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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
45% of Oklahoma households can’t afford basic needs, financial hardship report finds: Nearly half of Oklahoma’s 1.6 million households are unable to afford the basics needed to survive financially, according to a new report that attempts to measure household hardship. The “2025 ALICE in Oklahoma: A Study of Financial Hardship” report was released last week by the Tulsa Area United Way in partnership with a national research initiative. ALICE — which stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed — is a valuable framework for understanding the true struggles and hardships that Oklahomans are experiencing, including hardships that are undercounted by official poverty measures. [Tulsa World]
- Read the report: The State of ALICE in Oklahoma
Oklahomans should expect higher electricity bills, state energy secretary explains: Rising demand for electricity by residential and industrial consumers has sparked a nearly unprecedented era of investment in utility infrastructure that will raise bills across the nation by 15%-40% in the next five years, according to some projections. [Tulsa World]
State Government News
Cleanup crew bills state $500k+ for Operation SAFE: Oklahoma spent more than half a million dollars to one company to clean up homeless camps during the state-led “Operation SAFE,” 2 News learned this based on records obtained by the Oklahoma Department of Transportation. What really drove up the cost: the state used a company based out of Oklahoma City to travel to Tulsa every day. [KJRH]
- Trash-cleanup side of Operation SAFE in Tulsa costs state $545,680 [Tulsa World]
- From OK Policy: The spectacle may have played well for some folks on social media, but ignored the human cost and the deeper failures driving Oklahoma’s rising homelessness crisis.
- Who is in the Oklahoma Freedom Caucus? Meet the members [The Oklahoman]
State lawmaker weighs in on Department of Mental Health: The Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (ODMHSAS) made cuts to many service provider contracts, stemming from its efforts to recover from millions of dollars in overspending. Rep. Mark Lawson, the Majority Leader and Chair of the committee overseeing the department’s finances, says that despite a change in leadership and a tight budget, the department must provide the services Oklahomans need. [KFOR]
State Sen. Boren studies fair energy tax policies to boost Oklahoma workforce growth: State Sen. Mary Boren, D-Norman, convened an interim study this week examining whether Oklahoma’s energy tax structure fairly supports all sectors of the industry while boosting workforce development. [KTUL]
Replacement for director of Oklahoma Health Care Authority appointed: Gov. Kevin Stitt on Friday appointed a member of the Oklahoma Medical Board to lead the state’s Health Care Authority. Clay Bullard will serve as the next director of the agency, which administers the state’s Medicaid program, also known as SoonerCare. [Oklahoma Voice]
- Oklahoma Health Care Authority gets new director [Tulsa World]
Despite shift in state policy, public water systems continuing to fluoridate: Tulsans and most other Oklahomans who rely on public water supplies continue to drink and use water that has been fluoridated, despite a shift in state policy ordered months ago by Gov. Kevin Stitt. [Tulsa World]
Invasive cedar removal is expensive. A new Oklahoma program covers some costs: Invasive cedar trees are a problem in Oklahoma, but there’s a new program to help get rid of them. Applications are open to the Oklahoma Conservation Commission’s Invasive Woody Species Cost Share program to manage the pesky plants. [KOSU]
Political notebook: Oklahoma’s child and maternal mortality rates among nation’s worst: Oklahoma’s maternal and child mortality rates are both eighth-highest in the nation, according to a report by the Commonwealth Fund. The state’s maternal death rate of 22.9 per 100,000 was on par with Thailand’s 22.8. [Tulsa World]
Federal Government News
Renewal of health subsidies backed by big majorities in poll, including Trump voters: The vast majority of Americans, including Republicans and those who identify as strong supporters of President Donald Trump, want Congress to renew the enhanced tax credits for people who buy their health insurance from the Affordable Care Act Marketplace, according to a poll released Friday. [Oklahoma Voice]
How the federal shutdown is playing out across the government: The first federal government shutdown in seven years has left hundreds of thousands of workers furloughed and members of the public struggling to understand what’s open, what’s closed and what might be delayed. [Oklahoma Voice]
- Economists say job losses likely, even as shutdown delays report [Oklahoma Voice]
- Government shutdown rolls into second week after US Senate deadlocks again [Oklahoma Voice]
- Oklahoma Senators Markwayne Mullin, and James Lankford disappointed in Shutdown [Oklahoma Farm Report]
- U.S. Sen. Mullin weighs in on 2nd week of government shutdown (video) [Fox News]
