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Emails obtained through an Open Records request by EnergyWire reveal that despite long-held suspicions that the state’s earthquake surge was linked to oil and gas activity, the Oklahoma Geological Survey stayed silent amid pressure from oil company executives. Meanwhile, only 8 out of about 100 earthquake insurance claims filed in the state last year were paid because insurance companies are excluding coverage for “man-made” earthquakes. The Journal Record shared an infographic showing how much Oklahoma’s major energy companies have cut their spending plans for 2015.
Oklahoma would become the first state to allow the execution of death row inmates using nitrogen gas under a bill overwhelmingly approved by the House. Oklahoma is considering legislation to make it easier for terminally ill patients to get access to experimental drugs and procedures. On the OK Policy Blog, we discussed how red states like Mississippi and Georgia have already gone way beyond Oklahoma in their reforms to reduce incarceration.
Three rural Oklahoma communities have received about $1 million in state grants for water system improvements that will save about 16.7 million gallons of water a year. Tulsa voters passed by a wide margin a state record-setting $415 million school bond package for Tulsa Public Schools. News9 reported on Oklahoma City Superintendent Robert Neu’s confrontation with the Legislature over school voucher and other legislation that he says will harm public schools.
Tulsa World columnist Ginnie Graham wrote that listening in on legislative debates uncovers too many false statements presented as facts. Journal Record Editor Ted Streuli wrote that what he got for his state and local taxes was a bargain even before Oklahoma’s scheduled income tax cuts. The Number of the Day is how many Oklahomans would see their health insurance premiums increase by an average of $208/month if the Supreme Court throws out subsidies provided under the Affordable Care Act. In today’s Policy Note, the New York Times examined how black college graduates continue to have a tougher time finding jobs than whites with the same education.
In The News
Emails reveal energy industry pressured Oklahoma geologists to stay silent on link between earthquakes and drilling
Despite long-held suspicions that the state’s earthquake surge was linked to oil and gas activity, the Oklahoma Geological Survey stayed silent amid pressure from oil company executives, EnergyWire reports. State Seismologist Austin Holland acknowledges “intense personal interest” from energy company executives, but told reporter Mike Soraghan it never affected his scientific findings. The EnergyWire piece relies heavily on emails obtained through the state Open Records Act, which highlight tensions with the oil industry, politicians and university donors, and reveal inconsistencies in OGS’s private discussions and public messaging.
Read more from StateImpact Oklahoma.
Insurance commissioner clarifies “man-made” earthquake policies
Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner John Doak on Tuesday issued a bulletin to insurance companies clarifying his department’s expectations for earthquake insurance coverage. The notice focused on exclusions regarding man-made damage, pre-existing damage and claims adjusters. About 100 earthquake insurance claims were filed in the state last year, but only eight were paid. “I am considering market conduct examinations to ascertain the facts surrounding the extraordinary denial rate of earthquake claims that the preliminary data seems to indicate,” Doak said in the bulletin.
How much have energy companies cut spending plans?
The sharp drop in crude prices in the last half of 2014 caused many energy companies to re-evaluate their plans for 2015. For the biggest energy companies in Oklahoma, that meant drastic cuts to their planned capital expenditures, or capex.
See the infographic from the Journal Record (subscription required).
Nitrogen gas executions approved by Oklahoma House
Oklahoma would become the first state to allow the execution of death row inmates using nitrogen gas under a bill overwhelmingly approved on Tuesday by the house of representatives. The house voted 85-10 for the bill by Oklahoma City Republican representative Mike Christian, who began studying alternative methods after a botched lethal injection in the spring that led the US supreme court to consider the constitutionality of Oklahoma’s current three-drug method. Under the bill, lethal injection would remain the state’s first method of execution, but nitrogen gas would be used if it were declared unconstitutional or if the drugs became unavailable.
Read more from the Associated Press.
Oklahoma Right to Try bill would expand access to experimental drugs
Oklahoma is considering legislation akin to laws passed by several other states meant to make it easier for terminally ill patients who may not qualify for a clinical trial to nevertheless get access to the same kinds of experimental drugs and procedures. Known as the “Right to Try Act,” the bill is pending on the floor of the Oklahoma House after getting a House committee’s unanimous approval. Terminally ill patients who have exhausted conventional treatment options often struggle to obtain potentially lifesaving experimental medications.
