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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.
New from OK Policy
This legislative session again put Tribal sovereignty in the spotlight: State governments and Tribal Nations both have a responsibility for the well-being of their constituents. To help communities change existing government systems to best work on behalf of all people, Tribal governments and state governments should communicate, cooperate, and take action together. [Vivian Morris / OK Policy]
Oklahoma News
More than 1,000 Oklahomans participate in “Hands Off” protest outside City Hall: “Hands Off” protests were held coast-to-coast in all 50 states Saturday. Here locally, there more than 1,000 people participating, holding signs reading strong messages. [KFOR]
- Large Oklahoma City crowd gathers for Hands Off protest to oppose Trump, Musk policies [The Oklahoman]
- See more than a thousand people protest Saturday in OKC (photos): [The Oklahoman]
- Local citizens gather in Tulsa to take part in nationwide Hands Off protest [Fox 23]
- “Hands Off” rallies sweep U.S. as tariffs spark backlash in Tulsa [News on 6]
With tariffs all the talk, new policy could hurt farmers: By artificially raising the cost of imported goods, tariffs also reduce the available options from which consumers have to choose. In other words, tariffs essentially reduce the competitiveness of our domestic companies while simultaneously lowering the standard of living of our citizens. [NonDoc]
- Economists blast calculations for ‘bombshell’ Trump tariffs as faulty while stocks plunge [Oklahoma Voice]
Oklahoma ranks low for overall tax burden: A recent WalletHub analysis shows Oklahoma ranks 42nd for total tax burden. WalletHub compared the 50 states based on the cost of three types of state taxes – property taxes, individual income taxes, and sales and excise taxes – as a share of personal income. [The Journal Record]
- Tax Burden by State [WalletHub]
- From OK Policy: Let’s not kid ourselves: Oklahoma can’t run without income tax revenue
State Government News
State Senate leaders wary of income tax cuts in face of looming challenges: Tax reform likely makes more sense than tax cuts, especially in view of looming challenges, the Oklahoma Senate’s Appropriations and Finance committee chairmen said Friday. [Tulsa World]
Oklahoma Considers Flat 4.75% Income Tax Rate in New Bill: Here’s the Potential Impact for Taxpayers and the State: The proposal aims to make Oklahoma more competitive with neighboring states like Texas, which has no state income tax. However, some folks caution that local governments will still need to generate revenue through alternative means. [News on 6]
Lifting cap on Oklahoma’s School Choice Tax Credit could have high cost: The conversation about no cap on Oklahoma’s School Choice Tax Credit could come at a cost after another state implemented a similar measure. Several bills related to the Parental Choice Tax Credit program have been discussed this legislative session. However, lawmakers voiced concern that there are close to none that serve to provide accountability or oversight. The program was billed, in large part, as a way to help low-income families get their kids the best education possible, but new state data showed a major share of its funds went to the state’s wealthiest families that participated. [KFOR]
House, Senate leaders worry DOGE-OK efforts may backfire, increase lawsuit risk: A major state agency that has been pressured to cut costs may face lawsuits after reneging on agreements to pay for services, House Speaker Kyle Hilbert said. At his weekly press briefing held Thursday at the Capitol, a clearly concerned Hilbert added that numerous agency heads have been pressured to cut the number of state employees on their payrolls, which he said has backfired in at least one case as a strategy for saving money and could harm Oklahoma taxpayers. [Tulsa World]
Oklahoma mental health department faces scrutiny over finances and leadership turnover: Multiple investigations are underway at the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services., and Fox 25 has learned that some mental health providers say they aren’t getting paid, and state lawmakers on both sides of the aisle want answers. [Fox 25]
- Oklahoma mental health commissioner credentials questioned amid investigations [Fox 25]
Education bills: Despite some ‘shared agreement,’ plenty to debate halfway through session: With lawmakers halfway through Oklahoma’s 2025 legislative session, it’s a good time to review what proposals remain alive and where they stand along the pathway to final passage. In terms of education bills being considered by the Oklahoma Legislature, efforts exist to improve the state’s teacher shortage, move local school board elections on the calendar and implement statewide cell phone restrictions in public schools. [NonDoc]
