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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
Oklahoma law targeting immigrants puts politics over policy, Tulsa County sheriff says: Oklahoma’s newly passed immigration law, House Bill 4156, makes it a crime for a person to enter or reenter the state without proper legal authorization. Even if a person has proper legal authorization, they could be prosecuted for having entered the state without proper authorization in the past. Although Tulsa County Sheriff Vic Regalado is in favor of better immigration policies, he’s not in favor of HB 4156. [Tulsa World]
- House Bill 4156 instills fear in Tulsa immigrant community, reluctance to report crimes [Tulsa World]
- From OK Policy: Anti-immigrant laws punish families and children. Oklahoma lawmakers pass them anyway.
Oklahoma school leaders reject top official’s plan to track ‘burden’ of illegal immigration: A dozen school districts in Oklahoma said they will not check students’ immigration status if asked by the state’s education department, in the latest sign of growing resistance to State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters. [NBC News]
State Government News
OK Education Department sitting on funds for emergency asthma inhalers, lawmakers say: In 2023, state lawmakers, partnered with a foundation to develop and pass legislation that earmarked $250,000 to buy albuterol emergency rescue inhalers and spacers for each of Oklahoma’s 509 school districts. That bill, which leveraged the one in 2019, easily passed both the House and Senate and was signed by the governor. But the money was never spent. [The Oklahoman]
A Republican wants to start impeachment proceedings against Ryan Walters, could others follow?: For the first time on Thursday, a Republican state lawmaker called for impeachment proceedings to begin against State Superintendent Ryan Walters, saying it was information News 4 uncovered that pushed him to that point. Others say they’re also beyond fed up. [KFOR]
Roundup: Big bridge projects begin, OK County sues OSDH, Title IX rule blocked: If you missed the growing brouhaha between Oklahoma County and state health officials, a federal judge blocking a new Title IX rule for Oklahoma, and a new director being named for the Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs, this roundup is for you. [NonDoc]
Political notebook: State closes books on fiscal year: Fiscal year 2024 receipts to Oklahoma’s general revenue fund, the measure most used to gauge the state’s financial well-being, came in 2.1% above projections but 6.1% below the prior year, the Office of Management and Enterprise Services reported last week. [Tulsa World]
Capitol Insider: Oklahoma political environment heading toward General Election: The political climate in Oklahoma and around the nation appears very divisive, even within parties. What is driving that division? [KGOU]
Opinion: Oklahoma boards flouting the rules make our state look like a circus. Are lawmakers taking note?: Over the past few weeks, Oklahomans have been treated to one of the most unfortunate shows on Earth. Two of our state boards and commissions, which are supposed to be enforcing the laws on our books, have inexplicably gone completely AWOL — in the worst possible way. [Janelle Stecklein / Oklahoma Voice]
Federal Government News
‘The Interview’: James Lankford Tried to Solve Immigration for the GOP (video): Senator James Lankford discusses how political calculations killed his border bill, the evangelical Christian vote and preparing for life after Trump. [New York Times / YouTube] | [New York Times]
Congress limps toward the end of a disappointing session, with just 78 laws to show: The deeply divided 118th Congress so far has placed just 78 public laws on the books, a fraction of the hundreds enacted during prior sessions, regardless of whether one party held control or voters elected a divided government. [Oklahoma Voice]
D.C. Digest: Lankford wants ‘For Rent’ signs on idle federal property: U.S. Sen. James Lankford’s efforts to better utilize the federal government’s inventory of properties got a bit of a boost with Senate passage just before the August recess of a measure he co-authored. [Tulsa World]
Voting and Election News
Oklahoma United details efforts to replace closed primaries with top-two format: Organizers of a grassroots effort to open Oklahoma’s primary elections to all voters say they’ve settled on which form the revised primaries should take and aim to have a ballot question ready for the gubernatorial general election in November 2026. [Tulsa World]
Keith, Nichols and VanNorman talk homelessness, juvenile center and more in Tulsa mayoral debate: The three leading candidates to be Tulsa’s next mayor two-stepped onto the Cain’s Ballroom stage Thursday night, throwing a few elbows over abuse allegations at the Family Center for Juvenile Justice, disagreeing about whether to spin on the topic of municipal jurisdiction over tribal citizens, and stepping on each other’s toes regarding their visions of the future. [NonDoc]
- Mayoral candidates spar over juvenile center, differ on tribal sovereignty [Public Radio Tulsa]
Edmond mayor 2025 race to be open as Davis declines to seek third term: Edmond Mayor Darrell Davis announced Wednesday he will not seek reelection to a third term, and the early field of 2025 candidates hoping to succeed him is taking shape. [NonDoc]
Meet the Tulsa City Council candidates: Their opinions on the city’s biggest issues: The Tulsa World asked eight questions to each Tulsa City Council candidate on the Aug. 27 ballot. Here is biographical information on each and their answers to the questions. [Tulsa World]
Education News
School districts adjust budgets as pandemic-era funding source set to expire in September: When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, the federal government helped Oklahoma school districts pivot quickly toward online learning with new financial assistance. State school districts have used the so-called ESSER (Elementary and Secondary Schools Emergency Relief Fund) money for a multitude of purposes. But as of Sept. 30, ESSER funding for public education officially will expire. [The Oklahoman]
