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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
Interim studies examine Oklahoma services to families, children, youth (Capitol Update): The House Appropriations and Budget Subcommittee on Human Services held a series of interim studies last week ranging widely on Oklahoma’s services to families, children, and youth. The studies began by looking at Family Resource Centers (FRCs) which aim to strengthen families and prevent child abuse and neglect by providing services like parent skill training, job assistance, substance abuse prevention and other community support. [Steve Lewis / Capitol Update]
State Government News
Judge rules lawsuit over Ryan Walters’ alleged violations of Open Meeting Act can continue: A lawsuit filed more than two years ago by a private school against the Oklahoma State Board of Education and then-state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters can continue, although an Oklahoma County judge has dismissed a part of the case as moot. [The Oklahoman]
Parole Board Seeks Binding Opinion on Medical Parole Statute: As the number of successful medical parole applications stagnates, the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board voted unanimously earlier this month to request a legal opinion on who has the authority to refer a prisoner to the medical parole docket. [Oklahoma Watch]
211 hotlines call on Oklahoma lawmakers for state funding: It’s been nearly a decade since Oklahoma has provided funding to the state’s 211 resource hotlines that connect hundreds of thousands of Oklahomans each year with critical services like housing and mental health support. [The Frontier]
Interim study focuses on license plate readers, privacy concerns: An Oklahoma House Republican led an interim study on automatic license plate readers last week. The representative and study presenters raised concerns about the potential of mass surveillance. [KGOU]
Federal Government News
Shutdown leaves gaps in states’ health data, possibly endangering lives: As the federal shutdown continues, states have been forced to fall back on their own resources to spot disease outbreaks — just as respiratory illness season begins. [Oklahoma Voice]
Can pot smokers and other drug users legally own guns? Supreme Court to decide: The Supreme Court on Oct. 20 agreed to decide this question, accepting the Justice Department’s appeal of a lower court’s ruling that past drug use alone can’t keep a person from having a gun under the Second Amendment. [USA Today via The Oklahoman]
FCC Drew the Map: Media Redlining Still Shapes Who Controls the Airwaves: To many, the FCC is just another government agency with a confusing name. But the Commission, created in 1934, is behind regulating communication infrastructure that powers U.S. television, radio, and broadband—and its decisions continue to shape who controls America’s media. [The Black Wall Street Times]
Stitt seeks to intervene in federal poultry pollution lawsuit: Just as a judge was expected to rule in a 20-year-old federal lawsuit over pollution in the Illinois River watershed, Gov. Kevin Stitt has decided to join the fray. [Tulsa World]
Protections for the lesser prairie chicken have ended. What does that mean for Oklahoma’s population?: For years, the lesser prairie chicken’s habitat has been shrinking largely because of land development, spurring a decline of the species’ population. After President Trump took office in January, U.S. Fish and Wildlife reevaluated its Endangered Species Act (ESA) rules. On Aug. 12, a federal judge in Texas ruled that Fish and Wildlife made a mistake when determining the ESA status of the species. [KOSU]
Tribal Nations News
Caddo, Texas leaders reach agreement to protect tribal nation’s ancestral sites: The Caddo Nation signed an agreement with the Texas Historical Commission last month, ensuring the tribal nation has a seat at the table when making decisions about its historic sites. [KOSU]
Trail of Tears Virtual Challenge returns with fitness app route: The Sixth Annual Trail of Tears Virtual Journey starts Nov. 1 and concludes on Jan. 31, 2026. This year’s virtual route will take participants from Nanih Waiya Mound in Mississippi to Nanih Waiya in Oklahoma through cities such as Memphis, Little Rock and Fort Smith. Participants complete the journey via an app. [The Journal Record]
Education News
Oklahoma’s new superintendent clarifies end of controversial education policies: In emails to Oklahoma teachers and parents on Monday, Oklahoma’s new Superintendent of Public Instruction provided details on the end of two controversial Ryan Walters policies. [KOSU]
Opinion, former State Representative: New Oklahoma education advisory panel must not become another political stage: If Stitt’s committee is truly about improving education, it must prove it by focusing on the basics: teacher support, student achievement, curriculum stability and preparing kids for the future. [Mark McBride / The Oklahoman]
Health News
Tulsa health experts address confusion as new COVID-19 variant, guidelines emerge: COVID-19 cases are on the rise, nationally and in Tulsa County. The data is bringing new questions, mainly two of them: “Should I get vaccinated?” and “What do I do if I get COVID?” [Tulsa Flyer]
