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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 The Know. Click here to subscribe to In The Know.
This Week from OK Policy
Fact Sheets: State Questions on the 2024 General Election: To help Oklahomans better understand the state questions that will be on the Nov. 5 general election ballot, OK Policy staff have developed non-partisan fact sheets that explain the purpose of the questions, background information, arguments made by both supporters and opponents, and resources for more information. These pages include downloadable PDFs, and the pages will be updated as new resources become available through the election.
Zoning and Affordable Housing Presentation – Oklahoma House Interim Study (video): OK Policy’s Research Director Anthony Flores and Senior Policy Analyst Sabine Brown shared how zoning reform is a key step to increasing housing in Oklahoma, especially as the need for more affordable housing continues to grow. Their comments were presented during an Oct. 2, 2024, interim study in the Oklahoma House of Representatives about zoning issues in Oklahoma. [OK Policy on YouTube] | [Transcript and Slides]
Policy Matters: Nobody wins when we treat politics as sport: Increasingly, Oklahomans are polarizing along party lines. As a result, what should be nuanced policy discussions are turning into one-dimensional arguments shaped by national talking points. We’re seeing that “winner-takes-all” mentality framing complex issues so that one’s side’s loss is the other side’s win. This reduces complex policy conversations to zero-sum battles, leaving little room for cooperation or compromise. [Shiloh Kantz / The Journal Record]
Childcare a growing issue in Oklahoma (Capitol Update): An issue that will likely be on the legislative agenda next year is childcare. As the economics and the makeup of families have changed, the need for out-of-home childcare has exploded. [Steve Lewis / Capitol Update]
OK Policy in the News
Oklahoma represents nearly one-third of pregnancy-related prosecutions a year after Roe’s end: Oklahoma had the second-highest number of pregnancy-related prosecutions nationwide in the year after Roe. v. Wade was overturned, according to a new study by the advocacy organization Pregnancy Justice. [Oklahoma Voice]
Weekly What’s That
Legislative Referendum
A legislative referendum is the mechanism by which the Oklahoma Legislature can submit a constitutional amendment or statutory change to a vote of the people. A legislative referendum is one of two ways to place a State Question on the ballot in Oklahoma, the other being an initiative petition. A legislatively-initiated ballot measure must take the form of a Joint Resolution and be approved by a simple majority vote in both chambers. It does not require the Governor’s approval.
Once received by the Secretary of State, each legislative referendum is designated a State Question number and a Legislative Referendum number. Copies are delivered to the Governor and State Election Board to issue the Election Proclamation and place the measure on the ballot for a vote of the people at the time of the next general election. The Attorney General has the responsibility to review the measure’s ballot title and may rewrite the ballot title if s/he determines that the title proposed in the legislation does not meet requirements.
Since 1989, there have been 78 legislative referendums, of which all but seven have been constitutional amendments. There were two legislative referendums on the ballot in 2020 but none in 2022 – the first time that voters have not been called on to decide a legislative referendum on a general election ballot since 1970. Two legislative referendums qualified for the November 2024 ballot: SQ 833 to create new public infrastructure districts and SQ 834 to specify that only U.S. citizens are eligible to vote.
Look up more key terms to understand Oklahoma politics and government here.
Quote of the Week
“That the Department of Justice has decided to take this on and just look into it, it says that we are not forgotten. Our ancestors are not forgotten. The generations to come, they’re worth fighting for.”
– Oklahoma state Sen-elect Regina Goodwin, a descendant of survivors, said during Monday’s press conference regarding the DOJ’s inquiry into the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. [The Black Wall Street Times]
Editorial of the Week
Opinion: What $3 million can buy in Oklahoma public schools
By ordering placement of a specific Christian Bible version in all classrooms — whether for math, science, social studies, language arts, music or art — is about indoctrination to a narrow brand of Christianity, not incorporating into history. If for some reason the courts find this (obviously) unconstitutional or lawmakers have sense to reject the request, here’s some other things schools could buy with $3 million next year: 60 teachers (at about $50,000 each) to educate about 8,400 students; Three safety resource officers to rotate among 20 schools to protect about 1,000 students; 1.7 million school lunches. [Ginnie Graham / Tulsa World]
Numbers of the Week
- 87 – The Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative Investigative Report lists Oklahoma with the most Indian boarding schools with 87. Sixty-three other institutions in Oklahoma that didn’t meet all four investigation criteria were also listed as having policies that sought to erase Native American culture through assimilation. [Tulsa World]
- 10 – Number of days (from Tuesday, October 1) remaining for Oklahoma voters to register for the November general election. The registration deadline is Friday, Oct. 11, and all Oklahoma voters are encouraged to check the status of their voter registration at the OK Voter Portal.