Multiple efforts underway to address the major shortage of certified teachers in Oklahoma: At the July meeting of the Oklahoma State Board of Education, the board approved — as an item on the consent agenda — granting emergency teaching certificates to 1,089 adults without education degrees to serve as classroom teachers in the state during the 2024-25 school year. [The Oklahoman]
- Teachers who left Tulsa Public Schools share frustrations [Tulsa World]
Oklahoma City Public Schools sees surge in enrollment under new leadership: Oklahoma City Public Schools’ new superintendent, Dr. Jamie Polk, tells FOX 25 she expects OKCPS will soon overtake Tulsa as the state’s largest district with around 34,000 students. [Fox 25]
- In new role, OKC superintendent’s priority is to improve students’ academic performance [The Oklahoman]
- Opinion: Everyone can make a difference by reading to a child: [OKCPS Superintendent Dr. Jamie Polk / The Oklahoman]
Bi-partisan legislation expands Oklahoma’s Promise to students with disabilities: The passage of House Bill 3792, named the Oklahoma Access and Achievement Act, means that eligible students with intellectual disabilities can receive scholarships to attend qualified post-secondary programs. [Journal Record]
Sean McDaniel ready to ‘listen’ and discover what comes next after OKCPS: This year, what would have been Sean McDaniel’s 40th working in education, but McDaniel will be elsewhere, preparing for what comes next after leaving Oklahoma City Public Schools. [Oklahoma Voice]
Health News
Oklahoma Breastfeeding Resource Center receives grant to expand rural training, resources: The Oklahoma Breastfeeding Resource Center at the OU Health Sciences Center will dole $750,000 in grant funding over three years to ten rural hospitals in Oklahoma, which will receive free breastfeeding support training and resources. [KGOU]
Former nurse sues, alleges retaliation after reporting abuse at Enid treatment facility: A former nurse who worked at the Robert M. Greer Center is suing the corporation that oversees the center after reports surfaced that residents have been physically abused. [Fox 25]
Criminal Justice News
Newspaper project amplifies voices of female inmates at Eddie Warrior, Mabel Basset: Selected female inmates at two all-female Oklahoma prisons trained over the summer to put a newspaper together. The idea was to make the Prison Journalism Project at Eddie Warrior and Mabel Bassett a model for other prisons nationwide. [Tulsa World]
Housing & Economic Opportunity News
Oklahoma set to study whether 3D printers could solve Oklahoma’s affordable housing crisis: State Rep. Mickey Dollens wants to explore housing alternatives, specifically 3D-printed homes, due to their affordability. [KOCO]
Economy & Business News
Fertilizer from human waste faces scrutiny but remains a profitable industry: Converting sewage to fertilizer saves cities money on landfill costs, is a cheaper nutrient-rich fertilizer for farmers, and has become a billion-dollar industry for a handful of companies. However, biosolid fertilizer has been shown to contain chemicals that can harm the environment and human health. [Investigate Midwest]
Community News
Promise Keepers revival blends evangelical faith with political controversy: Oklahoma politicians turned out at a Tulsa event billing itself as a reboot of an evangelical Christian men’s group prominent in the 1990s. [Public Radio Tulsa]
- The All-Male Christian Group Seeking a Resurrection in the Trump Era [New York Times]
Freedom Fiesta to commemorate two of OKC’s most notable civil rights anniversaries: Two landmark Oklahoma City civil rights demonstrations took place on the same day in August — 11 years apart. The Oklahoma City sit-in movement began on Aug. 19, 1958, and the Oklahoma City Sanitation Workers Strike began on Aug. 19, 1969. [The Oklahoman]
Family of Jim Thorpe rallies to save legend’s former house: The Oklahoma Historical Society had owned Jim Thorpe’s former home since 1968 but lacked the resources to maintain it. Over the years, it’s fallen into disrepair. Family members are confident, though, that better days are ahead for the site, which has remained open to the public. [Tulsa World]
Local Headlines
- Frank Lloyd Wright Conservancy files legal action against Price Tower owners over unauthorized sale of artifacts [Public Radio Tulsa]
- Edmond breaks ground on $31.6M development to expand library and YMCA [Journal Record]
- Opinion: Norman wants to ‘reimagine’ Lloyd Noble Center. Is $1B better spent elsewhere? [William K. Ridley / The Oklahoman]
- Opinion: It’ll be Oklahoma’s time to shine. Olympic Games are coming to the U.S. in 2028. [Lance Walker / The Oklahoman]
Quote of the Day
“It’s unfortunate that we’ve allowed politics on both sides to enter into the fray, and anytime that happens, nothing ever gets done. And if it is done, it’s typically a piss-poor job, right?”
-Tulsa County Sheriff Vic Regalado, speaking about the difficult issues that law enforcement and county jails will face because of the hastily approved HB 4156, which makes it a crime for a person to enter or reenter the state without proper legal authorization. [Tulsa World]
Number of the Day
$8.5 billion
The state’s General Revenue Fund collections for fiscal year 2024 (ending June 30, 2024) were approximately $8.5 billion, which is $177.7 million, or 2.1%, above the estimate for the year and $547.2 million, or 6.1%, below the all-time high record collections of the previous year. [Office of Management and Enterprise Services]
Policy Note
The Many Downsides of Sales Tax Holidays: They don’t do much to generate economic activity, often hurt taxpayers they’re intended to help, inject instability into revenue streams, and create administrative and compliance costs for businesses, governments and consumers. [Governing]
- From OK Policy: Oklahoma’s sales tax holiday costs about $7 million in state revenue annually, and it has not been shown to promote economic growth of increase spending.
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