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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
Sean Burrage appointed chancellor of Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education: Sean Burrage has had an eclectic career as a lawyer, state senator and university president, and now he adds a new gig to the list: chancellor of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education. [NonDoc]
- Higher education officials name Oklahoma’s new chancellor [Oklahoma Voice]
- Former state senator named chancellor for Oklahoma State System of Higher Education [Tulsa World]
- Regents name former state senator, current OU executive Sean Burrage higher ed chancellor [The Oklahoman]
State Government News
Oklahoma AG: Election Day terrorist plot a ‘failure of the Biden Administration’: At a rural location in Oklahoma last month, terrorism suspect Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi was questioned about his experience with guns, the FBI said. He and his brother-in-law were arrested Monday after purchasing two AK-47 rifles and ammunition during a meeting with the undercover FBI employee and two confidential sources, the FBI said. [The Oklahoman]
Oklahoma sends assistance to North Carolina, Florida to help with hurricane recovery: Gov. Kevin Stitt and the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management announced Tuesday that aid would be heading to the affected areas from various agencies. Hurricane Milton is expected to make landfall in Florida late Wednesday or early Thursday. [Oklahoma Voice]
Oklahoma man asks judge to prevent Ryan Walters from spending public money on Bibles: The plaintiff in a Mayes County lawsuit over state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters’ Bible-teaching mandate is now asking a judge to declare plans to purchase the Bibles in violation of the state Constitution. [The Oklahoman]
- Trump-backed ‘God Bless the USA’ Bibles at center of Oklahoma controversy printed in China [The Oklahoman]
Lawmakers hear endorsements of Oklahoma Judicial Nominating Commission: State lawmakers heard overwhelmingly positive testimony about the Oklahoma Judicial Nominating Commission during an interim study on Wednesday. The commission has recently come under fire in political advertisements and has been the target of several reform bills. [Tulsa World]
Lawmakers examine high medical debt in Oklahoma: Medical debt in Oklahoma is among the highest in the U.S., and state House lawmakers continue to look at ways to reduce it at the legislative level. [Journal Record]
Federal Government News
U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments on Oklahoma capital conviction of Richard Glossip: Oklahoma’s attorney general says the conviction is marred by prosecutorial misconduct. [Oklahoma Voice]
- Oklahoma AG seeks new trial for death row inmate, but Supreme Court seems split [KOSU]
- U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments in Glossip death penalty case [Tulsa World]
- ‘Not a conviction that can stand’: Oklahoma asks Supreme Court for new trial for death row inmate [The Oklahoman]
- How an Oklahoma death penalty case reached the Supreme Court [PBS]
- Supreme Court to hear ‘remarkable’ Oklahoma death penalty appeal from Richard Glossip [ABC]
- Supreme Court weighs testimony from witness ‘exposed as a liar’ in Oklahoma death row case [MSN]
- Three Supreme Court Justices Wanted to Talk About Anything But Richard Glossip’s Life [Balls and Strikes]
Tribal Nations News
Otoe-Missouria Tribe to implement prevention programs targeting violence, terrorism: Indigenous people are more likely to be the victims of violent crime than people of other races in the U.S., according to FBI data. But a Department of Homeland Security grant is helping the Otoe-Missouria tribe lower those risks. [KGOU]
These Native tribes share a history. A conflict steeped in colonialism is tearing them apart: A complicated legal fight between the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and the Poarch Creek Indians could have ripple effects throughout Indian country. [The Guardian]
Chickasaw Nation, Nixon Foundation to host free policy event: The Chickasaw Nation and The Richard Nixon Foundation will co-host a policy conference in Oklahoma City, reflecting on President Nixon’s transformative federal policy of American Indian self-determination and foster a deeper understanding of how this policy continues to impact American Indian life and tribal sovereignty issues. [The Journal Record]
Opinion: Celebrate diversity of Indigenous culture on Monday in Tulsa: In recent years, there has been a growing trend throughout the U.S. to set aside the second Monday in October as Native American or Indigenous People’s Day. Throughout the years we as Tulsans and Oklahomans are becoming increasingly aware of the many ways in which the Tribal Nations and the Indigenous people contribute to the fabric and success of Tulsa and Oklahoma. [Jim Gray / Tulsa World]
- Greater Tulsa Area Indian Affairs Commission to Host 8th Annual Native American Day Festivities Oct. 14 at Dream Keepers Park [City of Tulsa]
Voting and Election News
