Articles
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Budget & Tax
The real cost of ‘top two’: Taxifornia shows us what happens
Since adopting the “top-two” election model in 2010, California has seen a dramatic spike in taxes and an exodus of residents and income.Curtis Shelton | August 5, 2025
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Energy
Liberty Gala 2025 with energy visionary Alex Epstein
Please join the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs (OCPA) on Wednesday, October 1, 2025, at the DoubleTree at Warren Place in Tulsa for this year’s Liberty Gala.Staff | August 5, 2025
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Education
Oklahoma teachers make more than you think
According to the National Education Association and the Oklahoma State School Boards Association, the average teacher salary in this state is now above $61,000.Jonathan Small | August 4, 2025
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Education
Falling scores, rising hope: Whiz Kids steps up to address Oklahoma reading challenges
Oklahoma’s reading scores are declining, despite record education spending. But one private-sector effort, Whiz Kids, is quietly making a difference.Ray Carter | July 31, 2025
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Education
OSSBA seeks another billion for schools … for administrators
The Oklahoma State School Boards Association—a taxpayer-funded lobby group—says schools need up to $2 billion more, and not necessarily for teachers.Ray Carter | July 30, 2025
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Law & Principles, Culture & the Family
Federal court ruling buoys Oklahoma anti-discrimination law
Oklahoma lawmakers passed Senate Bill 658 to ensure that devout Christians are not disqualified from serving as adoptive or foster parents simply because they hold traditional beliefs about gender and sexuality. A recent federal court ruling bolsters the new law.Ray Carter | July 28, 2025
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Budget & Tax
SQ 832: National costs, local consequences
State Question 832, appearing on Oklahoma’s June 2026 ballot, proposes a steep minimum-wage hike that would tie future increases to the cost of living in high-priced urban areas like San Francisco and New York.Curtis Shelton | July 28, 2025
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Budget & Tax
Casinos win big while Oklahomans pick up the tab?
Despite earning $7.4 billion in gaming revenue in FY 2023, Oklahoma’s tribal casinos paid the state only $208 million—an effective tax rate of just 2.8%. That’s far lower than the taxes paid by everyday Oklahomans on income and basic goods.Ray Carter | July 28, 2025
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Law & Principles
Oklahoma Supreme Court says McGirt ruling has limits
In a major clarification of legal jurisdiction, the Oklahoma Supreme Court has ruled that the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2020 McGirt v. Oklahoma decision—which applied only to federal criminal law—does not extend to civil or tax matters.Jonathan Small | July 25, 2025
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Agriculture, Economy
Critics say proposed minimum-wage hike would export California’s problems to Oklahoma
A new Oklahoma ballot proposal, State Question 832, would dramatically raise the state’s minimum wage by tying it to the cost of living in expensive urban areas like San Francisco and New York City.Ray Carter | July 23, 2025