OKPOLICY.ORG
What’s up this week at Oklahoma Policy Institute? The Weekly Wonk is dedicated to this week’s events, publications, and blog posts.
This week OK Policy released a 10-minute video of highlights from a recent forum of Oklahoma economists, economic developers, and budget experts discussing the state income tax. Dr. Stephen Ellis wrote a guest blog on how tax cut boosters are misapplying economic theory.
Who’s behind the push to eliminate our income tax? We’ve been drafted by out-of-state groups and lobbyists into a national campaign, regardless of whether it is the right fit for Oklahoma and against the advice of the state’s leading experts. Also this week, we explained why automatic tax cut triggers are irresponsible.
Our director David Blatt wrote a column for The Journal Record on why producing more college graduates is a proven strategy for boosting the economy. Our work was mentioned in a Tulsa World article and an OU Daily column on state tax cut proposals.
- 1st – Oklahoma’s rank nationally for the share of female residents reporting that they have been raped, physically abused, or stalked by an intimate partner in their lifetime; 697,000 women in 2010.
- 7.4 percent – Percentage of Oklahomans aged 25 and older with an advanced degree (beyond a bachelor’s degree), 44th fewest in the nation.
- 4,973 feet – Number of feet above sea level of the highest point in Oklahoma, the Black Mesa, located in the panhandle in northwestern Cimarron County.
- $5.8 billion – The total annual market value of agricultural products (animals and crops) sold in Oklahoma, 2007
- 14 percent – Percentage of Oklahoma libraries reporting that they always have sufficient computers available to meet demand, compared to 23.8 percent of libraries nationally, 2008.
In The Know, Policy Notes
- Demos examines how higher education cuts are undermining the future middle class.
- The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities discusses how proponents of the migration myth are ignoring a growing body of research that consistently shows taxes have little if any impact on migration.
- The Atlantic discusses how the legal reasoning of health care reform’s opponents could replace our democracy with “nanny judges.”
- Families Against Mandatory Minimums explains why taxpayers should demand more cost-effective crime policies.
- The National Fair Housing Alliance announced the results of an undercover investigation into financial institutions’ discriminatory practices in the maintenance and marketing of Real Estate Owned (REO) properties.
