OKLAHOMA CITY (April 22nd) – Rep. Kevin West, R-Moore, on Monday won passage of legislation that prohibits the governor from closing any business during a pandemic without documented scientific evidence that the nature of the business actually contributes to the spread of the disease.
Senate Bill 672 now moves to the governor's desk for his consideration of signing it into law.
OKLAHOMA CITY (May 23, 2024)—More than four years after Paycom’s lawsuit against the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs was originally filed, Paycom’s attorneys at the McAfee & Taft law firm have just now realized they want to take more depositions in the case.
Attorneys with McAfee & Taft have filed a motion requesting depositions from three staff members at OCPA and one OCPA board member. One of the OCPA staff members that McAfee & Taft lawyers want to depose did not even work for OCPA four years ago when Paycom first filed its lawsuit.
Washington, D.C. (August 1st, 2023) – Congressman Josh Brecheen and Senator James Lankford demanded answers from the Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery after it was discovered Planned Parenthood received $20 million in COVID relief through the Provider Relief Fund (PRF).
“It is obvious that Planned Parenthood did not need or qualify for COVID relief money when these taxpayer funds were designed to assist health care providers who were negatively affected by COVID lockdowns. Planned Parenthood should not be receiving any of our tax dollars in the first place and it would be incredibly concerning if it provided false or misleading information in order to get these funds. I am proud to join fellow Oklahoman, Senator James Lankford in demanding answers and accountability for Americans’ hard-earned taxpayer dollars,” said Congressman Josh Brecheen.
The Daily Signal’s Mary Margaret Olohan wrote an exclusive report on the letter, which you can read here.
Lankford, Brecheen Demand Investigation into COVID Relief Going to Planned Parenthood
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK (August 1st, 2023) – Senator James Lankford (R-OK) and Representative Josh Brecheen (R-OK) led their colleagues in the Senate and House in a letter to Inspector General (IG) for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Christi Grimm regarding more than $20 million in Provider Relief Funds (PRF) issued to Planned Parenthood under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The Members ask the IG to review the funds to “determine whether the organization provided false or misleading information to obtain access to PRF funds.”
The Members wrote in their letter, “Congress intentionally designed the CARES Act so that no federal funding appropriated through the bill could be used on abortion… This organization did not possess a financial need for funds distributed through the PRF, nor should taxpayer dollars be given toward the provision of abortions. We request that you review the applications submitted by Planned Parenthood to determine whether the organization provided false or misleading information to obtain access to PRF funds. If it is discovered that Planned Parenthood intentionally falsified information on its applications, we ask that you submit a criminal or civil referral to the US Department of Justice.”
The following Senators joined Lankford, Brecheen, and their House colleagues in sending the letter: Jim Risch (R-ID), Tim Scott (R-SC), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), JD Vance (R-OH), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), and Marco Rubio (R-FL).
Lankford remains a strong voice standing up for life in the US Senate and has consistently pushed back against Americans’ dollars going to Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers. During the pandemic, Lankford joined Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) and Republican members of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC) to demand information from Small Business Administration Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman regarding Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans that were illegally obtained and received by Planned Parenthood affiliates across the United States.
Lankford recently introduced a bicameral bill to clarify that HHS cannot discriminate against Title X grantees, including states, for their stance on protecting life. On the one-year anniversary of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, Lankford spoke on the Senate floor to ask the simple question: when does life begin? Lankford also wrote an opinion piece for National Review to encourage pro-life Americans to keep up the work to make abortion not just illegal, but unthinkable.
You can read the full letter HERE.
Ouch. This audit is pretty bad. State Auditor Cindy Byrd has released an audit of federally-funded grants (mainly COVID relief/stimulus money), finding about $30,000,000 in "questioned costs". This audit is federally-mandated, and could end up with the State of Oklahoma having to repay the misspent funds.
It pretty much comes down to an atmosphere of lackadaisical oversight, careless implementation, and seemingly outright intentions to flout spending rules. A proto-school choice program pushed by Gov. Stitt and then-Secretary of Education (now State Superintendent) Ryan Walters draws specific attention in the scathing report.
Here are some additional news articles to read on the audit:
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK (June 27, 2023) Oklahoma State Auditor & Inspector (SAI) Cindy Byrd released today the Federal Single Audit of expenditures made during SFY 2021 which includes pandemic funds. This annual audit is a federally-mandated examination of how the State of Oklahoma spends federal grant money and whether the State complied with federal regulations.