- D.C. Digest: Congressman Cole one of few Republican House members in Washington [Tulsa World]
GOP blames government shutdown on health care for undocumented people. That’s false: The White House and congressional Republicans say that Democratic lawmakers caused the federal government shutdown as part of an effort to extend health care benefits to undocumented immigrants. However, as several independent experts interviewed by NPR note, that claim is false. [NPR via KOSU]
Trump cancels blue-state projects, trolls Dems on social media as shutdown drags on: Trump administration officials on Friday defended the decision to cancel federal projects in regions of the country that have voted for Democrats, saying the move isn’t political but an effort to reduce the size and scope of government during the shutdown. [Oklahoma Voice]
Federal workers sue the Education Department over partisan shutdown emails: A federal workers union is suing the Trump administration for inserting language into Department of Education employees’ out-of-office email messages blaming Democrats for the government shutdown. [KGOU]
Opinion: ICE’s new ‘Speedway Slammer’ detention center gets America all wrong: Using state facilities to detain immigrants helps muddy the waters about who’s actually responsible. In Florida, where a facility called “Alligator Alcatraz” is ostensibly operated by a state department that doesn’t have a written agreement with the feds, detainees have been served maggot-infested food and had to clean out toilets with their bare hands. But it’s also happening because the government simply needs the space. ICE agents have been ordered to meet astronomically high arrest quotas. [Dara Lind / The Oklahoman]
Tribal Nations News
Tribal citizen appeals to 10th Circuit after 2 judges stop Indian civil rights cases in Oklahoma: After two federal judges ruled that Indians within tribal reservation boundaries in Oklahoma have fewer civil rights protections than non-Indians, a man who claims he was illegally detained by a Duncan police officer acting on behalf of the Chickasaw Nation has asked the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals to reverse the dismissal of his case. [NonDoc]
Muscogee Nation takes another step toward reclaiming Council Oak Park: The Muscogee Nation National Council voted 13-0 last week to approve a memorandum of understanding with the city of Tulsa to transfer ownership of Council Oak Park and Stickball Park to the Okmulgee-based tribe. [Tulsa World]
Voting and Election News
Pugh, McVay join crowded state superintendent race: Amid Ryan Walters’ resignation and Gov. Kevin Stitt’s shakeup of several appointed education positions, two more candidates joined the 2026 race for state superintendent of public instruction this week — one a Republican and the other a Democrat — setting up competitive primaries for both major parties. [NonDoc]
- Former El Reno schools leader enters state superintendent race as a Democrat [NonDoc]
Another Republican Enter Governor’s Race: The field of candidates vying to become Oklahoma’s Republican nominee for governor in 2026 continues to grow. Chip Keating, a former Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper who served as secretary of public safety from February 2019 to December 2020, announced his candidacy on Oct. 1. He’s the son of Frank Keating, who served two terms as governor from 1995 to 2003. [Oklahoma Watch]
- Opinion, Your Vote Counts: Oklahoma election season heats up with new candidates for governor and superintendent [News 9]
Oklahoma campaign finance site offline for weeks as state revamps system: The state’s website for campaign finance reports remains offline after a new launch of the site fell behind schedule. The website has been offline since Sept. 19. It was supposed to go back online Oct. 1. Lee Anne Bruce Boone, the executive director of the Oklahoma Ethics Commission, has not yet said when the campaign finance reporting system will be back online. [The Oklahoman]
Opinion: Our branches of government, political system no longer work as intended: The problems our nation faces are no longer being effectively addressed and resolved. Congress is unable to work in a cooperative manner to reach bipartisan solutions based on compromise and the common good. Because Congress is unable to solve our problems, presidents attempt to act in a manner never intended by the Constitution. [Jim McGoodwin / Tulsa World]
Education News
Lindel Fields spent decades in CareerTech. What that means for future of Oklahoma education: As a state education agency, CareerTech often is overlooked — the Oklahoma State Department of Education and the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education usually garner the lion’s share of attention. Its proponents are hopeful Stitt’s appointment of former CareerTech administrator Lindel Fields as the new state school superintendent will help shine a light on an alternative for students who don’t want to attend college but want to learn a trade or develop other marketable skills. [The Oklahoman]
