Oklahoma News
After deadly Texas floods, why Oklahoma's emergency managers 'think of the worst' when preparing for storms: As Texas officials investigate how more than 100 people died during an overnight flash flood on the Fourth of July weekend, some Oklahomans could be wondering if that kind of tragedy is possible here. [The Oklahoman]
- Over 160 people still missing after deadly Texas floods; Abbott deflects blame question [USA Today]
- Texas lawmakers failed to pass a bill to improve local disaster warning systems this year [Texas Tribune via Oklahoma Voice]
- First Watch: Stuff You Should Know: $2 billion in proposed NOAA budget cuts [Oklahoma Watch]
State Government News
Oklahoma state park restaurants closed until further notice following dispute: State park restaurants have been closed following a contract dispute with the vendor, officials announced Tuesday. The Lookout Kitchen was awarded the state park restaurant contracts following the dispute with Swadley's. [Oklahoma Voice]
- Oklahoma State Park restaurants to close once again [KOSU]
- Tourism and Recreation Department closes restaurants at 6 state parks [Tulsa World]
Critics: Lawmakers spent millions on projects that are 'not moving Oklahoma forward': Critics said the late-session vote to allocate $5 million to build a sculpture park in Edmond, $4 million to relocate a World War II submarine in Muskogee and $1.8 million to make infrastructure improvements at an industrial park in Frederick amount to pork-barrel spending that benefits constituents living in Republican districts. [Oklahoma Voice]
Southwestern Oklahoma to see transportation, infrastructure improvement under new budget: The $12.6 billion budget for fiscal year 2026 will increase education spending and fund improvements for county roads, bridges and infrastructure in southwestern Oklahoma. Lawmakers said they will also spend more than $300 million to buy a private prison in Lawton. [Southwest Ledger]
Lawsuit seeks to make portion of Will Rogers Turnpike free: The lawsuit, filed by former state Sen. Stratton Taylor and Cherokee Nation Tribal Councilman Kevin Easley Jr., claims state law requires the portion of the turnpike between the Catoosa interchange to just east of the Claremore exit to be a free road. [Tulsa World]
Federal Government News
SNAP and Medicaid Cuts Leave Thousands of Oklahomans at Risk, Advocates Say: The bill, which Trump signed on Friday, features bundled tax cuts of $4.5 trillion over 10 years that are mostly offset by Medicaid cuts of $1.7 trillion and approximately $186 billion less for Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) – the hardest hit programs in the bill. [The Oklahoma Eagle]
Federal judge quickly rules in favor of Planned Parenthood in suit over Medicaid funding: The federal government cannot withhold Medicaid funding from Planned Parenthood for at least the next two weeks, after a district court judge issued a temporary restraining order the same day the organization filed a lawsuit. [Oklahoma Voice]
- Judge halts provision blocking Medicaid funds to Planned Parenthood amid intense backlash [Fox 25]
Planned Parenthood sues Trump administration officials over 'defunding' provision in budget bill: Days after President Donald Trump signed a massive budget bill, attorneys for Planned Parenthood Federation of America and its state members in Massachusetts and Utah filed a lawsuit Monday challenging a provision they say will affect more than 1 million patients who use their clinics across the U.S. [Oklahoma Voice]
Trump administration ends protected status for Honduras, Nicaragua: U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem ended temporary protections Monday for nationals from Nicaragua and Honduras, opening up roughly 76,000 people to deportations by early September. [Oklahoma Voice]
Supreme Court lets Trump move forward with large-scale staff cuts for now: The Supreme Court on July 8 lifted a federal judge's order pausing the Trump administration's large-scale staffing cuts and agency restructuring, boosting the president's campaign to downsize and reshape the federal government. [USA Today]
No tax on tips: How does it work? How much can I save? See what Trump's new bill means: The passage of the "one big beautiful bill" last week signaled a promise from President Donald Trump that workers would be able to keep more of what they earn by making tips and overtime wages completely tax-free. For the hundreds of thousands who rely on those "extras" to pay the bills, that sounds like a big deal. But who benefits? [The Oklahoman]
Tribal Nations News
July tribal election preview: Where the Five Tribes' 2025 election cycles stand: With the criminal and civil jurisdictional impacts of the McGirt decision still being litigated, each of the Five Tribes is working through its regular election cycle this summer. [NonDoc]
'We didn't kill enough Indians': Ann Coulter comments nothing new: Conservative political pundit Ann Coulter sparked backlash from Native leaders Sunday, July 6 after posting on her X account, "We didn't kill enough Indians." Coulter's statement immediately drew criticism from Native leaders across the country, including Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin, Jr. [ICT]
Muscogee Nation sues Henryetta over prosecutions of tribal citizens: The Muscogee Nation on Tuesday filed a lawsuit against the city of Henryetta, alleging the prosecutions of tribal citizens there by the city violates federal law. [Tulsa World]
