National experts say Oklahoma is part of a damaging tax-cutting trend

Attempts by Oklahoma elected officials to reduce or eliminate the state’s personal income tax are part of a national tax-cutting trend that could undermine funding for the shared services that can move our state out of the bottom 10 states for quality of life and overall well-being for all Oklahomans. [More...]

Comments from OK Policy’s Shiloh Kantz, on Jan. 24 National Press Call about Cutting State Taxes

Media Release: National experts say Oklahoma is part of a damaging tax-cutting trend For more information, contact Dave Hamby, Oklahoma Policy Institute, (918) 810-0182, dhamby@okpolicy.org – – – During the past few decades, Oklahoma has become one of the nation’s… Read more [More...]

New national study shows Oklahoma’s tax system worsens inequality, among the nation’s most unfair

Oklahoma’s tax system is upside-down, with everyday Oklahomans paying a far greater share of their income in taxes than wealthy residents. Proposals to eliminate the state’s income tax would widen this disparity, according to the latest edition of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy’s Who Pays?, the only distributional analysis of tax systems in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. [More...]

Lawmakers cut corporate income taxes while polls show corporations should pay their fair share

most Americans feeling that corporations should pay more in taxes, and most businesses prioritize public services that rely on that tax revenue; Oklahoma must maintain or increase its corporate tax revenue in coming years.  [More...]

Everyday Oklahomans will be hurt by sweeping revenue cuts

NOTE: On Sept. 11, 2023, Gov. Stitt called for a special session in October 2023 to address tax reforms. One of the items included in the governor’s request was a “path to zero income tax.”  – – – Oklahoma should… Read more [More...]

Flat tax, tax triggers would make Oklahoma’s tax system less fair, less adequate, and less stable

• Current Tax Cut Proposals Don’t Help Most Oklahomans [Printable PDF] With less than two weeks left in the 2023 legislative session, lawmakers have very little time remaining to reach agreement on, reveal, and adopt the Fiscal Year 2024 state… Read more [More...]

Undocumented immigrants pay taxes: The $133.7 million elephant in the room

One of the most deeply ingrained myths about immigrants who are undocumented is that they don’t pay taxes. In reality, immigrants without documentation pay taxes in multiple ways and contribute more to the U.S. and state economy than they receive… Read more [More...]

Tax proposals this session fail to deliver inflation relief, jeopardize state’s long-term fiscal health

Call to Action Contact your lawmakers to urge them to oppose across-the-board, untargeted tax cuts and other handouts for wealthy Oklahomans and out-of-state companies.  • Contact your lawmaker • Current Tax Cut Proposals Don’t Help Most Oklahomans [Printable PDF] With… Read more [More...]

The needs of everyday Oklahomans outweigh tax cuts that benefit the wealthy

As Oklahoma’s 2023 legislative session begins, the perennial push for tax cuts that would shrink state revenue will likely return. In 2022, leaders of the Oklahoma House of Representatives championed tax cuts – primarily focusing on reducing the personal income… Read more [More...]

Personal income tax cuts won’t deliver relief to low- and middle-class Oklahomans

Cuts to the individual income tax rate are unfair to low- and middle-class families since they return the largest benefit to the wealthiest Oklahomans. Tax cuts now can devastate state revenue and funding for services like public education in future years. [More...]