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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: FY2024 state budget proposal has promise, but could do more for everyday Oklahomans: OK Policy shares a first look at the FY2024 budget with wins, missed opportunities, and decisions that don’t center the needs of everyday Oklahomans. [OK Policy]
Policy Matters: Last-minute state budget deals intentional, harmful: Every year, Oklahoma lawmakers unveil the state budget during the legislative session’s waning days. It doesn’t have to be this way. [Shiloh Kantz / Journal Record]
Budget special session points to lack of trust between legislature, governor (Capitol Update): Because of the protracted fight over education funding and tax credits for people sending their children to private schools, the legislature was pushed to the brink in getting its appropriations measures passed before the constitutionally-required end of legislative session this Friday. Appropriations negotiations and bills for all other state agency budgets — along with many substantive policy bills — were held up while the education issues and funding were discussed behind closed doors. When the agreement finally came, there was little remaining time or money to address other major issues. [Steve Lewis / Capitol Update]
WATCH: InDepth: Title 42 & Immigration: Gabriela Ramirez-Perez, OK Policy’s Immigration Policy Analyst, appeared in a panel discussion on OETA’s Oklahoma News Report to talk about immigration issues in our state. [OETA via YouTube]
Conversation with Advocates
- Becky Gligo: More affordable housing supports quality of life, economic development: Becky Gligo, Executive Director of Housing Solutions, talks with OK Policy’s Emma Morris about the need for state and local investments to address Oklahoma’s housing shortage. Increasing affordable housing would bolster quality of life in the state and support economic development efforts. [OK Policy / YouTube]
- The Rev. Chris Moore: Good public policy would serve all Oklahomans: The Rev. Chris Moore — Pastor of Fellowship Congregational United Church of Christ and Board Chair of the Tulsa Metropolitan Ministry — talks with OK Policy’s Emma Morris about the need to make state policy decisions that work on behalf of every Oklahoma resident, especially our friends and neighbors in need. [OK Policy / YouTube]
- Chelsea Abney: Oklahoma can invest in maternal health and addressing poverty: Chelsea Abney, Executive Director of We Are Rising, talks with OK Policy’s Emma Morris about the need for Oklahoma to invest in maternal health by alleviating the state’s maternal care deserts. She also talked about how poverty can negatively impact families and caregivers, especially in parts Oklahoma that are already lacking necessary supports and services. [OK Policy / YouTube]
- Jeanean Yanish Jones of the Healthcare Alliance for the Uninsured: Jeanean Yanish Jones, Executive Director for Healthcare Alliance for the Uninsured, speaks about the investments Oklahoma can make in its health care system, and how that will benefit our entire state, not just those who are the most vulnerable. [OK Policy / YouTube]
Weekly What’s That
Fiscal Year
A fiscal year (usually abbreviated ‘FY’) is the period used for calculating annual budgets. The state of Oklahoma’s fiscal year (usually abbreviated as ‘SFY’) runs from July 1 to June 30, while the federal fiscal year (usually abbreviated as ‘FFY’), runs from October 1st to September 30th. Each fiscal year is named after the calendar year that it ends in. For example, Oklahoma’s fiscal year 2023 (SFY 2023) covers the period from July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023.
Look up more key terms to understand Oklahoma politics and government here.
Quote of the Week
“That is the kind of thing that will get us killed. You can’t put that rhetoric out there in today’s climate. I’m sitting inside that board room with people in front of me and people behind me talking about how all we do in schools is porn and how we’re teaching porn. And just crazy, crazy things. That is not happening in public schools. Ryan, we used to talk all the time back when you were reasonable. I don’t know what’s happened.”
– Jami Cole, a teacher from Duncan, speaking about the inflammatory anti-teacher union video released by Superintendent Ryan Walters during a state board of education meeting Thursday. [The Oklahoman]
Editorial of the Week
Tulsa World Editorial: State budget finds right balance in times of plenty
Oklahoma legislators found their way around to a reasonable budget in a session that was unusually testy for a Republican supermajority control.