Read more from the Associated Press.
Where states are taking real action against mass incarceration
With the deadline recently passing for bills to make it out of their initial committees, we can take a look at which criminal justice reform proposals are still alive. While each of these proposals could help on the margins, they appear hugely inadequate next to the crisis situation in Oklahoma’s overcrowded, understaffed prisons. At this rate, Oklahoma is not likely to avoid a federal lawsuit or other intervention that forces us to spend tens of millions more taxpayer dollars on incarceration. Much more can be done, and we don’t have to look far to find it.
Read more from the OK Policy Blog.
Drought grants approved for 3 rural Oklahoma communities
Three rural Oklahoma communities have received about $1 million in grants for water system improvements that will save about 16.7 million gallons of water a year. The grants announced Tuesday by Gov. Mary Fallin and the Oklahoma Water Resources Board will come through the state’s Water for 2060 Drought program to promote the responsible use of water. The Water Resources Board’s financial Assistance Program has provided more than $3 billion for water projects since 1983.
Tulsa voters approve record-setting school bond package
Voters passed by a wide margin a state record-setting $415 million school bond package for Tulsa Public Schools on Tuesday. The TPS Citizens Bond Development Committee created the four-part package — which passed with more than 80 percent each — to complete a 20-year plan for facilities updates and to help the innercity school district continue to catch up to its suburban school neighbors in providing student access to technology.
Read more from the Tulsa World.
OKC Superintendent Neu takes on Legislature
Oklahoma City Superintendent Rob Neu recently said in an editorial, “The greatest threat to Oklahoma public education is the people elected to represent Oklahomans and Oklahoma’s children.” The superintendent was talking about the Legislature and what he called their body of work that includes budget cuts, poor funding, the possible elimination of AP history and most recently, the threat of vouchers.
Ginnie Graham: Listen in on your lawmakers; you might be surprised
It’s not fair to say, “Laws are like sausages — it’s better not to see them being made.” That’s a libel against pork. German leader Otto von Bismarck and poet John Godfrey Saxe have had this quote attributed to them. But the original author doesn’t matter. It’s time to ignore it anyway. Oklahoma has always had bills introduced from the fringe and lawmakers who throw out incendiary comments. Only now, those bills are making it to a full vote and those comments are treated as facts.
Read more from the Tulsa World.
What I got for my taxes
I’m a romantic guy, so after the roses arrived on Valentine’s Day I spent the next few hours doing our tax returns. We got a little bit back from the Internal Revenue Service, and found we owed a little more to the Oklahoma Tax Commission. Net difference: $7. We spent it in advance on a delightful Valentine dinner at Gages Steak House in Guthrie. All told, we contributed $5,621 to the state income tax coffers for 2014.
Read more from the Journal Record.
Quote of the Day
“The roads between our house and the school are paved and lit. When the snow hit last week, they were plowed, salted and sanded for me. When the snow melted, it disappeared down a drain someone put in for my use. It was pretty safe, because my security team – the Edmond Police Department and Oklahoma Department of Public Safety – keeps the poor drivers in check and the dangerous people behind bars. If I have a heart attack, someone will answer the phone and get an ambulance rolling to my address.”
-Journal Record Editor Ted Streuli, who said that what he got for his state and local taxes was a bargain even before Oklahoma’s scheduled income tax cuts (Source)
Number of the Day
83,478
Approximate number of Oklahomans who would see their health insurance premiums increase by an average of $208/month if the Supreme Court throws out subsidies provided under the Affordable Care Act.
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
See previous Numbers of the Day here.
Policy Note
For recent black college graduates, a tougher road to employment
William Zonicle did what all the job experts advise. He majored in a growing field like health care. He studied hard and took time to develop relationships with his professors. Most important, he obtained a great internship in the human resources department at Florida Hospital in Tampa the summer before his senior year. But more than seven months after receiving his diploma from Oakwood University, a historically black religious school in Huntsville, Ala., Mr. Zonicle is still without a job in his field.
Read more from the New York Times.
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