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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
- A lack of data hinders policy efforts to address anti-LGBTQ2S+ discrimination: Data helps LGBTQ2S+ advocates inform policymakers about the prevalence of anti-LGBTQ2S+ discrimination, where that discrimination occurs, and how it impacts the lives of LGBTQ2S+ people. Data allows LGBTQ2S+ advocates to present lawmakers with evidence that this discrimination is pervasive and are not merely isolated incidents of hatred; as such, this requires legislative or administrative solutions. [Josie Phillips / OK Policy]
- Policy Matters: Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: As the 2022 legislative session approaches, some lawmakers are proposing additional corporate and income tax cuts. Hearing this puts me in the mind of the classic comedy bit about a patient who walks into the doctor’s office and says, “Doc, it hurts when I do this.” The doctor ponders the situation and replies, “Well … then don’t do that.” [Ahniwake Rose / The Journal Record]
Upcoming Opportunities
UPDATE: 2022 State Budget Summit, January 27, 2022: Due to the recent surge of COVID-19 cases, we have decided to move this year’s State Budget Summit to be entirely online. With this change, we also have decided to offer free registration, with donations welcomed to support our work. While we prefer to gather in person, the decision to move to a virtual format will protect everyone’s health while still providing this unique opportunity to hear from our panel of experts and ask your questions about our state’s budget and revenue outlook. [Register and Learn More]
Weekly What’s That
Rainy Day Fund
The Rainy Day Fund (formally known as the Constitutional Reserve Fund) was created in 1985 in response to a dramatic revenue downturn. It is designed to collect extra funds when times are good and to spend those funds when revenues cannot support ongoing state operations.
Money flows in to the Rainy Day Fund when revenue is more than estimated. Any General Revenue Fund collections beyond 100 percent of the estimated amount must be deposited into the Rainy Day Fund, until the Fund reaches its cap of 15 percent of the current revenue estimate for the General Revenue Fund.
The Constitution (Article X, Section 23) allows the Fund to be spent in four instances:
- Up to three-eighths to make up for a shortfall in the current year’s collections.
- Up to three-eighths if General Revenue collections for the upcoming year are forecast to be less than the current year’s collections.
- Up to one-fourth through the appropriations process for an emergency.
- Up to $10 million on tax incentives for at-risk manufacturers.
The Fund began FY 2021 with a balance of $58.6 million; it received a deposit of $312 million at the end of FY 2021, bringing its balance to $370.6 million. The RDF had reached a record balance of $806 million at the end of FY 2019, but the Legislature made substantial withdrawals in the 2020 session to deal with budget shortfall resulting from low oil and gas prices and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Look up more key terms to understand Oklahoma politics and government here.
Quote of the Week
“This is not a response born out of fear. It has absolutely nothing to do with fear but everything to do with not having an adequate number of staff available to safely open schools. We had administrators in classrooms yesterday, and it was not sustainable considering our skyrocketing COVID numbers.”
—Union Superintendent Kirt Hartzler speaking about efforts to keep schools open amid the latest COVID surge [Tulsa World]
Editorial of the Week
Editorial: Use surplus revenues to shore up mental health, education and other state services
With state revenues projected toward a significant surplus this fiscal year, it’s time for Oklahoma lawmakers and the Governor’s Office to consider some long-needed investments.
We’re halfway through FY 2022, and revenues are 20% higher than projections. Thus far, that equals nearly $610 million.
This represents an opportunity to put those tax dollars to work.
The temptation is to do one of two things: enact more tax cuts or sock it all away into the state’s emergency reserve funds. We would advise a different tack.
New tax cuts just went into effect, and the state enjoys one of the lowest tax burdens in the country. Cutting further could unnecessarily endanger state finances…
Numbers of the Day
- 138,000 – Estimated number of LGBTQ2S+ Oklahomans [Movement Advancement Project]
- 20% – Percentage of Oklahoma tax revenues that stems from oil and gas [Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City]
- $264 million – Oklahoma’s total unspent federal TANF funds (2020) designated to provide basic cash assistance for families with children when they face a crisis or have very low incomes. The funds can be carried over for future years, and Oklahoma’s unspent amount (2020) represents 191% of the state’s share of its 2020 block grant. [Center on Budget and Policy Priorities]
- 1 in 21 – Approximate number of Oklahomans who are actively infected with COVID-19. This rate is higher than the official state report of approximately 1 in 62, which does not capture at-home tests and asymptomatic individuals who do not seek a test. [Tulsa World]
- 14% – Percentage of Oklahoma adults in households with children up to four-years-old who cut work hours due to childcare disruptions caused by the pandemic, Sept.-Oct. 2021 [KIDS COUNT Data Center]
What We’re Reading
- State and Federal Officials Failing LGBTQ Community in Data Collection [Human Rights Campaign]
- Oklahoma’s Evolving Energy Landscape [Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City]
- To Promote Equity, States Should Invest More TANF Dollars in Basic Assistance [Center on Budget and Policy Priorities]
- Smaller Cities, Poorer Regions Could Be Infrastructure Losers [Governing]
- A Lifetime’s Worth of Benefits: The Effects of Affordable, High-quality Child Care on Family Income, the Gender Earnings Gap, and Women’s Retirement Security [National Women’s Law Center]
