Articles
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Law & Principles
Light those fireworks in your front yard! (No, not you.)
Tribal members are no longer subject to city ordinances under a new ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit. Throughout much of eastern Oklahoma, anyone who has a Certificate of Degree of Indian Blood (CDIB) card will now be exempt from local enforcement of municipal ordinances.Jonathan Small | July 4, 2023
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Law & Principles
Public-safety reality contradicts tribal claims
After a federal court ruled that city police within historic tribal reservations in Oklahoma cannot enforce local ordinances, such as speed limits, when the violator is an American Indian, tribal officials have downplayed the decision, saying tribal law enforcement who are cross-deputized by cities like Tulsa can handle the workload. But the manpower of tribal police forces, and the tribes’ own calls for federal bailouts, suggest the tribes cannot handle much of that responsibility.Ray Carter | July 3, 2023
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Law & Principles, Culture & the Family
OCPA praises Supreme Court ruling favoring religious liberty
OCPA President Jonathan Small said the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling today in 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis preserves citizens’ core right to religious liberty and free speech.Staff | June 30, 2023
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Education
Oklahoma tax credits for private-school tuition: Here’s what you need to know
Oklahoma’s political leaders in 2023 enacted universal school choice, providing refundable tax credits for taxpayers who incur private-school tuition expenses or homeschool expenses.Staff | June 30, 2023
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Education
Oklahoma tax credits for homeschoolers: Here’s what you need to know
Oklahoma’s political leaders in 2023 enacted universal school choice, providing refundable tax credits for taxpayers who incur homeschool expenses or private-school tuition expenses.Staff | June 30, 2023
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Law & Principles
Tribes hail ‘get out of jail free’ card for Indians
Tribal leaders are praising a federal court decision that effectively gave Indians a “get out of jail free” card by ruling that tribal citizens are exempt from local law enforcement in Tulsa and other communities located on historic reservation land throughout eastern Oklahoma.Ray Carter | June 30, 2023
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Law & Principles
Stitt offers tribes status-quo deal on tobacco compacts
Gov. Kevin Stitt has offered tribal governments a one-year extension of state-tribal compacts that maintains the status quo as it has existed for nearly a decade, including payment of millions of dollars to tribes that the state does not legally have to provide.Ray Carter | June 29, 2023
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Law & Principles
Record contradicts tribe’s public-safety claim
The recent U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit ruled that American Indians are exempt from local enforcement of speeding laws and other municipal regulations in areas lying within some Oklahoma tribes’ historic reservation lines. The cross-deputization of tribal and local police offered as a solution has already failed to address existing problems.Ray Carter | June 29, 2023
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Budget & Tax
Oklahoma needs to get moving on tax cuts
Oklahoma needs to move quickly if it wants to reap the benefits of being an early mover on tax reform. Oklahoma has long been a relatively low-tax state, but the recent reluctance to continue the reduction in the state’s income tax may result in other states passing us by.Curtis Shelton | June 29, 2023
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Law & Principles
Court rules Indians exempt from traffic laws
If any individual member of an American Indian tribe wants to ignore the speed limit in Tulsa—say, by driving 100 miles-per-hour through a school zone—that individual can do so without fear of facing a ticket or charges by city police under a new ruling issued by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit.Ray Carter | June 28, 2023