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In The Know is a daily synopsis of Oklahoma policy-related news and blogs. Inclusion of a story does not necessarily mean endorsement by the Oklahoma Policy Institute. You can sign up here to receive In The Know by e-mail or subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, or RSS. The podcast theme music is by Zébre.
The Oklahoma Board of Education voted to table a plan to develop new educational standards replace the Common Core standards. Some board members raised concerns that the process proposed by Superintendent Barresi was too complicated. Nearly half of the 1,128 Tulsa Public Schools third-graders who scored unsatisfactory on the state reading test in the spring have either qualified for exemptions or are being considered for probationary promotion to fourth grade. The Tulsa World praised Governor Fallin softening her position on making passing the third grade dependent on a high-stakes reading test.
Oklahoma schools are receiving a state aid increase of about $38 per student this year. Total state aid is still $172 million below what it was in 2008. Oklahoma’s Finance Secretary Preston Doerflinger wrote an op-ed in the Tulsa World on how off-the-top funding mandates have contributed to this year’s budget shortfall. OK Policy previously examined how these mandates caused the shortfall — along with growing tax refunds and oil and gas industry rebates. A new OK Policy report examines what’s behind the growing cost of the Quality Jobs program, one of the largest business subsidies in Oklahoma.
David Blatt’s Journal Record column discusses how term limits have affected legislative experience levels since they went into effect in 1992. We previously discussed on the OK Policy Blog how the data shows a more complicated story than the popular understanding of term limits.
The Oklahoma County district attorney’s office has initiated an investigation into possible Open Meeting Act violations by the new Oklahoma Workers’ Compensation Commission. One commissioner said the group has had up to five “informational meetings” attended by a quorum of commissioners but not posted as public meetings. The Tulsa World expressed disappointment that sweeping workers compensation reforms were being implemented with “an unpleasant odor of secrecy.” An independent expenditure group that paid for television advertisements opposing State Superintendent Janet Barresi in last month’s primary has not filed any required spending reports with the Oklahoma Ethics Commission. U.S. Rep. James Lankford and state Rep. T.W. Shannon spent more than $4 million combined in the Republican race to replace U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, while two dark money groups added about $1.5 million.
AmeriCorps volunteers are working with Tulsa’s Southern Hills United Methodist Church on a program to improve literacy for at-risk kids. An event Aug. 16-17 at the Oklahoma City State Fair Park will provide free dental, vision and limited medical care to Oklahomans. Based on previous events, it is expected hundreds of Oklahomans will wait hours in line for care, with many turned away. University of Tulsa researchers have won a grant from the EPA to study methods to improve indoor air quality and reduce asthma triggers in tribal schools.
The Number of the Day is average teacher base salary for a teacher with a bachelor’s degree and ten years of teaching experience in Oklahoma. In today’s Policy Note, E.J. Dionne explains why a recent ruling by a D.C. Circuit federal court to disallow ACA health insurance subsidies is a serious distortion of the law for ideological purposes.
In The News
State board, superintendent stall on process to create new standards
The pressure is on to develop new state academic standards, but the process has bogged down and frustrations are mounting amid efforts to be inclusive. State Board of Education members said Wednesday they need more time to gather information before approving the framework for developing new standards in math and English, prompting state schools Superintendent Janet Barresi to lose her cool. The board voted 5-1 to again delay adopting a formal plan to replace Common Core standards repealed last month by the Oklahoma Legislature.
Almost half of low-scoring TPS third-graders may be promoted
Nearly 48 percent of the 1,128 Tulsa Public Schools third-graders who scored unsatisfactory on the state reading test in the spring have either qualified for exemptions or are being considered for probationary promotion to fourth grade, officials said Wednesday. Meanwhile, only four students who attended an intensive summer reading program scored well enough on an alternative test to be promoted. TPS officials are still identifying the number of students who will be retained next year.
Read more from the Tulsa World.
