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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
2025 Census Data: Oklahoma remains entrenched among the nation’s top 10 poorest states: Data from the Census Bureau’s 2025 American Community Survey released Oct. 29 show that Oklahoma’s poverty rate was 14.4 percent, which means that nearly 1 in 7 state residents live in poverty. Oklahoma’s overall poverty rate in 2025 improved by half a percentage point compared to the previous year. For the second consecutive year, Oklahoma had the eighth highest poverty rate in the country. [OK Policy]
CareerTech gave me a chance. Will SQ 847 take it away?: SQ 847 would basically make it financially harder for our public schools and CareerTechs to keep delivering the programs I’m currently enrolled in. That worries me because the cost of running these programs keeps rising. Tools, equipment, supplies, and technology all cost money. And if our workforce needs to grow to meet demands, then so do our schools. If schools can’t keep up, students like me might have fewer opportunities. [Read the full commentary from Charlie Wright, a senior at Noble High School who is enrolled at Mid-America Technology Center]
Oklahoma News
SQ 847 would reduce cap on taxable property values: When voters cast ballots Tuesday, they will decide whether the state should set new limits on how quickly taxable property values can rise in the future. State Question 847 would not cut property taxes directly, but it would slow the rate at which a property’s assessed value can grow each year for tax purposes. Those valuations form the basis for how property taxes are calculated. [Lawton Constitution]
- From OK Policy: SQ 847 Fact Sheet | SQ 847 Explainer Video | What’s on the ballot for the November 3, 2026 elections in Oklahoma?
State Government News
Marion Fry to succeed Gary Lumpkin on Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals: Gov. Kevin Stitt announced he is appointing Marion Fry, 51, to the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals on Thursday. Current Judge Gary Lumpkin is set to retire Jan. 1, and Fry will have a few months coinciding with the holidays while he waits to take office. [NonDoc]
Opinion, This Week in Oklahoma: DOJ monitoring elections, Oklahoma’s gubernatorial race, other elections and more (podcast): Panelists talk about an announcement by the Department of Justice sending agents to monitor Oklahoma elections, the race for governor and other statewide offices. The trio also discusses State House and Senate races, other election news and voter turnout. [KOSU]
Federal Government News
DHS targeting naturalized Americans in voter investigations, civil rights groups say: The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is unlawfully scrutinizing naturalized U.S. citizens and placing them at risk of disenfranchisement, civil rights groups alleged in a lawsuit Wednesday, less than a week before Election Day. [Oklahoma Voice]
Tribal Nations News
Cherokee Nation Tribal Council committee opposes Inola smelter: The Cherokee Nation Rules Committee unanimously approved a resolution formally opposing the controversial aluminum smelter planned for Inola on Thursday. [KOSU]
Voting and Election News
Winner of Oklahoma’s U.S. Senate race could take office next month, AG decides: The winner of the U.S. Senate race can take office once the Nov. 3 election results are certified, according to an Oklahoma Attorney General’s opinion released Thursday. [Oklahoma Voice]
- AG Opinion: Nov. 3 winner of Oklahoma’s open Senate seat serves right after results are certified [KOSU]
- Oklahoma U.S. Senate winner can take office immediately, AG says [The Oklahoman]
- AG says U.S. Senate race winner can take office immediately [Tulsa World]
Some Oklahoma voters with felony convictions face new rules for the midterms: At least eight states, including Oklahoma, advanced or enacted legislation addressing voting rights for people with felony convictions. [Oklahoma Voice]
Oklahoma lawmakers seek volunteers to observe federal poll monitors: Oklahoma County leaders and state lawmakers are seeking volunteers to monitor polling sites on election day. They hope to keep an eye on U.S. Department of Justice poll monitors, which many see as a potential source of voter intimidation. [KOSU]
Are absentee ballots mailed to the deceased a frequent form of voting fraud?: No. Multiple sources find that ballots mailed to deceased registrants and fraudulently counted as votes are extremely rare — measured rates are near zero. [Oklahoma Watch]
Election Roundup
- Oklahoma midterm elections 2026: State questions 845 and 847 explained [The Oklahoman]
- Where Oklahoma’s governor candidates stand on higher education [OU Daily]
- ‘We need someone with experience’: Republican superintendent candidate Robert Franklin talks change [StateImpact Oklahoma via KOSU]
- State superintendent race: Jennettie Marshall, Robert Franklin face intra-party backlash [NonDoc]
- 9 Oklahoma judges face retention votes in the Nov. 3 election. Who are they? [The Oklahoman]
- Pittsburg County sheriff debate: Bobby Cox, Frankie McClendon disagree on asset forfeiture, Flock cameras [NonDoc]
- Paul Woodward faces challenge from Eric Edwards in NWOK district judge race [NonDoc]
