Articles
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Budget & Tax
TSET’s expanding budget spurs debate on accountability, mission creep
Oklahoma’s Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust has quietly grown into a $2.09 billion public fund. As TSET’s budget and ambitions expand, lawmakers warn the trust has drifted far beyond its original mission.Curtis Shelton | April 7, 2026
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Budget & Tax, Health Care
Reform bills advance as Medicaid expansion threatens Oklahoma budget
With Medicaid expansion costs ballooning and warnings that a future shift in the federal match could saddle Oklahoma with an extra $1 billion a year, a state Senate committee has overwhelmingly approved two measures that would let voters reconsider the 2020 expansion.Ray Carter | April 7, 2026
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Budget & Tax, Health Care
Oklahoma budget leaders say Medicaid expansion threatens school funding
Oklahoma lawmakers say the soaring price tag of Medicaid expansion for able-bodied adults has become a budgetary time bomb. Two proposed ballot measures would give lawmakers room to reform the program.Ray Carter | April 6, 2026
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Budget & Tax
Oklahoma’s TSET under scrutiny as reports question effectiveness, administrative costs
With Oklahoma lawmakers advancing measures to repurpose TSET earnings, the state is now openly debating whether the trust’s mission still makes sense a quarter-century after its creation.Ray Carter | April 6, 2026
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Budget & Tax, Education
Budget agreement supports education, seeks welfare reform
Gov. Kevin Stitt and legislative leaders announced a $12.7 billion state budget agreement that increases spending by 1.27 percent and pours more than $230 million in new funding into public education.Ray Carter | April 1, 2026
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Budget & Tax, Economy
Report says Oklahoma is top 10 for low taxes, yet rivals without income tax post bigger gains
A new report ranks Oklahoma among the 10 states with the lowest overall tax burden, but several no-income-tax states still outperform Oklahoma on measures such as migration, job growth, and rising income levels.Ray Carter | April 1, 2026
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Budget & Tax, Health Care
Oklahoma’s Medicaid bill comes due
The Obamacare Medicaid expansion was sold as a program fueled by “free” federal dollars, but Oklahoma is now seeing the real bill. Spending at the Oklahoma Health Care Authority has climbed by nearly $3.5 billion since 2020.Curtis Shelton | February 18, 2026
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Budget & Tax, Law & Principles
Oklahoma’s ‘path to zero’ income tax survives first test in legislature
A proposal to repeal Oklahoma’s “path to zero” income-tax law—an automatic trigger that reduces rates whenever state revenues surge—failed in the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee on a 2–9 party-line vote.Ray Carter | February 16, 2026
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Budget & Tax, Health Care
Medicaid costs surge, squeezing Oklahoma’s budget
Oklahoma’s Medicaid program has become one of the fastest-growing pressures on the state budget, crowding out other budget priorities.Curtis Shelton | February 6, 2026
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Budget & Tax, Education
Munson’s claims of education cuts rebutted by revenue reports
House Democratic Leader Cyndi Munson claims that recent school-funding increases are simply a recovery from “massive cuts” a decade ago—but state revenue records don’t support her story. It’s not the first time her claims have been contradicted by data.Ray Carter | February 5, 2026