northeast Oklahoma: Pushback and economics: The pushback regarding planned data centers in northeast Oklahoma has been significant by many concerned about power and water needs, the loss of agricultural land and noise. But there’s also major economic benefits. [Tulsa World]
State Government News
How politics and power could shape Oklahoma Legislature in 2026: Oklahoma’s 2026 legislative session kicks off Monday, Feb. 2, and for some lawmakers, it’s an opportunity to bolster their campaigns for a statewide office. For others, the session marks a chance to shake up the power balance. [The Oklahoman]
- 5 things to know about state agency budget requests for FY 2027 [Tulsa World]
- Legislative Session Kicks Off Today [Oklahoma Watch]
- Monday Minute: Too early for flapjacks? [NonDoc]
Seven years later, is Oklahoma a Top 10 state?: Seven years ago, in his first State of the State speech, Gov. Kevin Stitt laid out his plans to make Oklahoma a “Top 10” state. Better schools, better economy, better management of state government. With Stitt’s eighth and final State of the State coming Monday and his time in the governor’s office ticking down, it seems fair to ask whether that goal has been achieved or is in sight. [Tulsa World]
- Capitol Insider: Governor Kevin Stitt looks ahead to eighth and final year in office [KGOU]
- Gov. Kevin Stitt to give final State of the State address: How to watch, stream [The Oklahoman]
New effort would give OK state school superintendent pick to the governor: In line with what Governor Stitt has pushed for, a new resolution was filed that would take the power to choose the State School Superintendent from the people and give it to the governor. It is State Joint Resolution 33, and it essentially gives the governor ultimate power to choose the superintendent, and that person would serve concurrently with the governor. Current state law has the state school superintendent being chosen by the people. [KFOR]
Oklahoma Human Services requests $25.5 million to cover higher SNAP fees: The Oklahoma Department of Human Services is asking for a $25.5 million dollar appropriation from the state legislature to cover a higher Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) administrative fee. [KOSU]
- New SNAP work requirements, soda ban take effect in Oklahoma this month. See changes [The Oklahoman]
Gov. Stitt suggests Medicaid cuts to curb health care costs: On Thursday, the Oklahoma Healthcare Authority asked for nearly half a billion more in its budget. Healthcare Authority Director Clay Bullard told lawmakers that a remedy for high agency costs could be taking the Medicaid Expansion out of the state constitution. [KFOR]
- Political notebook: Oklahoma Medicaid needs $500 million, lawmakers told [Tulsa World]
- State health care authority addresses alarmist claims following budget hearing: [Oklahoma Health Care Authority]
Edmond to lawmakers: Hands off property taxes; here’s what we do need: Mayor Mark Nash wants Edmond’s lobbyists at the state Capitol to be on the lookout for any attempt to eliminate property taxes, which, according to the Oklahoma County Assessor’s Office, would cost the county and its schools more than $1 billion annually. [The Oklahoman]
- From OK Policy: Nationally, about 9 in 10 dollars for policing comes from property taxes, as does most funding for emergency medical services.
Rhetoric heats up in the Oklahoma Senate following accusations of drunken lawmakers: The head of the Oklahoma Senate on Friday defended his decision to strip a fellow Republican of his leadership roles after he accused some senators of being drunk. Senate Pro Tem Lonnie Paxton accused Sen. Shane Jett of intentionally trying to create division within the Republican caucus, according to a letter sent to members. Oklahoma Voice obtained a copy of the email sent to the 40-member caucus and confirmed its authenticity. [Oklahoma Voice]
- Far-right Oklahoma senators clash as 2026 legislative session begins [The Oklahoman]
Lawmakers Wonder if State Farm is Writing Oklahoma Insurance Law: A curious bill from Oklahoma’s last legislative session has some politicians wondering how much Oklahoma insurance law is being written by insurance companies. On May 8, the 54th day of the first regular session of the 60th Legislature, Rep. Mark Tedford, R-Tulsa, presented Senate Bill 726 to the Oklahoma House of Representatives. [Oklahoma Watch]
Opinion: Welcome to the 2026 edition of Oklahoma’s political silly season. Here are some bills worth mocking: It’s that long-dreaded time of year again. The one leading up to the legislative session when lawmakers unveil their grandest plans to Make Oklahoma Great Again. At least in their minds. [Janelle Stecklein / Oklahoma Voice]
Federal Government News
No Real ID? TSA may charge $45 fee starting Feb. 1. How to pay online: Do you have REAL ID yet? If the answer is no, and if you plan to fly anywhere in 2026, be ready to pay $45 to get through airport security. [The Oklahoman]
Voting and Election News
200K+ Oklahomans sign petition to vote on opening the state’s primary elections: Volunteers of Oklahoma United, a nonpartisan grassroots nonprofit, submitted more than 200,000 signatures to the state earlier this week for a state question that would open the state’s primary elections. The group had a Jan. 26 deadline to collect about 173,000 signatures to put State Question 836 on the November ballot. [Tulsa Flyer]