- Voters decide on sales tax for new jail, those for and against speak out [KFOR]
- Oklahoma election guide: Key midterm races, state questions for Nov. 3 [The Oklahoman]
- Oklahoma early voting turnout jumps from last midterm, with biggest increases among Democrats and independents [KFOR]
- Oklahoma early voting, mail-in data shows strong turnout so far [The Oklahoman]
- The turnout battle is on as Democrats, Republicans fire up Oklahoma voters [Tulsa World]
- Feds charge Broken Arrow woman with voting illegally [Tulsa World]
Opinion: The real threat to elections? Staying home.: There are no guarantees the world’s longest continuous democracy will continue to be the world’s longest continuous democracy. It takes all of us, exercising our civic duty by paying attention and holding power to account at the ballot box, to keep this experiment in self-governance going. [Arnold Hamilton / The Journal Record]
Opinion: Oklahoma voters deserve confidence ballots will be counted: As we look forward to another election season, it’s important for voters to know how important their vote is and the impact that it holds. Voters deserve to know that their voices matter; their rights are protected, and most importantly, their votes will be counted. [Tamya Cox-Touré / The Oklahoman]
Editorial: The Oklahoman responds to straight-party ad, urges individual choice: We would never urge voters to abandon their own wisdom and judgement to vote blindly for candidates because of their political affiliation ― Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, whatever. Nor would we urge our readers to vote for candidates just because they have no political party ties. [The Oklahoman Editorial Board]
Education News
Police say Tecumseh withheld details in coach investigation: Tecumseh Public Schools officials investigating allegations of inappropriate behavior by a football coach withheld details from local police, preventing a law enforcement investigation from moving forward, The Oklahoman has learned. [The Oklahoman]
Tulsa Public Schools adds campus to consolidation list, with Zarrow moving to Hoover: Changes at Tulsa Public Schools aren’t done yet. Henry Zarrow International School will move into Hoover Elementary next fall as part of an effort to bring more than 1,200 students into TPS. [Tulsa Flyer]
- TPS board approves Zarrow move [Public Radio Tulsa]
- TPS board votes to relocate Zarrow International School to elementary school site slated for closure [Tulsa World]
Former state education board secretary sues over firing by Ryan Walters’ team: The former secretary of the Oklahoma State Board of Education is suing the state Department of Education in federal court, claiming she was wrongfully fired when Ryan Walters led the board and agency. [The Oklahoman]
Opinion: Oklahoma educators push for creativity over standardized testing: I just returned from the Oklahoma Academy’s Town Hall, “Challenges to Change: Shaping Tomorrow’s Classrooms.” Participants were challenged to ask, “What if what we considered impossible is possible?” But, getting there requires plans for dealing with Oklahoma schools’ multiple crises, and I loved hearing how school superintendents, CareerTech leaders and other educators, legislators, state and local administrators, privately funded and nonprofit organizations, and students are coping with today’s challenges. [John Thompson / The Oklahoman]
Health News
Oklahoma Medicaid agency to host public hearing on rules implementing ‘One Big Beautiful Bill Act’: The Oklahoma Health Care Authority will hold a public hearing at 1 p.m. Monday, Nov. 2, to discuss proposed permanent rules on Medicaid work requirements, coverage of gender-affirming care and increased eligibility redeterminations. [KOSU]
Health insurance costs rising leaving families with tough choice: Open enrollment has begun for most, but numbers show less and less Oklahomans, and the country as a whole, are applying for health insurance. Rising premium costs is a major component. Companies are being hit with rising costs, who then pass it down to their employees, leaving more and more people with a tough choice to make. [KFOR]
‘They really were hoping that it was going to work’: Inside The Frontier’s California rehab investigation: In a new investigation, The Frontier’s Kayla Branch tells the story of Oklahomans who traveled hundreds of miles for addiction treatment, only to find themselves caught up in a complicated system involving treatment centers, insurance companies and hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills. [The Frontier]
Opinion: Oklahomans can’t afford to lose more pharmacies: No patient should neglect their health because their prescription costs too much or there isn’t a pharmacy nearby. Big Pharma deserves a lot of the blame for this, charging prices that put essential medications out of many patients’ reach. Oklahoma lawmakers are already aware of the issue, and many are trying to create legislative solutions. My one caution is to focus on prices first instead of accidentally causing the interruptions of care that patients face in Arkansas and Tennessee. [Eddie Huff / The Journal Record]
Justice System News