The Three States That Are Especially Stuck if Congress Cuts Medicaid: States that were once reluctant to expand Medicaid now have their state budgets tied to the fate of the program by constitutional amendments. [New York Times]
Oklahoma governor takes heat for blaming wildfires on forestry department: Oklahoma Republican Governor Kevin Stitt faces criticism from firefighters and some members of his own party after blaming the state’s forestry department for recent wildfires. [The Black Wall Street Times]
- Facing Stitt’s calls to shut division down, Oklahoma Forestry Services pushes back [KOSU]
- GOP lawmakers push back on Stitt’s proposed forestry cuts [The Journal Record]
- Lawmakers react to Stitt hinting he would ax Forestry Services after wildfire response [Tulsa World]
- Volunteer fire chief calls for Stitt’s impeachment following forestry service threats [Public Radio Tulsa]
- Lincoln Co. fire chiefs pen letter of support for former Forestry Director [KOCO]
- Opinion, Capitol Insider: Oklahoma forestry department under fire from governor [KGOU]
Oklahoma Humanities facing closure after DOGE termination notice: A state organization that for more than 50 years has helped fund humanities programming in communities across Oklahoma is facing likely closure if an announced cut to its federal funding goes through. [Tulsa World]
Monday Minute: Fighting Fire with Fire: Every year, one thing or another upends the regular session of the Oklahoma Legislature. Like imprecise clockwork, some nightmare bursts loose from the bowels of bureaucracy and changes the dynamics of budget negotiations. [NonDoc]
Opinion: Cuts to mental health crisis services will grow costs, harm Oklahomans: Oklahomans in mental health distress have long relied upon specialized crisis response services funded by the state. Unfortunately, citing high costs, the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services is, at least temporarily, cutting funding for such services across the state, including COPES and Crisis Care Center operated by Family & Children’s Services in Tulsa. These programs allow mental health clinicians to respond in the field during an emergency and offer a safe location to receive urgent mental health care. [Zack Stoycoff / Tulsa World]
Editorial: Let’s not pick what laws to stop enforcing by executive order: This last executive order from Gov. Kevin Stitt stood out among the rest in his tenure for several reasons. In it, he ordered state agencies to stop enforcing certain laws. Why? Because he disagrees with them. All in the name of religious freedom. [Tulsa World Editorial Board]
Federal Government News
As more Republicans back tariffs bill, it’s unclear if Oklahoma senators will join them: Oklahoma’s Republican U.S. senators aren’t saying yet whether they support a new bipartisan effort to rein in the president’s power to impose tariffs. [The Oklahoman]
- Sen. Markwayne Mullin: This Isn’t Starting A Trade War, This Is Leveling The Playing Field [Real Clear Politics]
- Mullin, Coons stay on message on Trump’s tariffs [Politico]
- Trump defends taxes as lawmakers look to restore power over tariffs [MSN]
- D.C. Digest: Mullin, Lankford take tariff positions [Tulsa World]
Sen. Mullin suggests ‘fake news’ would decline if violence could ‘still’ settle disputes: Journalists would write fewer “fake news” stories if disputes over coverage could be handled through violence, U.S. Sen. Markwayne Mullin suggested on social media. [The Oklahoman]
- Republican Senator Said He Was Joking When He Suggested Gun Violence Between Journalists and Lawmakers [Ad Week]
Editorial: 3 reasons not to forget 3 freedoms to counter chainsaws and chaos: Oklahomans: This is not a time for silence, capitulation or indifference. It’s time for us to pay attention, become informed by legitimate news sources and make our voices heard. We hope Oklahoma’s congressional delegation will do the right thing through this era, no matter how long it lasts. [Tulsa World Editorial Board]
Tribal Nations News
Letter to RFK Jr. voices continued tribal concern about HHS restructuring: Earlier this year, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. rescinded Indian Health System layoffs and pledged to prioritize tribes. Despite this, a March press release from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has tribes concerned. [KOSU]
Nervous Smokeshop Owners in Compact Limbo: A Mvskoke citizen smoke shop owner recently provided Mvskoke Media a copy of an email that appears to be from the Oklahoma Tax Commission saying that Tribal tobacco compact extensions have expired effective March 31st, 2025 for Muscogee Creek Nation, Osage Nation, Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma, and Seminole Nation. [Mvskoke Media]