‘A lot to implement’: OKC Mayor David Holt faces Matthew Pallares in pursuit of third term: The coming year will feature a smorgasbord of elections for those eager to head to the polls, including virtually every statewide office, congressional races and potentially a sales tax election that could decide the fate of Oklahoma County’s ongoing efforts to build a new jail. [NonDoc]
Education News
Education funding a top concern as new legislative session begins Monday: The 2026 legislative session will likely be a tough one for lawmakers who will grapple with thorny issues related to soaring home insurance costs, high property taxes and increasing pressures on the state budget linked to cuts in federal funding for health care and social services. They’ll also confront Oklahoma’s well-documented troubles in education. [Tulsa World]
- Oklahoma lawmakers focus on education as legislative session begins [KOCO]
- Oklahoma Chronicle: State Superintendent Lindel Fields explains $4 billion budget proposal [KOCO]
Florida group behind Jewish charter school bid addresses criticism: A Florida-based group that hopes to offer a tax-payer funded Jewish virtual charter school for Oklahoma students has pushed back at criticism from two organizations representing a broad swath of Jewish Oklahomans. [The Oklahoman]
Report: In Some Urban Districts, Science of Reading Limits ‘Robust Comprehension’: In recent years, nearly every state has passed science of reading laws, including many that have limited the type of programming and instructional materials a school can use – a move that has drawn some criticism that it’s too restrictive and that the instruction faces its own limitations. Rather than promoting deeper literacy skills, the phonics-based approach ‘may unintentionally encourage teachers to focus on surface-level goals.’ [The 74]
‘These kids are invisible’: Child abuse deaths spur clash over homeschool regulation: Recent high-profile child abuse deaths in several states have led to renewed calls from lawmakers for stronger regulations. They warn that some abusers claim they are homeschooling their kids when they pull them out of school, but really want to hide their crimes from teachers and other so-called mandatory reporters in public schools. Mandatory reporters are legally obligated to speak up about abuse if they suspect it. But the push has inflamed a broader debate over parental rights and galvanized hundreds of homeschool groups to rally at statehouses around the country. [Oklahoma Voice]
Health News
Confirmed measles case in Oklahoma; popular college bar in Norman is a possible exposure location: A popular bar on Campus Corner in Norman is now a possible exposure location for measles. This comes after the Oklahoma State Department of Health confirmed a new case of measles, and the individual was in public while contagious. [KFOR]
Oklahoma father fighting for ‘Leo’s Law’ after losing young son to fentanyl: A grieving Oklahoma father is turning his pain into action. In 2024, his three-year-old son Leo died of fentanyl poisoning while in the care of his mother. The father says there was an open DHS case because of drug use, but fentanyl was never tested for. The new law would require DHS to request drug testing when fentanyl or meth is suspected. [KFOR]
Opinion: Women, you don’t have to be a heart disease statistic: Feb. 6 is Wear Red for Women Day, a nationally recognized day to bring awareness to the dangers of heart disease in women. I don’t have to wear red to remember — I’ve lived it. [Dawn Berry / The Oklahoman]
Criminal Justice News
Stitt orders creation of civil asset forfeiture database: Gov. Kevin Stitt has ordered all law enforcement agencies in Oklahoma to start reporting what assets they’ve seized from members of the public. Oklahoma law allows police agencies to take and keep private property if that property is used in the commission of a crime, or if it was purchased with illegally obtained funds. This practice is called civil asset forfeiture, and that property is often kept by police even when the owner isn’t convicted or even charged. [The Oklahoman]
Chairman: OK County jail trust is here to stay, will ask for sales tax: The Oklahoma County jail trust, despite all its troubles and critics’ and activists’ repeated calls for it to dissolve itself, is going nowhere, and it will join others in calling for a county sales tax once a majority of the nine-member trust agrees to do so, its leader said. [The Oklahoman]
Oklahoma County jail acknowledges first death of 2026 in delayed report: The latest Oklahoma County jail death, reported Friday, Jan. 30, occurred more than a week earlier, on Jan. 21, and only came to public light after repeated inquiries by The Oklahoman. The delay angered critics who regularly assail the jail as “the deadliest” in the country. [The Oklahoman]