- Oklahoma education leaders plan meetings to reshape public schools [KOCO]
- Capitol Insider: What’s next after a tumultuous week for Oklahoma education? [KGOU]
How did Oklahoma’s education ranking change over Ryan Walters’ tenure? A look at the data: Ryan Walters has stepped down from his role as Oklahoma’s top education official after almost three years of service. His time as state schools superintendent has been defined by “never-ending scandal and political drama,” as Attorney General Gentner Drummond said following Walters’ announcement. Since Walters entered the position, Oklahoma’s education ranking has not fared positively, though the state has never received particularly high marks. Here’s what to know about Oklahoma’s education ranking over the last few years. [The Oklahoman]
Walters-era textbook committee chair removed as new superintendent signals more staff shakeups to come: Oklahoma’s new state superintendent has begun his tenure with a tone shift and staff shakeups, including the removal of a Walters-era appointee from the state’s textbook committee. [KFOR]
- Called a ‘ghost employee’ by lawmaker, Walters adviser Matt Langston exits state ed agency [The Oklahoman]
OU confirms program reviews after reported potential closure of African, African American studies department: OU confirmed the Clara Luper Department of African and African American Studies and the Schusterman Center for Judaic and Israel Studies have been the subject of review. Senior Vice President and Provost André-Denis Wright confirmed the reviews in an email statement to the Daily Friday morning following inquiries about a report from The Black Wall Street Times that the university would be moving to close the African and African American Studies Department. [OU Daily]
Opinion, Rep. Ellen Pogemiller: Yes, there is outcry, but Oklahoma reading scores reflect deeper issues: Oklahoma families, educators and administrators, those in our schools are crying out, but legislators and the community have to listen to their first-person concerns and ideas. [Rep. Ellen Pogemiller / The Oklahoman]
Opinion: Mike Gundy got $15M to leave with a losing season. Think what that money could do for higher ed: Despite losing 11 of his last 12 games and proving last year he has no respect for Oklahoma State University’s average fan base, Mike Gundy is expected to walk away with a hefty $15 million payday thanks to a buyout provision in his contract that protects him when he gets fired. Obviously someone in high places is looking out for him, but who is looking out for the rest of us? Imagine how many scholarships $15 million could pay for. Or perhaps it could be used to reduce tuition rates for in-state residents. [Janelle Stecklein / Oklahoma Voice]
Health News
States are cutting Medicaid provider payments long before Trump cuts hit: Nationwide, states are scrambling to close budget shortfalls and are eyeing Medicaid, generally one of a state’s biggest costs — even before President Donald Trump’s hulking tax-and-spending law decreases federal spending on Medicaid by about $1 trillion over the next decade. [KFF via KOSU]
Doctors and nurses are punched, choked, even shot. States want to stop that: Health care workers make up just 10% of the American workforce but experience 48% of the nonfatal injuries from workplace violence, according to federal data. And the threat is increasing. The number of health care providers who reported harassment at work from patients, patients’ families and colleagues more than doubled between 2018 and 2022, according to the latest data available from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. [Oklahoma Voice]
Federal lawsuit to limit access to abortion pill moved from Texas to Missouri: A federal case challenging the safety of mifepristone, used to treat miscarriages and to induce abortions early in pregnancy, is being transferred out of Texas to a federal court in Missouri. [Oklahoma Voice]
Criminal Justice News
Elderly OKC man dies a year after being thrown to ground by police in viral video of traffic stop: An elderly man has died a year after an Oklahoma City police officer threw him headfirst on to the pavement of a parking lot during a traffic stop, his attorney confirmed. Lich Vu died Oct. 3 at age 72. His death was the result of injuries suffered during a police assault, attorney Devon M. Jacob said in a statement to the media. [The Oklahoman]
OKC police reform includes violence intervention. New committee is researching support: A new committee, assembled with community leaders and violence intervention experts, recently convened with hopes of helping prevent youth violence ― and to make living out their dreams a real possibility for more of the city’s at-risk youth. [The Oklahoman]
Why OKC-area police started Blue Envelope communication program for traffic stops: Could a simple blue envelope save a life? Possibly, if it keeps miscommunication from becoming confrontation during a police traffic stop. It could calm nerves, for sure. Law enforcement agencies in the OKC area, along with the Autism Foundation of Oklahoma, launched the Blue Envelope Program “to make interactions between police and residents safer and calmer for people who experience communication challenges,” said Edmond’s police chief. [The Oklahoman]
