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Engineers have discovered significant cracking in the cast stone panels that form the exterior of Oklahoma’s Capitol dome, completed amid much fanfare just 12 years ago. The unexpected problem could boost the overall cost of the exterior repairs. Oklahoma added nearly 25,000 residents in the past year ending July 1 but grew slower than the national rate, according to a U.S. Census Bureau report. New state Rep. John Pfeiffer, R-Mulhall, has said he will fight a Senate bill that would consolidate rural school administrators.
The Cherokee Tribal Council unanimously voted to increase the tribe’s operating budget to expand staff at Cherokee Nation health centers. The U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals denied a petition from Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to reconsider its ruling that allowed construction of a casino in Broken Arrow. Researchers at the Harold Hamm Diabetes Center at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center are studying how effective financial incentives are in motivating young people to exercise regularly.
Devon Energy Corporation has donated $1 million to help the Oklahoma City Geological Society pay for a new headquarters. On the OK Policy, we shared 5 reasons NOT to donate to OK Policy this year. The Number of the Day is the per capita mental health and substance abuse treatment expenditures in Oklahoma in 2010. In today’s Policy Note, the New York Times shares data from industrialized countries that reveals a big safety net can actually promote a strong job market.
In The News
Oklahoma’s 12-year-old Capitol Dome is significantly cracked
Engineers have discovered significant cracking in the cast stone panels that form the exterior of Oklahoma’s Capitol dome, completed amid much fanfare just 12 years ago. “Cracks exist at a total of 172 units, or approximately 10 percent of all cast stone units on the dome. Most of the cracks occur at the base of the dome,” stated a report by Wiss, Janner, Elstner Associates, or WJE, a Chicago company that did a detailed examination of the building’s exterior as a prelude to repair work. A core was drilled through one of the panels, and a crack was found to run through the full thickness of the man-made rock.
Census: State population grows by nearly 25,000 in past year
Oklahoma added nearly 25,000 residents in the past year ending July 1 but grew slower than the national rate, according to a U.S. Census Bureau report. The state population increased from 3,853,118 in 2013 to 3,878,051 in 2014, according to Census Bureau estimates released Monday. The state’s 0.6 percent annual growth rate, which averages about 68 new residents per day, was slower than the 0.7 national population growth rate and even slower than that in Texas, which grew by 1.7 percent.
Read more from the Tulsa World.
New state Rep. Pfeiffer says he will fight rural school administrator consolidation
New state Rep. John Pfeiffer has said he will fight a Senate bill that would consolidate rural school administrators. Pfeiffer, R-Mulhall, said the measure recently filed in the Senate would hurt rural schools and could be devastating to rural communities across Oklahoma. “This sounds like another attempt at eventually consolidating rural schools, and I plan on working with rural members from both sides of the aisle to make sure this bill never sees the light of day in the House,” Pfeiffer said.
Read more from the Enid News & Eagle.
Cherokee increases budget to expand health center staff
At its Dec. 15 meeting, the Cherokee Tribal Council unanimously voted to increase the tribes operating budget increased to $622.9 million from $615.4 million. The extra funds came from FY 2014 carryover funds. The $7.5 million is to provide $2.1 million to operate the Ochelata Health Center and add new jobs, while $2.4 million will add employees at other CN health facilities. The CN health center in Bartlesville will move from its 5,000-square-foot space to a new 28,000-square-foot stand-alone facility in Ochelata. Approximately $2.7 million will be allocated to additional child care resources for CN citizens who meet income guidelines, and another $300,000 will go toward miscellaneous grants.
Read more from the Cherokee Phoenix.
Court denies AG Pruitt’s request to rehear Broken Arrow casino case
The U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals denied a petition Monday from Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to reconsider its ruling in a case stemming from a potential casino in Broken Arrow. Last month, a three-judge panel with the Denver-based court ruled unanimously to overturn a May 2012 decision by District Judge Gregory Frizzell that halted construction efforts on the Kialegee Tribal Town’s planned Red Clay Casino at 129th East Avenue and 111th Street, almost 90 minutes away from the tribe’s headquarters in Wetumka. Monday’s order denying the review notes that the request was sent to all active circuit judges currently serving on the 10th Circuit and none requested a vote on a potential rehearing.
Read more from the Tulsa World.
OU research studies incentives for lifestyle changes
Researchers at the Harold Hamm Diabetes Center at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center are studying whether incentives can lead to lifestyle changes. The research, funded by a grant from the National Institutes of Health, focuses on how to motivate young people to make lifestyle changes that can help them avoid health problems, including obesity and diabetes. It’s called the MOVE study, a research project that, as the name suggests, aims to motivate teens to get moving more. The study will evaluate how effective financial incentives are in motivating young people to exercise regularly.
Read more from the Journal Record.
Devon gives $1 million to OKC Geological Society
An Oklahoma City oil and natural gas producer has donated $1 million to help the Oklahoma City Geological Society pay for a new headquarters. The donation by Devon Energy Corp. kicks off the society’s $5 million campaign to fund the building and the society’s efforts to digitize its geological records. “It’s a major statement that shows the commitment of Devon to the geosciences profession and to the Oklahoma City Geological Society,” society CEO Mike Harris said. Renovations are almost complete at the 18,000-square-foot former Oklahoma Cotton Growers Association building. The new headquarters will be known as the OCGS-Devon Geoscience Center and the society is scheduled to move into the building next month.
Read more from the Journal Record.
Five reasons NOT to donate to OK Policy
Typically, when we reach out to ask you to contribute to Oklahoma Policy Institute, we list all the good reasons why you should support our work with a tax-deductible donation. But because we are a fair and nonpartisan organization, it’s become an end-of-year tradition for us to share a reminder that there are plenty of great reasons not to contribute to OK Policy as well. Here are five of them:
Read more from the OK Policy Blog.
Quote of the Day
“Big, aesthetically pleasing health care facilities are only as good as the equipment and staff inside. By increasing funding for staff and earmarking money for medical equipment, the Cherokee Nation is making it known the tribe is committed to the health of its citizens.”
-Cherokee Tribal Councilor Janelle Fullbright, speaking about the tribe’s move to increase its budget by nearly $10 million to add staff at Cherokee Nation health facilities (Source: http://bit.ly/1CBtOrE)
Number of the Day
$53.05
Per capita mental health and substance abuse treatment expenditures in Oklahoma in 2010. The national average was $120.56.
Source: Kaiser Family Foundation
See previous Numbers of the Day here.
Policy Note
A Big Safety Net and Strong Job Market Can Coexist. Just Ask Scandinavia.
It is a simple idea supported by both economic theory and most people’s intuition: If welfare benefits are generous and taxes high, fewer people will work. Why bother being industrious, after all, if you can get a check from the government for sitting around — and if your choice to work means that much of your income will end up in the tax collectors’ coffers? Here’s the rub, though: The idea may be backward. Some of the highest employment rates in the advanced world are in places with the highest taxes and most generous welfare systems, namely Scandinavian countries. The United States and many other nations with relatively low taxes and a smaller social safety net actually have substantially lower rates of employment.
Read more from the New York Times.
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