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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
Statement: Eliminating U.S. Department of Education, moving to block grants would be bad for Oklahoma: The Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction on Thursday published a memo that called for eliminating the U.S. Department of Education. Instead, the memo called for moving to block grants to provide federal education funds to states. OK Policy’s Executive Director Shiloh Kantz: “The superintendent’s proposal to eliminate the U.S. Department of Education and move funding to a block grant scheme is bad for Oklahoma. And it’s bad for our nation.” [Full statement here]
New OJA director good fit to address needs for state youth (Capitol Update): Timothy Tardibono, who was appointed last week by Gov. Kevin Stitt to be the new director of the Office of Juvenile Affairs (OJA), should prove to be a good appointment. His background, education and experience all point toward progress for troubled children, youth and families in Oklahoma. [Steve Lewis / Capitol Update]
Policy Matters: Prioritize people, not politics: To all our newly elected officials throughout Oklahoma, congratulations on making it through this year’s election cycle. Whether your ticket was punched during the filing period or you had contested primaries and general elections, the campaigning is over. For now. Today, the real work of governing begins. [Shiloh Kantz / The Journal Record]
Weekly What’s That
Block grants
A block grant is a type of grant program transferring federal funds to state or local governments to be used for a broadly defined function. Unlike entitlements, which use a combination of state and federal dollars to administer a range of safety net programs to anyone who qualifies, block grants are capped amounts of federal money.
While block grants provide state and local governments greater latitude in how to allocate federal funds than do entitlement programs, critics points out that block grants don’t respond to need and commonly do not increase at all year to year or do not increase as quickly as costs. Consequently, they can leave states on the hook for an increasing share of the funding for programs.
Look up more key terms to understand Oklahoma politics and government here.
Quote of the Week
“I know that I will continue to have loving relationships with family members and community members who have differing political views. I truly hope that as we approach these conversations Tuesday night and Wednesday and so on, that we display the utmost compassion, and we exercise listening.”
-Aliye Shimi of Tulsa Metropolitan Ministry said regarding the importance of maintaining loving relationships no matter the outcome of today’s elections. Shimi was one of 50 Tulsans who attended the nonpartisan candlelight vigil last night hosted by Compassionate Tulsa, a committee of Tulsa’s Human Rights Commission. [Tulsa Public Radio]
Editorial of the Week
Editorial, Enid News & Eagle: Still some work to do on criminal justice reform
Oklahoma had been on a pretty strong run of progress in criminal justice reform, up until the last couple of years.
From 2018 to 2021, the state had seen a drop in its prison population thanks to legislation and ballot initiatives that reduced sentencing, and even commuted some felony convictions. The numbers began to tick back up in 2022. At the end of this month, we’ll probably get another report from the Bureau of Justice Statistics that will reveal 2023 incarceration numbers.
Oklahoma at one point was putting a higher percentage of its population in prison than any other state in the country, but has since been hovering around fourth.
There are plenty of reasons for the state to get back on track with criminal justice reform and not a single one of those is being “soft on crime.”
We have to commit to the long game.
The state, despite the slip in progress, has taken some solid steps. We’ve made expungement an easier process and we’ve made it easier to restore voting records for people who have had felonies commuted.
Just recently, The Frontier reported detainees at Oklahoma County Jail were able to vote by mail-in ballot from the jail. There weren’t many, about six. And they weren’t felons, because most people in jail aren’t. Most people in jail right now, about 75%, according to The Frontier, haven’t been convicted of anything.
Getting people reintegrated with society is going to make them less likely to reoffend. And, instead of the state spending money to keep them behind bars, the formerly incarcerated will add to the workforce, add to consumer base and help raise families to avoid their pitfalls.
Oklahomans have more work to do on criminal justice reform. We may not see immediate results, but it will be worth it. Oklahoma doesn’t have any worse people than any other state in the country, it doesn’t make since that we lock ours up at a higher rate. And, it doesn’t make any fiscal sense. Criminal justice reform is a fiscally conservative idea and we’re people who should appreciate that, and appreciate what it means to give someone a second chance at contributing to society.
Numbers of the Day
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13.23% – Percentage of Oklahomans who reported being American Indian or Alaska Native during the 2020 Census, which is the nation’s second highest Native American population. [U.S. Census via the Oklahoman]
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2 – Number of states that approved ballot measures during the November general election to raise their minimum wage and require employers to provide paid sick time to their workers. [NPR]
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53.28% – Voter turnout rate among all voting-eligible Oklahomans during the Nov. 5, 2024 presidential election. This was the nation’s lowest turnout rate for the 2024 election, and it marked the second consecutive presidential election where Oklahoma had the nation’s lowest voter turnout among eligible voters. In 2020, the voter turnout rate for eligible voters was 54.43%. [Election Lab]
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2,442,211 – Number of registered voters in Oklahoma, as of Nov. 1, 2024. Republicans are 52.33% of registered voters, while Democrats are 26.98%, Independents are 19.72%, and Libertarians are 0.95%. [Oklahoma Election Board]
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292,455 – The number of Oklahoma voters who cast ballots during the in-person absentee voting period, which ran from Oct. 30 through Nov. 2. [Oklahoma Election Board]
What We’re Reading
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How Tribal Nations Are Reclaiming Oklahoma: The McGirt case represented an enormous and long-awaited restoration of Tribal sovereignty, “the ability of a group of people to manage their own affairs,” as Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr., put it. In Indian Country, which is the legal term for land reserved for tribes, tribal nations have authority over their citizens—they can adjudicate legal cases, levy taxes, and impose municipal regulations. [The New Yorker]
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November is Native American Heritage Month.
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- A review of key 2024 ballot measures around the nation: In this year’s election, voters given the opportunity to weigh in directly on questions of economic justice showed policy preferences far more progressive than those reflected in many national and state election outcomes. Across the country, voters seized opportunities to approve state or local ballot measures increasing the minimum wage, expanding paid leave, strengthening workers’ rights to unionize, preserving public education, and protecting access to abortion. These ballot measure outcomes reflect a clear ongoing trend of strong voter support for policies that prioritize worker, racial, and gender justice—and illustrate how state and local governments can continue to play important roles in enacting such policies. [Economic Policy Institute]
- Electoral College Overview: When Americans vote for President in the general election, they select electors who will choose the nation’s chief executive. Voters thus play an important role in electing the President, but a second step is required to finalize that choice. The U.S. Constitution places responsibility for the second step in a body known as the electoral college. This paper highlights key aspects and recent policy developments. [Congressional Research Service]
- Why We Might Not Know Election Results Right Away: The 2024 presidential election is shaping up to be a nailbiter, with polling suggesting tight races across swing states. A handful of close House and Senate races will likely determine control of Congress for the next two years. Many election outcomes won’t be known on Election Day. It may take several days before the media can project winners in the presidential election, and it may be weeks before outlets can project winners in every congressional race. [Bipartisan Policy Center]
- Election night is not results night… and that’s OK!: As we approach Election Day, it’s important to remember that we will not have the official results on election night—this is a standard part of the elections process that allows for every eligible vote to be counted and checked. As in previous elections, the results reported on election night are the unofficial results and are considered official only when certain procedures are complete. [Verified Voting]