Running out of time, Oklahoma man’s family hopes for a chance at freedom: After serving more than four decades for first-degree murder, Tony Mann is applying for commutation. His younger brother, convicted for the same crime, is getting out of prison later this month. [The Frontier & KOSU]
Oklahoma appeals court clears way for new trial in Karl Fontenot case: Oklahoma is one step closer to retrying a man whose murder case was once thrown out for constitutional violations at trial. An appellate court’s new opinion, issued Thursday, said the admissibility of a 1984 confession will have to be determined during Karl Fontenot’s new trial, after both sides have presented their evidence. [KOSU]
America’s aging prison population is posing challenges for states: America’s prison population is growing older at a pace that some experts say is unsustainable. As of 2022, the latest year with available data, people 55 and over made up nearly 1 in 6 prisoners — a fourfold increase since 2000 — and their numbers are projected to keep rising. [Oklahoma Voice]
Opinion: When the law changes, justice must catch up: The Oklahoma Survivors’ Act passed in 2024 gives judges discretion to revisit sentences of people — mostly women — who acted in self-defense after enduring long-term abuse. Yet the very first petition under the act, filed by Tulsa woman April Rose Wilkens, was denied earlier this month. Wilkens has already served 27 years in prison for killing her abuser after years of stalking, assaults, and death threats. [Kathy Taylor / Tulsa World]
Housing & Economic Opportunity News
Opinion: Hunger is not normal. Housing must be part of the solution in Oklahoma: Hunger is not a natural disaster. It is a policy decision. In a state that prides itself on neighbors helping neighbors, leaving families to skip meals is a choice we do not have to make. If 1 in 7 cars on the road suddenly crashed, we would call it a national emergency. Hearings would be held, investigations launched and new laws passed to protect drivers. Yet when 1 in 7 Americans cannot afford to eat, we look away and call it normal. Allowing hunger to persist not only is abnormal, it is unacceptable. [Tiffany Tagbo / The Oklahoman]
Economy & Business News
OKC Halloween shop shuts down because of tariffs: Halloween is just weeks away. Decorations and costumes are already on store shelves and you may notice some spookier prices this year because of tariffs. But, one Halloween shop in Oklahoma City had to shut down because of rising costs and tariffs. [KFOR]
Explosive growth in Texas sprawling into Oklahoma: The Dallas area has grown by about 3 million people over the past two decades, and Texas real estate developer Ross Perot Jr. predicted it would continue to push outward for many decades more — 40 miles from downtown, then 50, until the metroplex bulges across the state line into Oklahoma, surpassing the population of the Chicago region. [Tulsa World]
Local Headlines
- Why Oklahoma City bond issue would address $140M in drainage projects [The Oklahoman]
- Vote on incentives for medical research facilities on OKC Council agenda [The Journal Record]
- Tulsa city administrator job changed to civil service position [Tulsa World]
- NYU-Tulsa hosts 11th annual Black Portraitures international conference in Tulsa [The Oklahoma Eagle]
Quote of the Day
“We did not qualify for benefits, but we clearly were just making ends meet. I know what it feels like to work hard, do the right thing and still feel like you’re drowning financially.”
-Amber Guipttons, reflecting on her upbringing as one of three daughters raised by a single mother who worked full time, tied her family’s struggles to the report’s message. As a member of the statewide research advisory committee, she said the recent ALICE report shows where communities must invest to create opportunities and support for residents. [Tulsa World]
Number of the Day
701,452
In Oklahoma, 701,452 households — 45% of households statewide — had income above the federal poverty level but not enough to afford the basics in the communities where they live. This group is known as ALICE — Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. [The State of ALICE in Oklahoma]
Policy Note
Understanding the Working Class and the Challenges It Faces: The working class — defined here as workers without a four-year college degree — comprises a majority of the U.S. labor force and is more racially and ethnically diverse than the college-educated cohort. Members of this group are overrepresented in the service sector and often held in jobs with lower wages, fewer benefits, and greater exposure to economic cycles. Their challenges are compounded by declining union density and limited upward mobility, making policy strategies focused on organizing, job quality, and worker power crucial. [Center for American Progress]
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