Voting and Election News
Petitioners File Recreational Marijuana Initiative: Efforts are underway to get another recreational marijuana question before Oklahoma voters. Adam Johnson and Jed Green, who was part of the successful medical marijuana campaign in 2018, filed State Question 837 with the Secretary of State’s office on March 31. [Oklahoma Watch]
Education News
Oklahoma A&M regent meetings cost nearly $70K with pricey meals and entertainment, records show: Over the past year, the board that governs one of Oklahoma’s flagship public universities has racked up tens of thousands of dollars in bills while eating costly meals, listening to live music and enjoying optional social events and other entertainment outside board meetings. [Oklahoma Voice]
- Oklahoma State University regents shouldn’t live high on the hog while serving the public interest [Oklahoma Voice]
How the Education Department helps students with disabilities get an education: President Trump has said his administration is going to move “special needs” to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), an agency that recently announced its own drastic cuts. His administration hasn’t specified exactly which programs will be moved, and whether IDEA is among them, but the conservative policy playbook Project 2025 does propose moving IDEA to HHS. [NPR]
Reading Partners to end; TPS reducing sites served by City Year, Growing Together: Tulsa Public Schools will be ending or adjusting its long-standing partnerships with three nonprofit organizations at the end of the current school year. [Tulsa World]
OKCPS board to discuss whether students should be excused to attend courses on religious instruction: Oklahoma City Public Schools will tackle a big question during its board meeting on Monday, asking whether students should be allowed to be excused from school to attend courses on religious instruction. [KOCO]
Opinion: Accounting is a STEM profession, so it’s time to make it official: Many Oklahoma students remain unaware of how digital tools are automating traditional tasks, allowing accountants to engage in more creative roles like data analysis, business advisory and fraud detection. This misconception contributes to a reduction in accounting graduates and a lack of diversity within the field, leaving a gap between the demand and supply of Oklahoma accountants. [Blaine Peterson / Tulsa World]
Health News
OSDH reports new possible measles exposure in Oklahoma City: What to know: The Oklahoma State Department of Health has notified the public of a potential exposure to measles in Oklahoma City. The notice, released Thursday, noted that people may have been exposed to measles if they were at the Oklahoma Children’s Hospital OU Health from 6:15 p.m. to 10 p.m. on March 23. [The Oklahoman]
Opinion: Reproductive health care is based on the political whims of the moment: The political fuss over federal family planning dollars continues. Some Oklahoma clinics are losing out while the Oklahoma State Department of Health got a surprise restoration of funds. [Ginnie Graham / Tulsa World]
Criminal Justice News
Oklahoma County judge in charge of Epic co-founders’ case faces another request to recuse: After a year on hold, there’s still no end in sight for the criminal case against the co-founders of Epic Charter School. Yet another delay emerged Friday as defendant David Lee Chaney, 45, requested that the judge in charge of the case recuse, said an attorney who attended a closed-door meeting where the request was made. Fellow co-founder Benjamin Scott Harris, 49, kept the case in limbo for much of the past year while pursuing the same tactic. [Oklahoma Voice]
- Criminal case against Epic Charter Schools co-founders remains in legal limbo [The Oklahoman]
Rural rage: Is safety a lost benefit for small town living?: In the last three years, on the heels of increasing violence in small towns, Oklahoma legislators have passed bills increasing prison time for certain crimes like domestic abuse by strangulation and abuse of a pregnant woman, as well as the passage of the Oklahoma Survivors’ Act in 2024. Legislators have stopped short, however, at making simple domestic abuse a felony. But so far, the tougher sentences for more violent encounters haven’t led to lower numbers of violence. [Woodward News]
Oklahoma death row inmate Tremane Wood gets evidentiary hearing on latest trial compliant: An Oklahoma death row inmate who is up for execution this year is complaining new evidence shows prosecutors lied about their deal with the key witness against him. [The Oklahoman]
