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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
Policy Matters: Leaders shouldn’t ask nonprofits to do government’s job: Nonprofits are the lifeblood of our communities. They help house the homeless, feed the hungry, and advocate for those who have been overlooked. But let’s be clear: nonprofits should not bear the burden of providing essential public services that governments are obligated to deliver. [Shiloh Kantz / The Journal Record]
A look at the proposed settlement for federal mental health competency lawsuit (Capitol Update): The settlement appears to reflect the best in government and in private citizenship. The attorneys took on an unpopular cause, the AG cut through politics and resolved to settle the case, the governor and commissioner came to the table and made reasonable concessions while protecting the state’s interests as they saw them, and a former federal magistrate lent his skills for the public good. [Steve Lewis / Capitol Update]
Weekly What’s That
The Contingency Review Board (CRB) is a body that must give its approval to certain state financial obligations whenever the Legislature is not in session. According to state statute, the Contingency Review Board must sign off on “any default or agreed judgment, consent decree or other settlement of any litigation or claim against this state which would require a settlement expenditure in excess of Two Hundred Fifty Thousand Dollars ($250,000.00) or the creation, modification or implementation of a court-ordered or legislatively authorized plan or program which would necessitate an appropriation by the Legislature in excess of Two Hundred Fifty Thousand Dollars ($250,000.00)” entered into by any “agency, board or commission, public officer, official or employee of the State of Oklahoma.”
The board is chaired by the Governor and includes the House Speaker and the Senate President Pro Tem as voting members. The executive director of the Office of Management and Enterprise Services serves as a non-voting member and the board’s executive secretary. [74 OK Stat § 3605 (2023)]
In October 2024, the Board rejected a consent decree negotiated between the Attorney General and plaintiffs in a class action lawsuit alleging unconstitutional delays of mental health competency restoration services in Oklahoma.
Look up more key terms to understand Oklahoma politics and government here.
Quote of the Week
“School boards are elected, and they pick the superintendent for their district. Rather than focusing on outcomes, he’s just trying to sow seeds of conflict with hard-working superintendents, which is simply and unnecessarily disruptive. None of this will bring us up from dead last in the nation in ACT scores and student outcomes. I wish he would focus on the job he was elected to, rather than trying to score political points for who knows what. The voters of Oklahoma and their kids deserve better.”
-Rep. Mike Osburn, R-Edmond, a member of the House Appropriations and Budget subcommittee on education, said responding to State Superintendent Ryan Walters announcement that he will attempt to craft a new state law to require public school superintendents to be elected by voters. [The Oklahoman]
Editorial of the Week
Editorial: Oklahoma’s claims of being pro-family values not supported by numerous rankings
Oklahomans are proud of the state’s pro-family, traditional values reputation, ignoring data showing ongoing harm to children and women. That can be turned around if people remain engaged and demand more from their elected officials. Information recently presented to the Oklahoma Commission on Children and Youth indicates that Oklahoma has one of the top rates of child maltreatment, at nearly double the national rate. [Read the full editorial from Tulsa World]
Numbers of the Day
- 32.9% – Housing accounted for the largest share of total expenditures (32.9 percent) for households in 2023. Housing expenditures increased 4.7 percent in 2023, after a 7.4-percent increase in 2022. Expenditures on rented dwellings and owned dwellings both increased, by 7.6 percent and 5.7 percent, respectively. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
- 47.9% – Only about 1,600 Oklahoma youth (47.9%) who were referred to Oklahoma’s youth justice system and had a final legal status in 2023 received diversion services. [OK Policy analysis of Oklahoma Juvenile Authority data]
- 69 – Number of Oklahoma counties where 15% or more of the households report a lack of computer at home or no broadband subscription. [U.S. Census] | [Interactive map]
- 77,344 – The estimated shortage of rental homes in Oklahoma for extremely low-income renters, who make less than about $23,000/year for a family of four. [National Low-Income Housing Coalition]
- 8.6% – Share of workers (167,300) in Oklahoma’s labor force who are immigrants. [American Immigration Council]
What We’re Reading
- How trends in American Indian and Alaska Native population growth impact employment data: American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) is a broad and diverse Census-defined racial category that includes Indigenous populations with origins in North America and South (including Central) America. Within the United States, American Indian or Native American is also a political identity defined by tribal citizenship. Of the nearly 8 million people who selected the AIAN racial category in the 2020 Census, more than half (4.9 million) did so in combination with another race. [Economic Policy Institute]
- Number of Young Offenders Receiving Diversion Offers Doubles in South Dakota: A 2023 bill that paved the way for higher payments to counties that keep kids out of the justice system has increased the number of diversion offers from prosecutors across South Dakota. The reforms were meant to avoid the harms associated with incarceration for children and offer more fiscally responsible alternatives. Locking up children costs considerably more than probation supervision or in-community programming. [Governing]
- Creating Thriving Communities Through Civic Participation: Healthy communities depend on a culture where all people have the power to make change and a say in the decisions that affect them. But not all U.S. communities have the same opportunities for civic health. Many groups, including women, immigrants, LGBTQIA+ people and racialized groups such as Native people, Black and Hispanic populations experience the impacts of a history of disinvestment in civic infrastructure. Despite this enduring history, change is possible. Structural barriers can be dismantled through voting, ballot initiatives, volunteering and union and community organizing. Civic participation that builds power to break down structural barriers can benefit the health and well-being of everyone. [County Health Rankings and Roadmaps]
- While Political Polarization Is Higher Than Ever, Rural Housing is a Sure Bipartisan Bet: Rising costs, high interest rates, shortages of homes, and increased numbers of people experiencing homelessness are affecting all Americans, and proposals for how to address these issues can vary widely depending on the party. Following a highly contentious election and a change in power in Washington D.C., common ground on policy seems rare at the moment. But for the past year and a half, bipartisan support has been building for an often overlooked but critical issue, one that is primed for action in 2025: rural housing reform. [Daily Yonder]
- Why Immigration Policy Matters for the National Debt: Immigration is projected to be the primary driver of U.S. population growth in the coming decades, which will impact the size and composition of the nation’s labor force. Changes to immigration policy could alter these trends. At a time when soaring national debt threatens economic prosperity, it is important to understand how immigration impacts federal spending and revenues and economic growth. [Bipartisan Policy Center]