A state’s citizens have the right to self-government. They also have the right to hold government officials accountable.
Most Oklahomans support both concepts. But they are under attack via a proposed federal regulation related to declaring a “public health emergency.”
Fortunately, Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond is pushing back.
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK (Dec. 23rd) – Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today announced a huge victory he secured to protect the right of religious liberty for our heroes in the Armed Forces. After receiving a commitment from the Department of Defense (DOD) Secretary Lloyd Austin that all members who had requested a religious accommodation from the COVID-19 vaccine who have been waiting on a response, will now get the answers they have been waiting for and be allowed to return to their duties.
WASHINGTON, DC – Among many priorities secured for Oklahoma’s military installations, Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today highlighted two major overall wins for Oklahoma service members and veterans and for the nation in the Fiscal Year 2023 James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act (FY23 NDAA), otherwise known as the “defense bill.” Lankford secured language to roll back the existing COVID-19 vaccine mandate for military service members in all branches of service.
Oklahoma’s 2022 National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) test results show Oklahoma’s academic outcomes have plummeted, have fallen far faster than most states, and are at levels below nearly all states.
Oklahoma’s NAEP score for fourth-grade reading was on a strong upswing and was actually above the national average in 2015, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Joy Hofmeister’s first year in office. It’s been downhill ever since. Today, only three states do worse.
OKLAHOMA CITY (Oct. 24th) – American Federation for Children – Oklahoma (AFC-OK) today called on state leaders in education to pursue systemic change to address plummeting student achievement.
A report released today by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) shows alarming declines in student performance in both math and reading in Oklahoma. While attributable in part to the COVID-19 pandemic, student performance in Oklahoma has declined throughout Superintendent Joy Hofmeister’s tenure, which began in 2015.
GOVERNOR STITT, COMMISSIONER REED CLARIFY KIDS IN OKLAHOMA NOT REQUIRED TO GET COVID VACCINE TO ATTEND SCHOOL
OKLAHOMA CITY (Oct.20, 2022) – Governor Kevin Stitt released the following statement after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) approved adding the COVID-19 vaccine to childhood immunization schedules.
“Regardless of what the CDC in Washington says, nothing changes in Oklahoma and kids are not required to get a COVID vaccine to attend school,” said Governor Stitt. “It’s up to parents to decide how to protect their child from viruses and as long as I am governor, we will never force kids to get a COVID vaccine to go to school.”
During the COVID surges starting in 2020, advocates of school shutdown insisted any associated learning loss would be short-lived and easily recovered.
That was a false promise as state testing now shows beyond a doubt.
This year’s state testing was the second annual round since COVID hit in spring 2020. The 2022 results, recently released, show students remain well below the pre-pandemic norm. And that’s not because the pre-pandemic numbers in Oklahoma were stellar.
OKLAHOMA CITY (Sept. 22nd) – Rep. Logan Phillips, R-Mounds, on Thursday praised the Oklahoma House and Senate Joint Committee on Pandemic Relief Funding for their focus on addressing broadband issues through projects they advanced. The projects advanced during the joint committee's meeting on Tuesday will now be considered when the Legislature reconvenes it's special session to appropriate American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars.
Good to see Governor Stitt's campaign getting on the airwaves given how much Hofmeister and the Dems have been hammering him. The most recent poll showed a close race, but Stitt should be able to widen the gap once his campaign really gets rolling.
September 22, 2022 (Oklahoma City, Okla.) – The Stitt for Governor 2022 campaign launched today a new statewide television advertisement titled, “Greater Things,” which highlights Governor Stitt’s leadership to keep Oklahoma’s economy and schools safely open during the 2020 pandemic. As most of the nation shuttered for prolonged periods under liberal big government mandates, Governor Stitt led Oklahoma to a safe and prosperous recovery.
“Stitt kept kids safely in schools and our businesses open– and just look how it’s helping all across Oklahoma: Children learning, small businesses growing,” says the narrator.
While Governor Stitt’s opponent was advocating for mask mandates and shutting down essential services such as in-person learning, Governor Stitt deployed resources with Top Ten outcomes to keep Oklahoma’s economy open and children safely in schools.
With Governor Stitt at the helm, the State of Oklahoma:
The narrator continues, “with Kevin Stitt as Governor, we’re poised for even greater things.”
