Articles
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Budget & Tax, Law & Principles
Stitt’s fiscal views a culture shock for Legislature?
Since Stitt entered office, the state government has shifted from having massive annual budget shortfalls to having historic levels of savings, and from constantly enacting tax hikes to debating tax reductions.Ray Carter | June 1, 2022
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Budget & Tax, Law & Principles
GOP struggles to defend slush fund, projects for ‘rural’ OKC
With only days left in this year’s legislative session, Oklahoma state lawmakers deposited $250 million into a “slush fund”-style account with no legal restrictions on how that money can be spent.Ray Carter | June 1, 2022
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Budget & Tax
Stitt wins on vetoes as lawmakers agree to tax-cut session
Gov. Kevin Stitt’s last-minute vetos and call to instead enact meaningful tax cuts has been met with agreement from legislative leaders. But state House leaders made clear they aren’t happy about it.Ray Carter | May 27, 2022
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Budget & Tax
Senate approves rollback of Fallin-era tax hike
The Oklahoma Senate has voted to repeal one of the many tax increases imposed by the GOP Legislature during the administration of former Gov. Mary Fallin, tacitly conceding that prior tax increases are now contributing to the inflationary stresses harming working families statewide.Ray Carter | May 19, 2022
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Budget & Tax, Education
Record school spending decried as insufficient
The state budget announced by Oklahoma legislative leaders this week includes record funding for public schools without enactment of any reforms that would empower parents and increase school choice opportunities.Ray Carter | May 18, 2022
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Budget & Tax
Defined-contribution plans protect taxpayers
Defined-benefit retirement plans have been losing favor in the private sector for decades.Curtis Shelton | May 4, 2022
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Budget & Tax, Education
School spending surge brings complaints, not improvement
Education spending and teacher pay are up dramatically, but so far Oklahomans are simply paying more for less.Ray Carter | May 4, 2022
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Budget & Tax, Culture & the Family
An evaluation of LOFT’s report on Oklahoma’s state parks
LOFT’s report is a solid piece of work, but some key insights are missed or the report fails to stress them, and some of its recommendations are impractical or lack focus.Byron Schlomach, Ph.D. | April 22, 2022
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Budget & Tax, Law & Principles
Senate analysis refutes House member claims on pension bill
Legislation that would increase the state employer match for government workers’ retirement contributions has won approval in the Senate Appropriations Committee and now awaits a vote from the full Senate.Ray Carter | April 14, 2022
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Budget & Tax
Why defined-contribution retirement plans are preferable to defined-benefit plans
Oklahoma’s DC system creates a more stable system that retirees can rely on while providing financial responsibility for taxpayers who fund the system.Curtis Shelton | April 14, 2022