Articles
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Education
OKC district’s effort to penalize charter schools for attracting students prompts lawsuit
The Oklahoma City school district has announced plans to impose a fee on area charter schools that would financially penalize charter schools for attracting students from the traditional district. Two area charter schools have filed a lawsuit in response.Ray Carter | November 13, 2019
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Education
Ethics questions arise as law firm hosts school administrators’ golf event
Ask the average teacher what his or her Wednesday looks like, and the answer will usually involve working in the classroom. In contrast, on a recent Wednesday, as many as 100 school administrators and board members spent their day in a very different fashion—playing golf.Ray Carter | November 11, 2019
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Education
Father of Parkland shooting victim says Enid Public Schools’ actions dangerous
The recent action of Enid Public School administrators who fired a school resource police officer for seeking prosecution of at least two students who had threatened classmates sent precisely the wrong signal, nationally known school safety crusader Andrew Pollack has told OCPA.Mike Brake | November 8, 2019
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Criminal Justice
Parole overhaul, diversion funding sought to address SQ 780 shortcomings
Supporters and critics alike are calling for reforms and/or new funding to address the perceived shortcomings of State Question 780, a voter-approved initiative that reduced penalties for theft and drug use in Oklahoma, with one lawmaker even advocating “radical” change.Ray Carter | November 8, 2019
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Education
Oklahoma academic decline prompts concern, calls for change
Results from two national measures of academic performance— the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and the ACT college-readiness exam—show continued decline in Oklahoma schools’ academic outcomes.Ray Carter | November 7, 2019
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Economy
Data suggest Oklahoma economic growth is slowing
Continuing the pattern of recent months, new data indicate Oklahoma’s economic growth is slowing, suggesting lawmakers may have far less growth revenue to spend next year, based on information provided by State Treasurer Randy McDaniel.Ray Carter | November 6, 2019
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Criminal Justice
Hundreds released from Oklahoma prisons due to corrections reform
Due to the passage of a ballot initiative and associated legislation that reduced the penalties for some property and drug crimes, hundreds of Oklahoma inmates were released on Monday following the largest single-day commutation of sentences in U.S. history.Ray Carter | November 5, 2019
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Health Care
Transparency touted as solution to surprise medical bills
To combat the problem of “surprise” medical bills, experts encouraged Oklahoma lawmakers to ban “balance billing” Oklahoma consumers and to increase health-care price transparency.Ray Carter | October 31, 2019
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Criminal Justice
Change in felony threshold tied to increased crime
In 2016, Oklahoma voters approved State Question 780, which raised the felony threshold for property crime to $1,000 per occurrence. Retailers, law enforcement officials, and private citizens recently told members of a Senate committee that the result of the state question has been an increase in crime.Ray Carter | October 28, 2019
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Education
School budget request approved despite concerns
The State Board of Education has approved a budget for K-12 public schools that requests an additional $219 million, but board members expressed concern the proposal misleads by omission and fails to provide a carefully considered long-range plan for Oklahoma schools.Ray Carter | October 25, 2019