Fallin softens position on third grade reading mandate
We welcome Gov. Mary Fallin’s softened position on the state’s third-grade reading mandate. Earlier this year, Fallin staunchly defended the law that required most public school third-grade students to pass a reading exam or be held back. She vetoed legislation that would leave the final decision on “probationary promotion” of individual students to a committee of local educators and the child’s parents for the next two years. The Legislature voted to override Fallin’s veto. Last week, speaking to the state PTA conference, Fallin said, “If we can get to a system where we are measuring a student throughout the progress of their education versus one test — one high-stakes test — we are better serving the children.”
Read more from the Tulsa World.
Oklahoma Schools Get Funding Boost
Oklahoma schools are receiving their allocation for the new fiscal year, and districts are receiving an increase of about $38 per student. The state Department of Education announced Wednesday it has released its allocations to school districts for the 2015 fiscal year. The initial allocation is $3,077 per student, compared to $3,039 last year. A budget agreement reached between Gov. Mary Fallin and the Oklahoma Legislature this year resulted in an $80 million increase in funding for common education. State education officials say the total state appropriation to the per-pupil funding formula this year was nearly $1.9 billion.
State budget at turning point
After Oklahoma’s booming economy helped send $11.7 billion in tax collections — the most annual collections ever — to the state treasury last year, state government promptly found itself with $188 million less for the state budget than the year before. Huh? It’s nutty, but true. Over several decades, policymakers have carved so much revenue off the top of the budget for mandatory expenses that money available for the annual budget actually dropped last year even as overall revenue and spending grew.
Read more from the Tulsa World.
See also: The mystery of the disappearing revenue from the OK Policy blog.
New issue brief examines one of the largest business subsidies in Oklahoma
According to a New York Times report, state and local governments provide over $80 billion each year to a variety of businesses through tax exemptions, tax credits, incentives, and other programs. That same report showed Oklahoma provides over $2 billion each year to businesses for economic development. Perhaps the most popular and well-known subsidy in Oklahoma is the Quality Jobs Program. A new OK Policy issue brief examines the background of this program, describes its key elements, and makes recommendations on how to best achieve its stated purpose of job growth while also maximizing the use of limited state revenues.
All about Gene
Oklahoma political observers are in near unanimous agreement that term limits have had profound effects on the Oklahoma Legislature. Yet the popular image of term limits replacing a legislature dominated by wizened (and perhaps corrupt) career politicians with one composed of political neophytes doesn’t quite hold true. In September 1990, Oklahoma voters approved State Question 632, limiting legislators to no more than 12 years of service in the House of Representatives and Senate combined. The new term limits took effect in 1992 and did not apply to time already served.
Read more from the Journal Record.
See also: Did term limits really change how long Oklahoma legislators serve? from the OK Policy blog.
Oklahoma County district attorney initiates Workers’ Compensation Commission investigation
The Oklahoma County district attorney’s office has initiated an investigation into possible Open Meeting Act violations by the new, three-member Oklahoma Workers’ Compensation Commission. District Attorney David Prater confirmed the investigation Wednesday — one day after Commissioner Denise Engle issued a news release questioning the way the commission has been conducting some of its business. Meanwhile, Commission Chairman Troy Wilson issued a statement late Wednesday saying he was rescinding the bid process for the agency’s electronic data interchange system and starting over because of questions that have been raised.
Workers comp commissioner says other meetings held in private
Workers compensation commissioners may have held up to five “informational meetings” attended by a quorum of commissioners but not posted as public meetings, a commissioner said Wednesday. Commissioner Denise Engle said she is gathering details about meetings the commission has held without posting agendas. Some of the meetings may have been purely social gatherings, but others involved issues related to the commission, she said. “Some of them were informational at the commission (offices). … I’m still collecting the details, but we are talking maybe four or five meetings,” she said.
Read more from the Tulsa World.
Fixing workers compensation in the open
While we remain committed to the goals of fundamentally changing the way Oklahoma handles workers compensation claims, the implementation of that process has been too secretive. For example: At the Dec. 17 meeting of the state’s new Workers Compensation Commission, the panel went into executive session to discuss what its agenda describes as personnel, staffing needs and related budget priorities. The agenda was light on the details, but that turned out to be the least of the problems. When the commission returned from its closed-door session, Commissioner Robert Gilliland made a motion to “approve the Oklahoma workers compensation system fiscal year 2015 budget request as amended in our earlier discussion.” That sound’s pretty clear to us. The actual decision — the amendment — took place earlier, during the executive session, away from the public’s eye.
