Articles
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Budget & Tax
LOFT Oversight Committee debates how to measure effectiveness
Members of the Oversight Committee for the Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency (LOFT) voted Tuesday to begin the process of hiring a director for the newly created office, but much of the meeting was spent discussing a more fundamental question: How can officials best measure the effectiveness of LOFT without making it subject to undue political influence?Ray Carter | August 20, 2019
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Budget & Tax
Tribal stances on gaming-fee increase contrast with past tax-increase position
In 2018, some tribal officials were among those urging Oklahomans to “step up” and pay higher taxes. Today, those same tribal entities are opposed to Gov. Kevin Stitt’s call to renegotiate tribal gaming compacts and possibly increase the “exclusivity fee” paid by tribes.Ray Carter | August 5, 2019
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Budget & Tax
Debate over state savings continues
Gov. Kevin Stitt's decision to prioritize savings for future downturns continues to draw objections.Ray Carter | August 2, 2019
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Budget & Tax
Tribal casino and gaming compacts getting renewed attention
Whereas the majority of casinos in other states are commercially owned, Oklahoma’s casino and gaming compacts have effectively established a monopoly for tribal casinos and gaming. Gov. Kevin Stitt believes it’s time to renegotiate the compacts.Jonathan Small & Curtis Shelton | July 31, 2019
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Budget & Tax
For wealth migration, overall tax burden matters
While the income tax rate may be a good indicator of a state’s potential for growth, a state’s overall tax burden is also an important metric to consider when assessing a state’s financial competitiveness.Curtis Shelton | July 24, 2019
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Budget & Tax
Oklahoma sets new record for revenue collections
Oklahoma’s total revenue collections for fiscal year 2019 set a new record at $13.6 billion. Revenue collections grew by $1.4 billion compared to last year’s total.Curtis Shelton | July 24, 2019
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Budget & Tax, Education
Scholarship tax credit accounts for a tiny fraction of Oklahoma’s total tax credits
Oklahoma offers many tax credits, but none have received the kind of attention over the last few years as the tax credit associated with the Oklahoma Equal Opportunity Education Scholarship program.Curtis Shelton | July 16, 2019
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Budget & Tax
Do tax rates matter?
Data collected by Bloomberg and by the group How Money Walks point to a trend in inter-state migration. States with low income-tax rates have, by and large, gained more adjusted gross income compared to states with relatively high income-tax rates.Curtis Shelton | June 25, 2019
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Budget & Tax
Oklahoma increases film subsidies amidst calls for state’s blacklisting
Even as Oklahoma's political leaders cleared the path for millions of more taxpayer dollars to go to entertainment companies, one prominent actress has called for Oklahoma to be blacklisted.Ray Carter | June 19, 2019
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Budget & Tax
Film subsidy debate focuses on finances … and abortion
Though some suggest that film projects may land in Oklahoma as a result of recent pro-life legislation in Georgia, a national expert and some Oklahoma lawmakers are skeptical.Ray Carter | June 13, 2019