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Showing 421 to 440 of 567 article results for “supreme court”
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Budget & Tax
Stop conspiring with zero emissions
The legislature should repeal its zero-emission tax credit for all sources of zero-emission power, not just wind.Byron Schlomach, Ph.D. | January 30, 2018
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Budget & Tax
Use TSET to protect vital services
It’s time to use TSET funds to prioritize rural hospitals, nursing homes, and other vital services without increasing the burden of taxation on Oklahoma families.Jonathan Small | October 25, 2017
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Budget & Tax
Contra Oklahomans’ preference, state government continues to grow
Oklahoma government has been growing, not shrinking. People might question the priorities in the budget or in how specific agencies spend money, but the total burden on Oklahomans is higher than ever.Curtis Shelton | October 18, 2017
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Budget & Tax
“Messaging” matters, so do facts
Representative Leslie Osborn claims Oklahomans are “tired of us doing things the way we’ve always done them.” This begs the question: what has the state been doing?Curtis Shelton | August 28, 2017
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Budget & Tax
Court upholds taxpayer protections
The Oklahoma Supreme Court today struck down the revenue provisions in Senate Bill 845 and, in so doing, upheld limits on legislative power that were added to the Oklahoma Constitution by voters a quarter century ago.Trent England | August 18, 2017
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Budget & Tax, Law & Principles
Court upholds taxpayer protections
The Oklahoma Supreme Court today struck down the revenue provisions in Senate Bill 845 and, in so doing, upheld limits on legislative power that were added to the Oklahoma Constitution by voters a quarter century ago.Trent England | August 10, 2017
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Law & Principles
Oklahoma Supreme Court hears arguments over authority of SQ 640
Supreme Court Justices listened to attorneys argue about whether State Question 640 applies to several revenue-raising measures passed in the final days of the 2017 legislative session.Jay Chilton | August 9, 2017
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OCPA President Jonathan Small responds to Oklahoma Bar Association hypocrisy
In a recent news story, the Oklahoma Bar Association (OBA) criticized the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs (OCPA) for noting OBA bias against former Oklahoma Attorney General and current Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt.August 3, 2017
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Law & Principles
Playground fight ends at Supreme Court
Trinity Lutheran Church operates a preschool in Boone County, Missouri. The state, to encourage tire recycling and improve safety for children, gives grants for resurfacing playgrounds with rubber made from ground-up old tires.Trent England | June 27, 2017
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Budget & Tax, Law & Principles
OCPA announces intent to file Supreme Court challenge of income tax increase
“Here at OCPA, we’ve consistently offered hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of options for addressing the state’s budget shortfall and preserving core services without raising taxes on Oklahomans. We continue to stand with hard-working taxpayers in favor of efficient government services and in defense of the state Constitution.”May 22, 2017
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Education
Keep education–and choice–in the states
The election of Donald Trump as president and the confirmation of longtime school choice leader Betsy DeVos as education secretary are ushering in a major debate about using the federal government to promote school choice.Greg Forster, Ph.D. | April 1, 2017
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Criminal Justice
Next Steps for Criminal Justice Reform
When voters passed State Questions 780 and 781, they spoke loudly and clearly to legislators, district attorneys, and other policymakers.Trent England | January 1, 2017
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Judicial Reform
Shift Power from the Elites to the People: Reform the Judicial Nominating Commission
No federal judges were on the ballot in 2016. Of course, federal judges are never on the ballot, and yet they are routinely an important subject in campaigns for President and U.S. Senate.Trent England | January 1, 2017
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Law & Principles
Judges on the Ballot
The people of Oklahoma have no say in the selection of judges to state appeals courts and the Oklahoma Supreme Court. They do, however, vote on these judges in "retention" elections. Judges on the Oklahoma Supreme Court, Court of Criminal Appeals, and Court of Civil Appeals are thus on the ballot every six years (district court judges are elected and face reelection every four years). While no Oklahoma judge ever has been kicked out this way, growing dissatisfaction with the judiciary has stirred interest in these elections.Trent England | November 4, 2016
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Law & Principles
Voters' Guide to Ballot Measures
A product of the populist era, the Oklahoma Constitution establishes processes for direct democracy. On the November 2016 general election ballot, Oklahoma voters will decide whether to adopt four constitutional amendments and three changes to state statutes. Some of these measures are as simple as restating current law. Others would make complex regulatory changes or change legal standards in future lawsuits. The Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs does not support or oppose ballot measures. To help voters, we are providing accurate descriptions and analysis of what these ballot measures say and will do if adopted by voters.Trent England | September 14, 2016
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Law & Principles
Voters' Guide to Ballot Measures
A product of the populist era, the Oklahoma Constitution establishes processes for direct democracy. On the November 2016 general election ballot, Oklahoma voters will decide whether to adopt four constitutional amendments and three changes to state statutes.Trent England | September 1, 2016
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Education
Commode Core Shows Why We Need School Choice
The Obama administration is bullying the nation’s public schools into allowing students who claim they are transgender to use the bathroom and locker room facilities of the opposite sex. This should be an object lesson to naive education reformers who want greater federal power over schools in order to push higher standards. But it is also something much bigger—it is helping people see that a government school monopoly is unsustainable in a pluralistic society.Greg Forster, Ph.D. | July 22, 2016
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Education, Law & Principles
OCPA Impact Challenges Gist of Boren Penny Tax, SQ 779 Supporters Respond
OKLAHOMA CITY – OCPA Impact, an advocacy organization associated with the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs, filed a challenge to the gist of State Question 779, commonly known as the Boren Penny Tax.Jay Chilton | July 8, 2016
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Higher Education
Higher education serves as jobs program for former elected officials
What becomes of former elected officials who voters have decided their time in office should end? In the case of those officials who funneled taxpayer dollars into the coffers of public universities and colleges – many are hired to superfluous positions with exorbitant salaries within the same system that benefited from their train of taxpayer funds, higher education.June 20, 2016
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Education
Let Families Grade Schools
Want to hurt kids? Put state bureaucrats in charge of evaluating the schools in school choice programs.Greg Forster, Ph.D. | May 1, 2016