A socialist organization is among the entities promoting State Question 832, which would mandate rapid increases in Oklahoma’s minimum wage based on the cost of living in places like New York City and San Francisco. State Question 832 would require continual increases in Oklahoma’s minimum wage based on increases in the cost of living in…
OKLAHOMA CITY – the House passed two bills ensuring taxpayer-funded assistance programs are reserved for those who are lawfully present in the United States. The measures advance the state’s commitment to Safeguarding Eligibility, Compliance and Use of Resources Efficiently (SECURE) when administering state and federal assistance. “Oklahoma taxpayers should never be forced to subsidize benefits…
OKLAHOMA CITY – The House Education Oversight Committee passed a pair of higher education reforms in House Bill 3700 would require state colleges and universities to implement a policy requiring students’ grades to be based only on academic performance, including attendance, and not on a student’s opinions, beliefs or conduct unrelated to academic situations. Caldwell…
OKLAHOMA CITY – Rep. Jim Shaw, R-Chandler, secured committee passage of a bill that would add criminal penalties to Oklahoma’s existing prohibitions on hostile foreign ownership of land. While state law already restricts certain foreign ownership of property, Shaw said current statutes lack meaningful criminal enforcement mechanisms. House Bill 1453 would close that gap by…
OKLAHOMA CITY- The Oklahoma Senate Education Committee unanimously approved Senate Bill 1366 on Tuesday. The bill, authored by Senator Dusty Deevers, R-Elgin, would establish a statewide high-dosage tutoring program to serve students in grades K-8 who are falling behind. Under the bill, students in participating districts will benefit from focused, small-group tutoring designed to offer…
With Oklahoma’s third-grade reading outcomes among the worst in the nation, state lawmakers have advanced legislation that requires early intervention for struggling readers in elementary school and mandatory retention for students who end the third grade reading years below grade level. House Speaker Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow, said Oklahoma cannot afford to continue its current trajectory….
Late last week Tulsa Public Schools released a statement that it was asking its Board to layoff 50 positions from the administrative staff. With fewer students enrolled and budgets to be balanced with the new fiscal year beginning in July, these staff would still have their contracts honored until the end of the fiscal year…
On April 7, Broken Arrow voters will consider eight propositions as part of the Build Our Future BA 2026 General Obligation (GO) Bond. Before the election, the city will hold several Public Meetings to provide clear information about each proposition, helping voters make informed decisions. Four forums are scheduled at different locations, and all residents…
Legislation preventing illegal aliens from accessing taxpayer-funded Medicaid coverage has easily cleared its first legislative hurdle. House Bill 4423, by House Speaker Kyle Hilbert, requires the Oklahoma Health Care Authority to verify a Medicaid applicant’s citizenship status using the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) system. Under the bill, no benefits may be provided to…
OKLAHOMA CITY – Rep. Collin Duel, R-Guthrie, on Tuesday unanimously passed a bill in committee that would criminalize a straw purchase of property on behalf of a foreign national. House Bill 3495 would make it unlawful to knowingly and willfully purchase or attempt to obtain any property on behalf of a foreign national. Punishment would…
Oklahoma faces workforce challenges. Our college system should play a crucial role in addressing that challenge and fueling economic growth. Instead, the University of Oklahoma is receiving national attention for devolving into academic self-parody. Rather than gain renown for producing engineers and scientists, OU is under scrutiny for having a man who identifies as a…
[Analysis of history and science influence on political and religious attitudes.] It’s a small world. We were out on a fine, beautiful Saturday afternoon, headed over to our lab to work on the ham radio repeater. An event was underway at the Mountain Venue. We noticed one of the security guards managing traffic into…
Each year, as summer winds down and the first Monday in September approaches, we pause to honor the contributions of workers across the country. Labor Day is far more than a long weekend, it is a powerful reminder of the value of work, the dignity of those who labor, and the importance of fair and…
Oklahoma is taking in a lot of tax money. In fact, during the last year, the state has gotten so much extra money, it has as much as a billion dollars in the Rainy Day Fund (and other accounts). That’s a billion with a “B.” Gov. Kevin Stitt, to his credit, wants to sit tight…
[Looking at history and our area’s unique political and religious attitudes.] Calvin, the inquisitive 6-year-old asks his imaginary philosopher tiger, “It says here that ‘Religion is the opiate of the masses.’ What do you suppose that means?” The TV replies, ‘It means Karl Marx hadn’t seen anything yet.’ Although Marx was making a derogatory…
Monica Granstaff and her family waited 12 years to get high-speed internet access to their farm near Okemah. In early September, the Oklahoma Broadband Office joined her family to witness their first fiber connection. The Granstaff family represents the hundreds of thousands of Oklahomans that will be connected by our grant programs, improving their lives…
The gap between intentions and outcomes can be vast in politics, as the push to raise Oklahoma’s minimum wage demonstrates. Proponents say they want to help struggling citizens at the bottom of the state’s economic ladder. But in practice, their wage-policy preference yanks that ladder out of the hands of those low-income workers, leaving them…
“There is no reason a child cannot read before they are in third grade,” former State Superintendent Joy Hofmeister said in 2019. “But our teachers have to teach based on the science of reading, and that is not happening across this state. It is happening in pockets.” While I disagreed with Hofmeister on many issues,…
In a press release issued earlier this year, House Democratic Leader Cyndi Munson of Oklahoma City declared that Oklahoma ranks “last in the region for teacher pay.” That claim may align with a longstanding stereotype, but not with reality. By any measure, Oklahoma teacher pay is not the last in the region nor anywhere near…
Oklahoma got 54 points from three guards to defeat LSU, 83-67, on Saturday evening at Pete Maravich Assembly Center. It was OU’s largest margin of victory in an SEC road game in its two years in the conference. The Sooners have won four of their last six games and are now 15-14, 5-11 in the…
Day Day Thomas knocked down 7-of-11 3-pointers and scored a season-high 26 points to lead Cincinnati over Oklahoma State, 91-68, on Saturday in Cincinnati. The Bearcats have won five of their last six games and are now 16-13 overall and 8-8 in the Big 12. OSU is 17-12, 5-11 Big 12. The Cowboys have lost…
Three players scored in the 20’s to lead Oral Roberts to a 94-70 win at Kansas City on Saturday. It was the first time since 2017 that ORU had three players with 20 or more points in a game. ORU won three straight games to finish the regular season and improved to 9-22 overall and…
Tulsa had the weekend off, but on the previous Wednesday, the Golden Hurricane crushed Tulane, 90-56, at Devlin Fieldhouse in New Orleans. It was the program’s fourth-largest road win ever and the team matched the program record for 80-point games in a season with its 21st such game, matching the 1983-84 team. The Golden Hurricane…
BRANSON, Missouri – It would be difficult for a stage play to have more impact than the production of Jesus here at Sight & Sound Theatre. The public ministry of Jesus Christ, His miracles, His relationships, His sacrifice on the cross and His resurrection are dramatically portrayed as only Sight & Sound can. Even though…
Vacation plans are on hold and Tulsans’ best options for entertainment due to the coronavirus outbreak are in their own living rooms. Movie theaters closed All the movie theaters in Tulsa – even the Admiral Twin Drive-in – are closed due to the pandemic. Entertainment venues, which tend to draw big crowds, are deemed “non-essential”…
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Nineties country-music hitmaker Joe Diffie died March 29th due to complications related to COVID-19. In all, Diffie charted 18 Top 10 singles, with the majority reaching the top five, including 1993 radio essentials Prop Me Up Beside the Jukebox (If I Die) and iconic song, John Deere Green. Diffie’s popular hits also…