'McGirt' decision has reshaped Indigenous sovereignty in Oklahoma: Indian Country in Oklahoma was redefined five years ago today through the U.S. Supreme Court's McGirt v. Oklahoma ruling. The ruling determined that much of Eastern Oklahoma is, in fact, an Indian Reservation. [KOSU]
Opinion: Trump's Immigration Theater Ignores Whose Land 'Alligator Alcatraz' Really Is: On July 1, President Donald Trump visited a newly unveiled deportation facility in the Florida Everglades alongside Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem—the former South Dakota governor who was banned by tribal nations during her final year in office. The Trump administration has dubbed the site "Alligator Alcatraz." [Levi Rickert / Native News Online]
Voting and Election News
Lawsuit Slams Oklahoma Law as 'Unconstitutional Sabotage' of Open Primaries: Two Oklahoma veterans – one a pediatrician, the other a U.S. Coast Guard commander – have filed a legal challenge to SB 1027 in Oklahoma, a law they say unconstitutionally targets their statewide citizen initiative to implement open primaries, State Question 836 (SQ 836). [Independent Voter News]
Education News
Oklahoma superintendent mandates free meals for students: The Oklahoma State Department of Education will mandate that each school district fully fund student meals using existing state and federal operational dollars. [The Journal Record]
- Oklahoma schools ordered to fund free student meals with no new funding [News on 6]
- Walters slammed for unfunded school lunch mandate critics say he has no authority to enforce [KFOR]
- OSDE to require free school lunches without new funding, drawing mixed reactions [News 9]
- 'It's not realistic': Oklahoma superintendents say finding millions for free lunches just isn't possible [KOCO]
- Opinion: Ryan Walters makes political theater out of school meals [Ginnie Graham / Tulsa World]
- Opinion: Oklahoma classrooms go unfunded while Ryan Walters makes another mess [Former State Rep. Mark McBride / The Oklahoman]
Economic impact of Oklahoma higher ed tops $14 billion, study finds: Every dollar the Oklahoma Legislature invests in the state's public higher education system produces over $17 in economic output, a new study found. [Oklahoma Voice]
Health News
Do states with fewer gun laws and more guns have higher suicide rates?: Yes. A KFF analysis of CDC data divided the states equally into three groups — those with the most, moderate, and the fewest firearm law provisions — and found that states with the fewest gun law provisions had twice the gun suicide rate of states with the most, at a rate of 10.8 per 100,000 people. [Oklahoma Watch]
Opinion: Our crisis of confidence in scientific research should alarm everyone about OMRF: There is presently a crisis of confidence in all our institutions including those devoted to scientific research. This should alarm everyone. We are literally living longer and healthier lives owing to previous scientific advances. [Philip Silverman / The Oklahoman]
Criminal Justice News
Oklahoma Department of Corrections Fights to Prevent Medical Parole Hearing for Dying Prisoner: In 2021, to save taxpayer money and show mercy to inmates who had little time left to live and posed no risk to others, legislators revised Oklahoma's medical parole law to make compassionate release easier to achieve. For reasons that remain unclear, the revised law backfired; the number of successful medical parole applications has fallen since 2021. [Oklahoma Watch]
Oklahoma Highway Patrol to shift resources out of major metros, local police caught by surprise: The Oklahoma State Department of Public Safety announced it will be shifting highway patrol resources out of the state's major metros. The hope is for local police departments to take over the job, but they're unprepared. [KOSU]
County's juvenile detention center no longer on probation: Almost exactly a year after Tulsa County commissioners took control over the county's juvenile detention center, the facility is back in the good graces of the Oklahoma Department of Juvenile Affairs. [Tulsa World]
Housing & Economic Opportunity News
Opinion: Oklahoma perpetuates a unique form of apartheid due to environmental racism: Zoning has consistently shunted the poor and marginalized into neighborhoods and municipalities with the most environmental hazards and the worst public services. [Mike Altshuler / The Oklahoman]
Community News
Opinion: The one thing Mark Zuckerberg could do to change discussions forever: What if when a story link is posted on Facebook, no one is allowed to comment on Facebook until they click the link and actually read the story? If we learned to be informed before we spoke, what could happen? [Tulsa World Executive Editor Jason Collington / Tulsa World]
Local Headlines
- Guymon water shortage: What to know about cause, where to find water [The Oklahoman]
- Hear from Edmond City Council members at new City Hall for 'Edmond Matters' sessions: How to go [The Oklahoman]
- OKC doubling budget to tackle surge of water main breaks and leaks [The Oklahoman]
- OKC's Mayor David Holt begins tenure as leader of nation's mayors [The Journal Record]
- This Oklahoma City soda company is a cultural revival. What's next for AfroPop? [The Oklahoman]
- Cry Baby Hill statue to get new home as other Route 66-themed projects not moving forward [Tulsa World]
