FY 2019 Budget Highlights

[Download this report as a PDF.] The FY 2019 budget increases funding significantly from recent years. State agencies will be appropriated a total of $7.567 billion in FY 2019. This is an increase of $718.5 million (10.5 percent) compared to… Read more [More...]

The FY 2019 Budget: Been down so long this looks like up

In the 1960s, the New York City poet and folksinger Richard Fariña published a novel titled “Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up To Me.” This title certainly applies to Oklahoma’s FY 2019 state budget, approved by the House… Read more [More...]

Unheralded law puts increased funding in doubt

Lawmakers this year have approved over half a billion in new taxes to pay for a package of spending measures, including increased pay for teachers, support staff, and state workers, and increased operating support for schools. While the new obligations… Read more [More...]

Life after Step Up?

Earlier this month, HB 1033xx, the main revenue measure based on proposals from the Step Up Oklahoma coalition, failed to gain the three-quarters support in the House needed to pass a revenue bill. Unlike a similar measure that failed in… Read more [More...]

What now? With clock ticking, Legislature weighs options to avert Doomsday

Last week, lawmakers’ attempt to address the state budget crisis in special session collapsed. They rejected proposals that would have filled the entire budget hole and averted imminent and catastrophic cuts to the three health care and social service agencies —… Read more [More...]

Amid budget deadlock, a reminder of what’s at stake

At the state Capitol, lawmakers remain deadlocked over how to find enough revenue to avoid crippling budget scenarios. The main barrier appears to be legislative leadership’s refusal to allow a vote on removing huge tax breaks for oil and gas producers. On… Read more [More...]

The Kansas tax cut experiment has a close cousin in Oklahoma

On January 28th, OK Policy’s annual State Budget Summit will include a keynote presentation on “The Failed Kansas Experiment.” In 2012, Kansas enacted major income tax cuts and totally eliminated the personal income tax for owners of certain businesses. Kansas… Read more [More...]

Avoid ‘naked tax cuts with none of the pay fors’ (Guest post: Oklahoma Economic Report)

This article originally appeared in State Treasurer Ken Miller’s monthly newsletter, the Oklahoma Economic Report. At the dawn of a new legislative session, current government expenses once again exceed expected revenues and agencies are lining up with $2 billion in… Read more [More...]

Oklahoma’s Budget Outlook: Confronting the Fiscal Gap (State Budget Summit 2015)

Presentation by OK Policy Executive Director David Blatt to the 2015 State Budget Summit, January 29, 2015  Download the presentation (PDF)  Oklahoma’s Budget Outlook: Confronting the Fiscal Gap by dblattok… Read more [More...]

Tax cut trigger shoots Oklahoma deeper into hole

Last month, the Board of Equalization certified that revenues will grow enough next year to trigger a cut in the state’s top income tax rate. At the same time, the Board determined that the state will have nearly $300 million… Read more [More...]