State Government News AG: Validity of vote on religious school funding questioned: The Oklahoma Attorney General's Office is questioning the validity of a state board's decision to approve the first publicly funded religious charter school in the U.S. At the conclusion of a three-hour Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board meeting Monday, a 3-2 vote approved a second effort this year from the Catholic Archdiocese of Oklahoma City and the Diocese of Tulsa to create the St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School. [Journal Record] Stitt vetoes highlight reignited fight on state-tribal tobacco compacts: Disputes between the state of Oklahoma and sovereign tribal nations over tobacco taxation date back to the 1980s and have spurred critical cases at the highest courts in the land. Now, as other questions linger about civil jurisdiction following the 2020 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in McGirt v. Oklahoma, the state and tribes could be barreling back into the courtroom for new showdowns over compacting authority, tobacco taxation and reservation designations. [NonDoc] PSO, others hit with possible class action over selling info and "junk solicitations": Three companies, including Public Service Company of Oklahoma, are facing a proposed class action lawsuit from a Tulsa resident for allegedly selling customer information and sending "junk solicitations" to PSO customers with misleading information, according to a petition filed Monday. [Public Radio Tulsa] Chamber praises elimination of franchise tax: During the recent special session of the Oklahoma Legislature, lawmakers passed budget legislation that would repeal the franchise tax. Without action by the governor, it became law on Friday. In a release, proponents of business interests in the city said the action reflected studies conducted by the State Chamber Research Foundation and Tax Foundation as part of a comprehensive tax reform plan aimed at making Oklahoma a more pro-growth tax environment for existing and incoming businesses. [Journal Record] $10M in ARPA funds for Oklahoma's arts is dubbed 'transformational investment': As the 2023 regular session wound down, the state Legislature approved a proposal investing $10 million in state American Rescue Plan Act funding in rebuilding Oklahoma's arts and cultural sector. [The Oklahoman] Criminal Justice News Van Treese family, prosecutors ask U.S. Supreme Court to let Glossip execution advance: A murder victim's survivors and prosecutors have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to let Richard Glossip's execution move forward. The friend of the court brief was filed Monday on behalf of the victim's family and the Oklahoma District Attorneys Association. [Tulsa World] Oklahoma death-penalty opponents urge clemency for Tulsa killer Jemaine Cannon: Opponents of the death penalty are urging the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board to grant clemency to a man who has spent 27 years on death row after being convicted of stabbing a Tulsa woman to death. [Tulsa World] - Jemaine Cannon to go before Oklahoma parole board in death sentence case [The Oklahoman]
Former Oklahoma jail guard sentenced in excessive force case: A former Grady County jail guard has been ordered to serve four years on probation after pleading guilty in an excessive force case. [The Oklahoman] Economic Opportunity Could Fort Worth, Denver be models for OKC in affordable housing?: The Oklahoman's Steve Lackmeyer, joined by Mark Gillett Dan Straughan, executive director of the Oklahoma City Housing Authority, fielded reader questions Friday during Lackmeyer's weekly OKC Central Live Chat. [The Oklahoman] General News Column: We need leaders who have the courage to act independently and not out of self-interest: True leaders look to our legacy as a great nation, though far from perfect, to insure freedoms for all Americans regardless. However, the divisions we have are being accelerated at a record pace by culturally conservative legislation sweeping across red states including Oklahoma. [Phil G. Busey Sr. Guest Column / The Oklahoman] Oklahoma Local News - Oklahoma City Council approves 2024 budget in 7-2 vote [KOSU]
- City Council approves OKC FY 2024 budget, tables medical waste facility permit [NonDoc]
- OKC Council approves $1.9 billion budget [Journal Record]
- Oklahoma City approves $1.9 billion budget, includes new fire department transport program [The Oklahoman]
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