Read more from the Tulsa World.
Information Scarce on ‘Dark Money’ Group in Superintendent Campaign
An independent expenditure group that paid for television advertisements opposing State Superintendent Janet Barresi in last month’s primary has not filed required spending reports with the Oklahoma Ethics Commission. The nonprofit Oklahomans for Public School Excellence, created in May, failed to file the paperwork before the June 24 election as required by state ethics rules. Groups that spend more than $5,000 in political advertising during a campaign must file pre-election reports, and violations can result in civil penalties of more than $50,000, said Lee Slater, director of the Oklahoma Ethics Commission.
Read more from Oklahoma Watch.
More than $5 million made way into Republican race to replace Oklahoma Sen. Tom Coburn
U.S. Rep. James Lankford and state Rep. T.W. Shannon spent more than $4 million combined in the Republican race to replace U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, while two dark money groups added about $1.5 million, according to campaign finance reports. Lankford, of Oklahoma City, got 57 percent of the vote in the June 24 Republican primary to fill the last two years of Coburn’s term, while Shannon got 34 percent in the seven-man field. Lankford reported that, through June, he had spent $2.7 million for the election cycle that began in late 2012.
Program targets at-risk kids to improve literacy, bridge summer gap with activities
Kira Calhoun bear-hugged several young students in a breakfast hall of Southern Hills United Methodist Church, bodily lifting some up despite a walking boot she wore. Controlled chaos encircled her and other AmeriCorps interns as dozens of children bent low under a limbo bar or goofed around with each other. Wednesday morning was the start of an emotional second-to-last day for AmeriCorps intern Calhoun and the 71 campers participating in Project Transformation, a federally funded faith-based summer program targeting elementary-age at-risk, inner-city children.
Read more from the Tulsa World.
Hundreds of Oklahomans to receive care at free medical event
Brian Graves is tired of hiding his teeth. He doesn’t smile, he refuses to be in photographs, and he has grown out a long mustache, all in an effort to hide his mouth. Several of Graves’ teeth are broken, a result of a dentist who performed several shoddy root canals, he said. Graves, a 48-year-old construction worker, is uninsured and would have to pay about $3,000 for the dental work he needs, plus dentures. “When you do carpentry work, you can’t afford full coverage of good insurance,” said Graves, who lives near the Texas-Oklahoma border. “It’s bad to say, but that’s just the way it is.”
EPA Awards TU Grant To Study Indoor Air Quality For Tribal Schools
The University of Tulsa will be working with the Environmental Protection Agency on seeking new ways to protect tribal communities. The EPA announced Wednesday it has awarded TU a $919,988 grant to study methods to improve indoor air quality and reduce asthma triggers in schools. “EPA is pleased to be working with University of Tulsa to help find new and innovative ways to improve air quality on tribal communities,” said Regional Administrator Ron Curry. “This effort gives us an opportunity to improve indoor air quality by increasing awareness of environmental health risks.”
Quote of the Day
“This is no way a solution — that’s the sad part. We will surely turn away hundreds of people on Sunday, and I hope that out there, somebody is working on a solution because this helps some folks, but it’s a drop in the bucket.”
– Tres Savage, president of Remote Area Medical Oklahoma, speaking about an upcoming event to provide free vision, dental and limited medical care to hundreds of Oklahomans over two days (Source: http://bit.ly/1x4hIAc)
Number of the Day
$36,300
Average teacher base salary for a teacher with a bachelor’s degree and ten years of teaching experience in Oklahoma.
Source: Center for American Progress
See previous Numbers of the Day here.
Policy Note
A conservative judiciary run amok
Retired Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens captured our ideal when he wrote of the judge as “an impartial guardian of the rule of law.” By effectively gutting the Affordable Care Act on Tuesday, two members of a three-judge panel on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals showed how far right-leaning jurists have strayed from such impartiality. We are confronted with a conservative judiciary that will use any argument it can muster to win ideological victories that elude their side in the elected branches of our government. Fortunately, the D.C. Circuit ruling is unlikely to stand.
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