- 19.3% – Only 19.3% of Oklahomans aged 18 to 24 cast ballots in the November 2022 general election. [U.S. Census Bureau]
- 62.2% – Percentage of Oklahomans age 65 and older who voted in the November 2022 general election. This age group had Oklahoma’s highest voting participation rate. National and state patterns show that voting participation rates increase as voters age. [U.S. Census Bureau]
- 67.6% – When Oklahoma’s total labor force participation rate first exceeded the U.S. average in 2023, the Native American rate soared from 61.5% in 2022 to 66%, overtaking the state average by three percentage points. By the first half of 2024, Oklahoma’s Native American participation rate increased further to 67.6%, helping bring the state’s overall rate up to 63.2% while the nation’s plateaued at 62.6%. [Kansas City Fed]
What We’re Reading
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The Symbolism of Orange: From Work to Awareness: Every year on September 30th, the color orange carries profound symbolism as it becomes part of Orange Shirt Day’s narrative. This day stirs sorrow and resilience within us as we confront the enduring impacts of residential schools on Indigenous peoples across North America. [Native News Online]
- NOTE: September 30 is recognized as National Day of Remembrance for Indian Boarding Schools
- Indian Boarding Schools: The Search for Truth and Healing [Native News Online]
- Department of the Interior Releases Volume II of The Federal Boarding School Investigative Report [National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition]
- Rooted in Racism and Economic Exploitation: Voter suppression makes the racist and anti-worker Southern model possible: From the abolition of slavery until now, Southern white elites have used a slew of tactics to suppress Black political power and secure their economic interests—including violence, voter suppression, gerrymandering, felony disenfranchisement, and local preemption laws. Black voter disenfranchisement remains a key feature of the racist and anti-worker Southern economic development model today. While significant advances have been made over the last century, a resurgent backlash underscores the need to strengthen civil rights protections and ensure all Southern workers and their families can enjoy political and economic equality. [Economic Policy Institute]
- ‘Least Contacted and Most Undecided:’ Young Voters in Rural America: Rural young voters continue to feel ignored in politics as the presidential election intensifies, according to research this spring from the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE). Described as the least contacted and most undecided demographic by the Rural Youth Voter Fund, their participation in the upcoming presidential elections could be critical in deciding the next four years and beyond. In swing states during the 2022 midterm elections, youth made up 10% to 15% of all votes cast, according to CIRCLE, large enough to change outcomes. [The Daily Yonder]
- Friends, family and neighbors are Americans’ most common source of local news: Americans’ relationship with local news is changing. More are getting news online, and fewer are turning to sources like daily newspapers. However, one thing that has remained consistent is the importance of friends, family and neighbors as sources of local news for most Americans. In fact, they are the most common source of local news we asked about, ranking above television stations, radio stations and online forums like Facebook groups. [Pew Research]
- Oklahoma’s Rising Labor Force Participation Driven Largely by Native Americans: Oklahoma’s labor force participation recently moved higher than the U.S. rate for the first time in over three decades. Most of the labor force gains were in or near the Oklahoma City and Tulsa metropolitan areas, but the southeastern portion of the state also made a sizable contribution. This edition of Oklahoma Economist finds that the state’s increase in labor force participation since 2021 has been primarily driven by heightened participation among the Native American population, in both metro and non-metro areas. Additionally, these gains have mostly been concentrated at schools, hospitals, and government entities. [Kansas City Fed]