Governor Stitt’s COVID policies helped 100,000 Oklahomans get back to work and resulted in the 3rd lowest unemployment rate in the nation. Today, Oklahoma continues to experience its lowest unemployment rate in State history and its greatest workforce participation rate in state history.
OKLAHOMA CITY (Sept. 20th) – The Joint Committee on Pandemic Relief Funding on Tuesday advanced a comprehensive slate of projects to the full Legislature for consideration in an upcoming special session.
The committee's approvals, combined with previously approved projects, resulted in recommendation of over 60 projects totaling nearly all of Oklahoma state government's $1.87 billion share of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding.
WASHINGTON, DC – Senator James Lankford (R-OK) joined Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) to introduce the Protect Our Children’s Schools Act to enhance school safety and prevent school-based violence. The legislation would allow schools to use unspent previously appropriated federal COVID-19 education-related funding to improve school security. Rep. Randy Weber (R-TX) introduced a companion bill in the House of Representatives.
WASHINGTON, DC – Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today issued a statement following his no vote on the Safer Communities Act, the proposed gun legislation being rushed through the Senate this week:
Lankford, Cruz, Colleagues Defend Service Members from Vaccine Punishment
WASHINGTON, DC – Senator James Lankford (R-OK) joined Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) and 12 of their colleagues to introduce the Allowing Military Exemptions, Recognizing Individual Concerns About New Shots (AMERICANS) Act of 2022. The bill counters the Biden Administration’s efforts to coerce and punish service members who decline the COVID-19 vaccine and introduces accountability measures in response to DOD efforts to undermine transparency.
OKLAHOMA CITY - Attorney General John O’Connor is joining 20 other states, led by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, in a multistate action against President Biden’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention continued use of the unlawful mask mandate on public transportation. Attorney General O’Connor argues that the mandate exceeds the authority of Biden’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Biden administration continues to use a failed interpretation of a quarantine statute—that has been ruled against in court several times—to authorize the CDC’s rule. The continuation of the CDC’s unlawful mask mandate harms the states. It also interferes with state law in places like Oklahoma, which has imposed laws banning forced masking in public schools. The mandate also runs against reason, as now even the states with the most stringent COVID-19 policies are beginning to lift indoor mask mandates.
“The CDC's mask mandate is a blatant misuse of power,” said Attorney General O’Connor. “This mandate reflects the priorities of federal bureaucrats who are entirely out of touch with the American people. The Biden Administration must end this unconstitutional mask mandate for public transportation.”
OKLAHOMA CITY –The Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) is starting its move toward the endemic phase of the pandemic. Throughout the transition there will be gradual changes to how and when OSDH reports some of its data.
Starting this week, OSDH will discontinue its daily situation updates that monitor the daily case counts. Instead, the OSDH will release data on Thursdays. The weekly report will provide an average based on weekly accumulations.
The weekly epidemiology report will continue and will also be released on Thursdays.
During the omicron surge, it became increasingly evident that the daily case count number was many days delayed and at best only represented a portion of what we knew must be the true current case count numbers. Many factors contributed to that, including lags in laboratory reporting, at-home testing, asymptomatic cases and those who may feel sick and choose not to get tested.
“Adjusting data reporting will be an evolving process that ensures we are monitoring key data in Oklahoma and across the country to best prepare for possible surges,” said Keith Reed, interim commissioner of health. “I want to reassure Oklahomans that we will continue to be vigilant when it comes to COVID-19 and the safety of all the communities we serve.”
COVID rates have plunged in the past month and the worst may be behind us. Now policymakers should adopt significant reforms to allow Oklahoma to grow and thrive in the pandemic’s aftermath.
At the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs, we’ve released a new study that provides a blueprint. It has three major planks: eliminate the personal income tax, reform our state’s dysfunctional regulatory system, and put parents in charge of education with a universal Education Savings Account.
When it comes to taxation, the old adage holds true: If you want less of something, tax it more. Given that the income tax is a penalty on earnings—from work, investment, and risk taking—that means our state discourages job growth with the income tax. It doesn’t have to be that way.
If policymakers reduce Oklahoma’s income tax to zero and offset that change by broadening the sales tax and making sales tax rate adjustments (if policymakers want a revenue-neutral reform), our estimates show those changes would rapidly increase the state’s GDP by almost 3% and have a positive GDP growth impact of around a quarter-percent per year. Over 10 years’ time, Oklahoma’s GDP would increase by more than $13 billion, or more than 100,000 jobs.
