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Today In The News
DHS cuts clothing vouchers for foster children: The Oklahoma Department of Human Services blames a $45 million budget cut for getting rid of its clothing voucher program, except for a handful of exceptions. Foster parent Kia Shiever said the money had been a big help because her two foster children came with very little clothing and pretty much nothing they could wear during the summer [News9].
How the mentally ill “boomerang” in and out of Oklahoma jails: For years it has been a truism that Oklahoma’s prisons have become de facto mental institutions, with about a third of inmates showing current signs of mental illness. Less often mentioned are the mentally ill in jails – places that have fewer resources to treat people with mental disorders. Jails also serve as regular, off-and-on destinations for many offenders each year who repeatedly commit non-violent crimes such as trespassing, theft and public intoxication [Oklahoma Watch].
Interim study will explore creation of state bank: State Rep. John Montgomery requested on a state bank that could potentially loan money to students to attend college or help finance projects for schools or municipalities. One other state — North Dakota — has a state bank that could be used as a model [Claremore Daily Progress].
Oil industry defends wastewater injection wells connected to earthquakes: A moratorium on wastewater injection wells could create economic and environmental problems throughout the state, representatives from the oil and natural gas industry said Wednesday. Energy In Depth, a project of the Independent Petroleum Association of America, released a report arguing that “banning wastewater injections is not an effective solution for Oklahoma’s earthquakes.” Rep. Cory Williams said Oklahoma’s current efforts to regulate injection wells have not gone far enough, since we are still experiencing more and larger earthquakes [NewsOK].
Eight Oklahoma wind power projects under construction: Developers in Oklahoma and other windy states are ramping up construction on wind farms in the wake of a last-minute renewal of a key federal tax credit for a few weeks before the end of 2014. The American Wind Energy Association said 13,600 megawatts of capacity was under construction across 101 projects in 24 states. Oklahoma is expected to add another 1,440 megawatts from eight projects under construction [NewsOK].
Oklahoma political controversies give reason for shame and hope: Early in the week a post on the Oklahoma Republican Party’s Facebook page equated food stamp recipients to animals in national parks receiving food handouts. Two days later, President Barack Obama arrived in Oklahoma to visit Durant and Oklahoma City and was met by individuals waving the Confederate flag. Yet these troubling outbursts went far from unchallenged [The Journal Record].
Please don’t feed the stereotypes: Contrary to callous stereotypes about SNAP, the program is among the most effective ways that our nation helps hard-working families to stay afloat and ensures that children have enough to eat [OK Policy Blog].
Senator Inhofe bill seeks to prevent increase in school lunch prices: Regulations that followed the 2010 Healthy, Hunger Free Kids Act required parity between the cost paid by the federal government to cover free lunches for low-income students and the price charged to kids who don’t qualify for free lunches. That price, minus subsidies, is $2.70 per meal. Some school districts don’t need to charge that much to keep their food programs solvent and would rather keep prices down [NewsOK].
State Sen. Rick Brinkley wants civil suit put on hold, asks to file reasons in secret: The Better Business Bureau of Tulsa filed a civil suit against Brinkley, R-Owasso, on June 5 alleging that as an executive with the organization he embezzled more than $1 million over 15 years. In court filings, Brinkley said his request to put the civil proceedings on hold is “based on information that is non-public, the disclosure of which is subject to potential legal restrictions” [Tulsa World].
Quote of the Day
“The mental health systems were told those (mental health) dollars will now be given to you to do community-based services. But the dollars never made it.”
-Terri White, commissioner of the state Mental Health Department, speaking about why the closure of many state mental hospitals in the 1980s and 1990s has led to many of the mentally ill ending up in jail or prison (Source).
Number of the Day
8,900
Number of jobs Oklahoma has lost since December 2014, more than any state except West Virginia.
Source: Governing
See previous Numbers of the Day here.
Policy Note
The thinking behind President Obama’s Promise Zone initiative: Pouring federal aid into poor communities hasn’t accomplished much in the past. But the Obama administration insists its Promise Zones program will be different. Whereas past interventions sought primarily to spur economic activity, Promise Zones try to tackle a larger spectrum of social and health needs [Governing].
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