Does Reworld, which seeks to burn untreated medical waste at their Tulsa plant, have a history of legal issues in other states?: Yes. Reworld, which applied for a permit modification in order to burn untreated regulated medical waste at their Tulsa plant in March 2025, was found to be in violation of state environmental laws in New York, Pennsylvania, and Oregon, and faced civil penalties and lawsuits in other states including California and Indiana. [Oklahoma Watch]
Oklahoma teen driver safety course to include impacts of impaired driving: Tom Robins, the founder of Work Zone Safe, said impaired driving is 100% preventable and now students will learn about the impacts. More than 400 lives in Oklahoma are lost every year due to impaired driving-related crashes, according to a news release. [Oklahoma Voice]
Criminal Justice News
City to pay $15 million to two men wrongly incarcerated for murder: Malcolm Scott and De’Marchoe Carpenter both filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the city of Tulsa in July 2017, just over a year after a judge declared them both actually innocent and ordered their release from prison where they each had served 20 years on life prison sentences. [Tulsa World]
Housing & Economic Opportunity News
Tulsa to purchase, convert former juvenile detention center into homeless shelter: The City of Tulsa announced Monday that it’s reached an agreement with the county to buy and convert the former Tulsa County Juvenile Detention Center into a low-barrier shelter. It’ll cost the city $500,000, along with ongoing costs for security and site management. [The Oklahoma Eagle via Tulsa Flyer]
OKC housing inventory growing as homes stay on the market longer: Preliminary September data show the Oklahoma City residential market is experiencing a supply build-up that is driving new listings down. This indicates a continuing shift toward a buyer’s market. [The Journal Record]
Community News
East Tulsans want cleaner neighborhoods and safer streets. They’re uniting to make it happen: Christy Hartung often sees trash around eastside bus stops and roads, but doesn’t always know who to call for particular issues she sees in her neighborhood. Hartung is one of 22 residents participating in The Neighborhood Network, an eight-week program focused on helping community members understand how to be civically engaged. Each participant must either live or work in east Tulsa to take the course. [Tulsa Flyer]
Countdown to the Olympics: organizers celebrate partnership between LA and OKC: With less than 1,000 days until the 2028 Summer Olympics, event organizers from Los Angeles met in Oklahoma City to recognize the collaboration between the two cities to put on the games. [KGOU]
- LA28 Olympics organizers speak on how OKC will become an Olympic city [The Oklahoman]
- Mayor Holt says LA28 Olympics ‘once in a lifetime opportunity’ for OKC [The Oklahoman]
Opinion: OKC ‘No Kings’ protesters drowned out by construction noise. Was it by design?: Even when residents take to the streets, showing up and speaking out, the machinery of government (or the infrastructure it permits) can still drown them out. From a conservative standpoint, this raises several red flags. [Brandon Holmes / The Oklahoman]
Local Headlines
- ‘So complicated’: Uncommon Ground art park secures more public funding as Edmond questions remain [NonDoc]
- Redevelopment plan at The Hill in OKC’s Deep Deuce back on after yearslong delay [The Oklahoman]
- Nichols to hold third Community Conversation on Tuesday night [Tulsa World]
- Tulsa Botanic Garden unveils gift from Mexican sister city [Public Radio Tulsa]
- American Theatre Company scales back amid ‘crisis point’ in arts funding [Tulsa World]
Quote of the Day
“If this committee is truly about improving education, it must prove it by focusing on the basics: teacher support, student achievement, curriculum stability and preparing Oklahoma’s kids for the future.”
— Former State Representative Mark McBride, writing in an op-ed urging Gov. Kevin Stitt’s newly formed education advisory committee to avoid partisanship and focus on practical improvements. [The Oklahoman]
Number of the Day
-$717
The reduction in per-pupil spending in the Oklahoma State Department of Education’s budget in FY 2026 compared to 2008, when adjusted for inflation and population growth. [OK Policy]
Policy Note
U.S. investment in public education is at risk: Public K-12 education in the U.S. is under serious threat: rising voucher programs, state budget austerity, and federal pressures are undermining resources at a time when research strongly supports higher spending per pupil — especially in high-poverty districts — for reducing achievement gaps. States governed by Republican trifectas are spending significantly less per student, particularly in low-income neighborhoods, widening funding shortfalls and threatening school adequacy. While additional federal aid temporarily boosted school resources during the pandemic, that relief is set to fade—making it urgent for policymakers to return to sustained investments in public education rather than letting funding drift downward. [Economic Policy Institute]
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