Topic: Budget & Tax

What the income tax pays for

By: David Blatt
February 27, 2012 // Updated: May 2, 2019
The personal income tax is Oklahoma’s largest single revenue source. In 2011, the state collected $2.412 billion from the personal income tax, or slightly less than one in three dollars (31.7 percent) of total state tax collections. With a strong… Read more [More...]

Stuck in a Hole: What flat funding means for the common education budget

By: David Blatt
February 22, 2012 // Updated: May 2, 2019
After three straight years of budget cuts, funding for public education in Oklahoma is in dire straits.  This year’s appropriation to the Department of Education is $254 million, or 10.0 percent, less than it was in 2009.  In the past… Read more [More...]

How Oklahoma is falling behind

By: Gene Perry
February 21, 2012 // Updated: May 1, 2019
Even as the economy recovers, it’s become increasingly apparent that there is no end in sight to Oklahoma’s budget woes. Oklahoma has seen three straight years of budget cuts, and according to one House leader, we may be in for… Read more [More...]

No leg left to stand on: Laffer and OCPA debunked again

By: David Blatt
February 20, 2012 // Updated: May 2, 2019
The push to eliminate Oklahoma’s personal income tax relies heavily for intellectual support on a study done for the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs by economist Arthur Laffer and his colleagues. The Laffer report makes two claims: (1) that states… Read more [More...]

Over a Barrel: How we ended up on the hook to oil and gas producers to the tune of $294 million

By: David Blatt
February 19, 2012 // Updated: May 2, 2019
NOTE: This week, Oklahomans learned the state was on the hook to pay oil and gas producers $294 million over the next three years in deferred tax rebates for horizontal and deep well drilling in 2010 and 2011, an amount… Read more [More...]

The myth about Oklahoma’s tax system that we keep repeating

By: Gene Perry
February 14, 2012 // Updated: May 2, 2019
Something we often hear about Oklahoma’s tax system is that the top rate kicks in so low that it affects almost everyone. Most recently, a Tulsa World article stated: The current comparable top rate is 5.25 percent, which kicks on… Read more [More...]

Laffer Debunked: States without an income tax do not enjoy stronger economic growth

By: David Blatt
February 13, 2012 // Updated: May 2, 2019
Update: We have put out a fact sheet summarizing major flaws in the Laffer report. Do states without an income tax enjoy stronger economic growth? This is one of the central claims made by economist Arthur Laffer in a recent… Read more [More...]

State of the State Analysis: Gov. Fallin is playing catch-up

By: Gene Perry
February 8, 2012 // Updated: May 2, 2019
In her State of the State address, Governor Fallin laid out numerous areas where Oklahoma needs to invest to fix serious problems. She mentioned the shortage of troopers on the highways, the millions still owed to local governments to reimburse… Read more [More...]

STATEMENT: Governor Fallin's plan to end income tax would bust huge hole in the state budget

By: Gene Perry
February 6, 2012 // Updated: May 2, 2019
Oklahoma Policy Institute Director David Blatt released a statement today in response to Governor Fallin’s plan for an immediate tax cut and ultimate elimination of the state income tax: Governor Fallin’s plan would bust a huge and permanent hole in… Read more [More...]

The buck stops anywhere but here

By: David Blatt
January 30, 2012 // Updated: May 1, 2019
Last week I participated in a StateImpact Oklahoma forum on the state budget with Rep. Earl Sears, the Chair of the House Appropriations and Budget Committee (R-Bartlesville),  and Sen. Tom Adelson (D-Tulsa).  An audience member asked the legislators what they… Read more [More...]