A $12.9 billion negotiated budget addresses some big needs, such as boosts in education, while leaving about $3.6 billion in various savings accounts.
A nearly $1 billion education spending package was agreed upon last week (22% increase from last year) and added tax credits to the list of other tax-supported economic benefits to private school students.
With the general budget agreement, legislators wisely stayed away from overall tax cuts. Cutting revenue too far while times are good will handcuff future lawmakers in lean times. That’s a lesson from the recession and decade of revenue failures.
Numbers of the Day
- 56% – For a majority of employed U.S. adults (56%), focusing on increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion at work is a good thing, according to a new Pew Research Center survey. But opinions about DEI vary considerably along demographic and political lines. [Pew Research]
- 46.9% – Percentage of renting households in Oklahoma that are cost-burdened, which means expenses such as rent, utility costs and other housing fees exceed 30% of household income. [Prosperity Now]
- 1 in 6 – In 2022, 650,600 Oklahoma residents, or 1 in 6 residents, participated in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which is the nation’s most important and effective anti-hunger program. [CBPP]
- 11.9% – The rate of children born preterm in Oklahoma, which is the nation’s 8th highest rate. Preterm birth, or the delivery of an infant prior to 37 weeks of gestation, is a significant cause of infant morbidity and mortality. [March of Dimes]
- 98.5% – Of adults surveyed who had been asked to pay a court fine or fee in the past ten years, 98.5% of respondents reported that the court-ordered fines and fees impacted at least one aspect of daily life. More than half (51%) reported experiencing multiple impacts. [Wilson Center for Science and Justice & the Fines and Fees Justice Center]
What We’re Reading
- The Rediscovery of Indian Country in Eastern Oklahoma: The existence of “Indian country” – generally defined as all land within Indian reservations, dependent Indian communities and Indian allotments – has legal significance because it is “the benchmark for approaching the allocation of federal, tribal and state authority with respect to Indians and Indian lands.” Generally, the federal and tribal governments have primary authority over Indians within Indian country, while state jurisdiction is more limited. Outside of Indian country, on the other hand, states generally have jurisdiction over Indians and non-Indians alike. [Oklahoma Bar Association]
- Will States Force Localities to Build Affordable Housing?: The need for more housing in America is undeniable. But with localities unlikely to change zoning laws to create more, states are stepping in. Typically, [localities] hew to the principle that zoning in whatever way they choose is a bedrock principle of local control. But as the housing shortage gets worse, a growing number of states are threatening to alter that long-standing principle. [Route Fifty]
- Most Working-Age SNAP Participants Work But Job Instability Overstates Joblessness in Some Analyses: The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) helps more than 40 million people put food on the table each month. SNAP has existing, harmful work-reporting requirements, but recent proposals from House Republicans would harm more SNAP participants — by taking food away from older adults who can’t show every month that they meet or are exempt from work-reporting requirements — without improving employment. [CBPP]
- Maternal Mortality in Oklahoma, Annual Report 2022: According to the CDC, Oklahoma persistently ranks among the states with the worst rates (40th) of maternal deaths in the U.S. Between 2017-2019, the Oklahoma maternal mortality rate was 23.5 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births. This is above the national average of 20.1 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births and above the Healthy People 2030 target goal of 15.7. Maternal mortality is viewed as an indicator of the overall effectiveness of the obstetrical and the general health care systems. [Oklahoma State Department of Health]
- Debt Sentence: How Fines And Fees Hurt Working Families: Court-imposed debt impacts working families across all racial groups, political affiliations, and income levels. In the past ten years, a third of Americans have been directly affected by fines or fees related to traffic, criminal, juvenile, or municipal court. This report is the first national survey to examine how court-imposed fines and fees affect individuals and families. Researchers found that fines and fees debt creates hardships in people’s daily lives. Many respondents reported experiencing serious hardship, being impacted in three or more aspects of daily life. [Wilson Center for Science and Justice & the Fines and Fees Justice Center]