A dark money explainer featuring Gov. Stitt, a $125,000 donation, and a Tulsa UPS store: Dark money entities are supposed to report their expenditures to state and federal election authorities and to the Internal Revenue Service, and sometimes those filings contain clues as to who is behind them. For example, 46 Action’s ethics commission report is signed by Kevin Broghamer, a Kentucky political consultant. According to the ethics commission’s Guardian system, Broghamer has been paid around $280,000 by Gov. Kevin Stitt, Stitt’s inauguration committee and former Attorney General John O’Connor, a Stitt appointee. [Tulsa World]
Do Oklahoma voters reflect state demographics? Study ranks OK as worst in representation: One study has found that Oklahoma has the worst representation on Election Day in the country, meaning its voters don’t reflect the state’s population demographics. [The Oklahoman]
Here are the state questions you’ll see on Oklahoma ballots: This November, two state questions are up for vote across Oklahoma. Both are constitutional amendments that have been proposed by state lawmakers. State Question 833 would allow for the creation of public infrastructure districts, while State Question 834 seeks to clarify that noncitizens cannot vote in Oklahoma elections. [KOSU]
- OK Policy Fact Sheets: SQ 833: Public Infrastructure Districts | SQ834: Citizenship Requirement for Voting Amendment
Education News
‘Lose-lose situation’: Sexual abuse settlement inflates Ninnekah property taxes, infuriates residents: Community members left Monday night’s Ninnekah Public Schools board meeting disappointed and irritated over a tax hike arising from the $7.5 million settlement of a lawsuit alleging district leaders failed to stop the decade-long behavior of former girls basketball coach and convicted sexual predator Ronald Gene Akins. [NonDoc]
Growing number of Oklahoma schools adopt digital hall passes for safety, student accountability: Oklahoma schools use technology apps to manage everything from attendance to grades to parent communications. And now, a growing number of districts are updating hall passes to the digital age. [KGOU]
Opinion: Start by trusting teachers at Tulsa Public Schools with their classrooms: Tulsa Public Schools can’t retain its teachers. The district lost 28% of its teachers from the 2022-23 school year, meaning nearly 1 in 3 teachers in the district were new last school year. There is no secret that TPS has a teacher shortage. But why does this continue to be such a problem? [Daniel Thater / Tulsa World]
Housing & Economic Opportunity News
Education program supporting military veteran farmers, ranchers in Oklahoma begins: The Veteran Farmer/Rancher Education Program will offer hands-on training, mentorship, education seminars, access to resources and make connections with farmers’ markets. [KOSU]
Economy & Business News
These 10 Oklahoma cities the most vibrant downtowns in the state, according to World Atlas: Oklahoma’s small cities and towns cover a large swath of the Sooner State, each characterized by their rich culture, diverse experiences and unique downtowns. WorldAtlas recently listed the most vibrant downtowns in Oklahoma. Here’s a look. [The Oklahoman]
Film rebate program drives growth in OKC’s production industry: Oklahoma’s burgeoning film industry is gaining national recognition with the commercial success of major projects like “Twisters” and “Killers of the Flower Moon.” [Journal Record]
It’s warmer and drier than usual in the Midwest this fall. Here’s what that means for producers: Many producers grappled with ongoing drought last summer into the spring throughout the central U.S., especially in Iowa and parts of Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Oklahoma. Those drought conditions eased earlier this summer before returning, according to the National Integrated Drought Information System. [KOSU]
- Oklahoma prepares for fire danger as dry, warm conditions persist [KGOU]
Local Headlines
- The northern lights could be visible in Oklahoma Thursday night [KGOU]
Quote of the Day
“By and large, we do end up hitting a wall when we try to find who the ultimate funders are behind most dark money groups… Sometimes there are several different layers of dark money groups that network and give to each other and funnel money between each other.”
-Anna Massoglia of OpenSecrets, one of the leading reporters on dark money in elections said, speaking to the Tulsa World as part of its series on the use of dark money in state political races. [Tulsa World]
Number of the Day
5.7%
Apartment rents in the Tulsa metro have risen 5.7% year over year and tops the list of cities with fastest rent change during that period. Meanwhile, Austin, Texas, saw the nation’s sharpest decline, with prices dropping 7.2% in the last 12 months. The Austin metro is significant for permitting new homes at the fastest pace of any large metro in the country, signaling the important role new supply plays in managing long-term affordability. [Apartment List]
Policy Note
How Americans Voted Their Way Into a Housing Crisis: Jerusalem Demsas has argued that lawmakers should address housing unaffordability by focusing on a severe shortage of homes. Her new book “On The Housing Crisis: Land, Development, Democracy” is a collection of reported essays that explores the role that democratic structures play in perpetuating a housing shortage. She makes the case that solutions to the housing crisis will have to come from states, not cities. [Bloomberg]
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