Ex-police officer changes part of story about chase that killed motorcyclist in Tulsa: After her statements conflicted with investigative findings, a former Skiatook police officer who faces a federal wrongful death lawsuit has altered a key piece of her story about crashing into a motorcycle as she chased its driver into a Tulsa construction site. [Tulsa World]
Questions linger over OK County land deal for jail: Will Crooked Oak schools trade?: Oklahoma County is a buying land to swap with Crooked Oak Public Schools so the school district can build a new athletic complex farther from the new county jail site. If the school district wants to. And if it can afford to. [The Oklahoman]
- Jason Lowe outlines jail priorities following Oklahoma Co. Commissioner race win [KFOR]
Housing & Economic Opportunity News
Raising the minimum wage in Oklahoma could help with affordable housing: Oklahoma has not seen an increase in minimum wage since 2009. According to the Oklahoma Policy Institute, rent in Oklahoma has risen by 60 percent. This has resulted in an increase in eviction filings and homelessness. The Oklahoma Policy Institute believes State Question 832 could help with this issue. [KFOR]
Economy & Business News
USDA cuts hit small farms as Trump showers billions on big farms: The U.S. Department of Agriculture grant program that allowed schools and food banks to buy fresh products from small farms helped them forge new business relationships. It allowed them to spend more with local feed mills and butchers, and was starting to build a stronger supply chain of local foods. But now that the Trump administration has yanked the funding, some worry that rural economic boost might end too. [Oklahoma Voice]
Opinion: Tulsa can lead America in the AI race. It’s a national imperative: The question isn’t just who will build the most powerful AI systems. The real question — the one that will decide the future — is which country will best integrate, govern and adapt to AI at scale? That’s the part of the race America hasn’t figured out yet. And it’s the part Tulsa can help solve. [Tyrance Billingsley II / Tulsa World]
Opinion: Brick-and-mortar marketing is not dead. Gen Z loves to shop in person: Gen Z prefers to shop in person about as much as their baby boomer grandparents. While online shopping provides convenience, in-person shopping creates an unmatched tactile, social and multisensory experience. [Nicole Morgan / Tulsa World]
Community News
Mayor Nichols to Unveil Repair Plans for Survivors and Descendants of 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre: On June 1, the official Day of Observance for the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, Mayor Monroe Nichols will unveil his plans for a “road to repair,” aimed at unifying the city and healing the multi-generational wounds that have endured for 104 years. Notably, the original announcement was scheduled for Sunday, April 6, at Morning Star Baptist Church. The city has not yet disclosed the location for its upcoming announcement to unveil the framework for repair. [The Black Wall Street Times]
OKC Human Rights Commission exploring how to take public stances on issues: After reviewing more than 70 complaints of unlawful discrimination in its two years of operation, Oklahoma City’s Human Rights Commission is exploring formation of multiple committees as it weighs taking stances on various issues. [The Oklahoman]
Local Headlines
- OKC being asked to provide $34.5 million guarantee on hosting Olympic canoeing, softball [The Oklahoman]
- Oklahoma turnpike extension rerouted away from Lake Thunderbird [KGOU]
- Tulsa’s ‘Traffic Henge’ is becoming a workzone again [Public Radio Tulsa]
- Edmond city leaders consider funding requests from community nonprofit organizations [The Oklahoman]
Quote of the Day
“I tell people all the time that we are cash rich and revenue poor in the state of Oklahoma right now. We do not have the revenues (for fiscal year 2026) that we had in (FY 2025). We are short $38 million. … We are $1.1 billion less in total recurring revenue than we were the year before.”
-Sen. Chuck Hall, R-Perry, who chairs the state Senate Appropriations Committee, speaking about issues facing lawmakers as they considering how to allocate spending for the next fiscal year. [Tulsa World]
Number of the Day
15.9%
Oklahoma’s poverty rate in 2023, which was the fifth highest among southern states and higher than the national average of 12.5%. [Economic Policy Institute]
Policy Note
The ongoing influence of slavery and Jim Crow means high poverty rates and low economic mobility in the South: Efforts to continue exploiting Black workers led to racist anti-worker policies that continue to maintain high rates of poverty, low economic mobility, and high levels of inequality for workers of all racial and ethnic backgrounds in most Southern states. [Economic Policy Institute]
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