The cost of maintaining the world’s highest incarceration (Capitol Update)

Steve Lewis served as Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1989-1991. He currently practices law in Tulsa and represents clients at the Capitol. When it comes to mass incarceration, Oklahoma is No. 1 (in the world!) But what are the… Read more [More...]

The Weekly Wonk: State Question fact sheets; flawed justice savings; a resurgence of democracy; & more…

What’s up this week at Oklahoma Policy Institute? The Weekly Wonk shares our most recent publications and other resources to help you stay informed about Oklahoma. Numbers of the Day and Policy Notes are from our daily news briefing, In… Read more [More...]

The official SQ 780 savings calculation rests on flawed assumptions

Two years ago, Oklahoma voters passed State Questions 780 and 781, together known as the Smart Justice Reform Act. SQ 780 reclassified simple drug possession and many low-level property crimes as misdemeanors rather than felonies. SQ 781 directs the Office of… Read more [More...]

Oklahoma’s plan for Medicaid work requirements is a dangerous experiment that will put the health of thousands of Oklahomans at risk (Guest post: Philip Rocco)

Philip Rocco is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at Marquette University and co-author of Obamacare Wars: Federalism, State Politics, and the Affordable Care Act (University Press of Kansas, 2016). This post is excerpted from a public comment authored by… Read more [More...]

OKVotes: Your guide to the 2018 State Questions

Today Oklahoma Policy Institute published a series of fact sheets on each of the state questions on Oklahoma ballots this year. In addition to state and national races, voters will decide five state questions on November 6th: State Question 793… Read more [More...]

The Weekly Wonk: Future of medical marijuana; been down so long; budget committee chairs appointed

What’s up this week at Oklahoma Policy Institute? The Weekly Wonk shares our most recent publications and other resources to help you stay informed about Oklahoma. Numbers of the Day and Policy Notes are from our daily news briefing, In… Read more [More...]

The future of medical marijuana in Oklahoma

More than half a million Oklahomans voted in favor of State Question 788 legalizing medical marijuana, making Oklahoma the 30th state in the nation to legalize the drug in some form. SQ 788 directed the Department of Health to issue rules governing the implementation of the… Read more [More...]

Senate leader names budget committee chairs (Capitol Update)

Steve Lewis served as Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1989-1991. He currently practices law in Tulsa and represents clients at the Capitol. It’s one of those things that goes largely unnoticed but is as important as anything the legislative… Read more [More...]

The Weekly Wonk: State budget still recovering; 10 years for misdemeanor; back to school with Rob Miller…

What’s up this week at Oklahoma Policy Institute? The Weekly Wonk shares our most recent publications and other resources to help you stay informed about Oklahoma. Numbers of the Day and Policy Notes are from our daily news briefing, In… Read more [More...]

The state budget is growing but is not fully recovered

As Oklahoma heads into a new budget year and closes the books on FY 2018, two things are especially clear: Oklahoma’s fiscal situation is much improved, but we still have a long ways to go to recover from a decade… Read more [More...]