Oklahoma’s Two-Track DUI System Can Take Your License Even When Prosecutors Drop the Charges: In Oklahoma, being booked for a DUI can potentially open two cases, criminal and administrative. Declining to take a blood alcohol test results in administrative consequences under the implied consent law, which gives the state permission to test for alcohol concentration and other intoxicating substances upon arrest for any acts occurring on the road. [Oklahoma Watch]
Housing & Economic Opportunity News
820 people rehoused: Safe Move Tulsa eyes final stretch toward taking 1,300 people off the streets: Nearly a year since launching, Safe Move Tulsa has rehoused 820 people — a number that includes 170 since September. But it’s still short of its goal to provide housing to 1,300 people by the end of 2026. [The Oklahoma Eagle]
- As year one of Safe Move Tulsa initiative ends, city provides update on efforts to address homelessness [Tulsa World]
Economy & Business News
State Farm warned internally about cutting payouts, unsealed doc shows: An internal State Farm executive summary warned corporate leadership that the insurer’s handling of wind and hail claims created the impression that it’s “intentionally reducing” payouts and “celebrating greater numbers” of claims closed without payment, according to a document made public this week in Oklahoma County. [The Oklahoman]
- Attorneys say new State Farm document reveals more about alleged scheme to reduce claim payouts [KFOR]
Oklahoma City council approves first hyperscale data center. That doesn’t mean there will be more: Oklahoma City approved its first hyperscale data center this week. But city leaders said it doesn’t mean they’ll approve future projects. [KOSU]
- OKC data center approval leaves neighbors wary [The Journal Record]
Proposed data center zoning, land use regulations for Tulsa outlined in report:Proposed amendments to the city’s zoning code would limit where hyperscale data centers could be built by right to just two zoning districts, require larger setbacks from the perimeter of the property and strengthen landscaping regulations, according to a Tulsa Planning Office draft report made public this week. [Tulsa World]
Opinion: Oklahoma’s new data center water law has gap cities must fill: On Sunday, Nov. 1, Oklahoma’s Groundwater Modernization Act takes effect. Under Senate Bill 259, a data center can no longer get a state permit to pump groundwater for old-style evaporative cooling. To get a well permit, it has to use a closed loop, immersion cooling or something similar that doesn’t burn through water. That’s a good law. It also has a gap you could drive a water truck through. [Randy Warren / The Oklahoman]
Opinion: As Oklahoma farmers, we urge voters to consider next generation: In a state as geographically and economically diverse as Oklahoma, we may not always agree on everything, but we can agree that strong communities, thriving businesses and opportunities for the next generation are worth working toward together. Our farms and ranches, energy resources, small businesses and growing cities are connected in ways we may not always recognize, and what happens in one corner of the state can affect families hundreds of miles away. [Bobby Moore and Jay Weeks / The Oklahoman]
Local Headlines
- Oklahoma County finally approves budget, 5 months into the fiscal year [The Oklahoman]
- Council members clash at Norman City Council meeting [OU Daily]
Quote of the Day
“State policy choices in recent years have not meaningfully moved the needle for the Oklahomans who need it most. Lawmakers have instead prioritized efforts to dramatically limit local revenues, sent hundreds of thousands of dollars to wealthy families whose children attend private school, significantly limited constituents’ ability to pass ballot measures, and attempted to roll back life-saving Medicaid coverage for more than 200,000 people. The way forward to a better Oklahoma is clear. What our lawmakers will choose to do remains to be seen.”
-Oklahoma Policy Institute, writing in an analysis of recently released Census data showing Oklahoma remains entrenched among the nation’s poorest states. [OK Policy]
Number of the Day
18.1%
The latest Census data show that poverty is concentrated among children, with 18.1 percent, or nearly 1 in 5 Oklahoma children living at or below the federal poverty level. For a family of three, this means the child lived in a household that earned $26,650 or less in 2025. [U.S. Census via OK Policy]
Policy Note
Rural Poverty and Well-Being: The Geography of Poverty: In the United States, people living in poverty tend to be clustered in certain regions, counties, and neighborhoods rather than being spread evenly across the nation. Research has shown that the poor living in areas where poverty is prevalent face impediments beyond those of their individual circumstances. Concentrated poverty contributes to poor housing and health conditions, higher crime and school dropout rates, and employment dislocations. As a result, economic conditions in very poor areas can create limited opportunities for poor residents that become self-perpetuating. While the overall rate of poverty is higher in nonmetro counties than in metro, the difference between nonmetro/metro poverty rates varies significantly across Census regions. The nonmetro/metro poverty rate gap for the South has historically been the largest. [USDA]
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