City of Tulsa to pay $4.5 million to settle another wrongful incarceration lawsuit: City councilors voted Wednesday to authorize the city to settle a federal civil rights lawsuit filed by a man who was wrongfully incarcerated for 28 years. Corey Atchison was released from prison in July 2019 after Tulsa County District Judge Sharon Holmes declared him “actually innocent” in the 1990 murder of James Lane, vacating his first-degree murder conviction and sentence while calling Atchison’s 28 years spent behind bars a “fundamental miscarriage of justice.” [Tulsa World]
Crime rates fell across US cities in 2025: Crime continued to decline in 2025, with homicides down 21% from 2024 and 44% from a peak in 2021, according to a new analysis of crime trends in 40 large U.S. cities released by the nonpartisan think tank Council on Criminal Justice. [Oklahoma Voice]
Economy & Business News
Devon to move HQ to Houston; will maintain ‘significant’ OKC presence: Devon Energy, which employs 1,600 people in Oklahoma City, is set to move its headquarters to Houston following a merger with Coterra Energy. Devon, currently headquartered in the 50-story Devon Energy Center, is expected to maintain a “significant presence” in Oklahoma City. [The Oklahoman]
- Devon and Coterra announce agreement to merge [KFOR]
High-income households grow in OKC, drop in Norman: Economists agree that spending by America’s wealthiest households is powering the U.S. economy and fending off a recession. The wealthiest households enjoyed healthy income gains, rapid gains in wealth and robust consumption growth in 2025, while the remaining 80% were “struggling to keep up with the brisk inflation issues.” [The Journal Record]
Community News
Here are 14 ways to celebrate Black History Month in Tulsa: This February marks the start of the 50th Black History Month. While its roots trace back to 1926 with Negro History Week, the commemoration effort was expanded from a week to a month and recognized federally beginning in 1976. [Oklahoma Eagle]
Tulsans explore, share Asian culture at Asia Fest: Tulsa Asia Fest featured dozens of dances, foods and facts spanning nearly 35 different Asian countries as thousands of people gathered in the Arvest Convention Center Saturday for this year’s festival. [Tulsa Flyer]
Oklahoma City’s archbishop condemns violent immigration enforcement tactics, calls for Holy Hour of Peace: After aggressive immigration enforcement tactics led to the death of two U.S. citizens in Minnesota, Oklahoma’s highest-ranking Catholic official is calling for people to move beyond what he calls a “climate of fear and polarization” with prayer and a Holy Hour for Peace. [KOSU]
Opinion: Oklahoma memory of Nazi brutality toward Jews in Poland: Holocaust survivor and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Elie Wiesel, cautions us that “neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere. When human lives are endangered, when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant.” When we see atrocities in our communities, do not remain silent. Let your voice be heard. We must never remain silent. [Michael Korenblit / The Oklahoman]
Local Headlines
- City councilors, mayor share thoughts on City of Tulsa’s midyear budget numbers [Tulsa World]
- Ransomware attack no threat to operations, Tulsa International Airport officials say [Tulsa World]
- Cheat sheet: Familiar names vie for Norman City Council Ward 5 [NonDoc]
- Food on the Move helps nearly 300 families with groceries after winter shutdowns [Tulsa Flyer]
- Tulsans can get their U.S. citizenship application fees reimbursed. Here’s how. [Tulsa Flyer]
Quote of the Day
“Many people today feel powerless in the face of violence, injustice, and social unrest. To those who feel this way, I wish to say clearly: your faithfulness matters. Your prayers matter. Your acts of love and works of justice matter.”
–Archbishop Paul S. Coakley, Oklahoma’s highest-ranking Catholic official and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, writing in a statement last week calling for bishops and priests across the country to hold a Holy Hour for Peace and prayer in this “climate of fear and polarization.” The conference previously issued a special message approved by 216 out of 224 bishops decrying the current “vilification of immigrants.” [KOSU]
Number of the Day
180
The maximum number of days a noncitizen may remain in the United States unlawfully without triggering significant immigration penalties. If an individual accrues more than 180 days of unlawful presence and then departs the country, they become subject to a 3-year bar on reentry. If unlawful presence exceeds one year, the reentry bar increases to 10 years, or may become permanent if the individual reenters or attempts to reenter without proper authorization. [U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services]
Policy Note
Immigration Bars Policy Brief: Federal immigration “bars” penalize undocumented individuals who leave the U.S. to pursue legal status — triggering multi‑year or even permanent bans that separate families and force many to remain undocumented rather than move forward with legal pathways. These rules, originally meant to discourage unauthorized stays, have unintentionally increased the long‑term undocumented population and imposed harsh consequences on persons with U.S. citizen relatives. [FWD.us]
You can sign up here to receive In The Know by e-mail.
