Oklahoma News
Board members: TV in Ryan Walters' office displayed nude women during executive session: Two members of the Oklahoma State Board of Education were "shocked and mad" when they saw a video featuring "naked women" on the television screen in Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters' office during the executive session portion of Thursday's meeting. [NonDoc]
- Oklahoma House speaker calls for investigation into nude images on Ryan Walters' TV [The Oklahoman]
- Probe underway after reports of nude women on Oklahoma state superintendent's office TV [Oklahoma Voice]
- Oklahoma officials call for investigation after reports of nude images on Ryan Walters' office TV [StateImpact Oklahoma via KOSU]
As Oklahoma closes last private prison, there are indications 2 may reopen for ICE detainees: CoreCivic, one of the largest private jail operators, has expressed interest in reopening two closed private prison facilities in Sayre and Watonga. As part of the federal reconciliation bill, $45 billion is allocated to open more immigration detention facilities—a significant portion to go to reopen private prisons. It is already in the works in Leavenworth, Kansas, but there is pushback. A lawsuit calls that jail "an absolute hell hole." [KJRH] | [Video via YouTube]
Oklahoma fertility rate trends downward amid economic pressures, low child well-being ranking: Every state saw a decline in its fertility rate in 2023, according to a new report from the Pew Charitable Trusts. Oklahoma saw a nearly 12% drop from just a decade prior. StateImpact's Jillian Taylor spoke with Dave Hamby, the Oklahoma Policy Institute's communications director, about what Oklahomans can learn from the report. [StateImpact via KGOU]
Historic Cuts to SNAP Put 131,000 Oklahomans at Risk of Losing Benefits: President Donald Trump's budget bill brings stricter rules to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the federal food assistance program, and shifts costs to states, putting an estimated 131,000 Oklahomans at risk of losing food benefits. [Oklahoma Watch]
Oklahoma seeks changes to food assistance program (audio): This Week in Oklahoma Politics, KOSU's Michael Cross talks with KOSU agriculture and rural issues reporter Anna Pope about her recent story on Oklahoma asking the U.S. Department of Agriculture to restrict candy and soft drinks from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. [KOSU]
State Government News
Takers and makers, do California and other 'donor' states help others across U.S.?: When it comes to the U.S. tax system, there are maker and taker states. Some states take more federal dollars than they contribute, including Oklahoma. With Oklahoma being a taker state, that adds up to almost $32 billion in federal taxes coming into the state. For every dollar we pay in federal takes, we get about $1.85 back. [KFOR]
State senator hopes to adjust new Oklahoma vehicle title law: A state lawmaker said he hopes to tweak a new state law that no longer provides most Oklahomans with the option to obtain paper copies of their vehicle titles. Lawmakers first passed Senate Bill 836 in 2023, but it didn't take effect until July 1, 2025. The change means that a printed title isn't sent to the owner or lienholder. Instead, an electronic title is generated for vehicles that are bought, sold or transferred. [Oklahoma Voice]
Did Oklahoma turn down federal money to feed low-income kids two summers in a row?: Yes. For 2024 and 2025, Oklahoma opted out of the federal Summer EBT program, also known as Sun Bucks, which provides $120 in grocery benefits per school-age child over the summer to address increased child hunger when schools are out. [Oklahoma Watch]
Opinion: Reflections of top lawmakers from Oklahoma's public policy leader: Every time David Blatt talks about challenges facing Oklahoma, he centers on one point: poverty. The state ranks in the middle nationally for median income but at the bottom in nearly every well-being indicator from education to health. [Ginnie Graham / Tulsa World]
Federal Government News
'Big, beautiful' law draws mostly skeptical reaction in new nonpartisan poll: A majority of Americans believe Republicans' "big, beautiful" law will either hurt them or not make much of a difference, according to a poll released Thursday by the nonpartisan health research organization KFF. [Oklahoma Voice]
Organ donation groups seek to reassure US House panel after 'deeply concerning' report:The heads of several organ transplant organizations testified before Congress on Tuesday that they are working to earn back the public's trust following the release of a scathing report. [Oklahoma Voice]
US House Democrats assail Trump DHS as 'cruel' and 'unaccountable': A group of U.S. House Democrats on Tuesday blasted President Donald Trump's administration for what they called "cruelty" and "lawlessness" in carrying out mass deportations of migrants without legal status. [Oklahoma Voice]
US House spending panel votes to rename Kennedy Center Opera House for Melania Trump: Republicans on the U.S. House Appropriations Committee voted Tuesday to rename the Opera House at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., for first lady Melania Trump. The vote was mostly party line, with Democrat Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington joining all Republicans present in voting in favor. [Oklahoma Voice]
Trump's AI Action Plan removes 'red tape' for AI developers and data centers, punishes states that act alone: The Trump administration wants to greatly expand the development and use of advanced artificial intelligence, including rolling back environmental rules to spur building of power-thirsty data centers and punishing states that attempt to regulate AI on their own. [Oklahoma Voice]
US-Japan trade deal sets 15% tax on imported vehicles, $550B investment in US: President Donald Trump said late Tuesday he struck a "massive" trade deal with Japan, lowering his threatened tariffs on Japanese products. The deal, according to Japanese negotiators, will include a lower rate on the country's top export: automobiles. [Oklahoma Voice]
Trump illegally withheld Head Start payments, government watchdog says: The Health and Human Services Department illegally withheld payments from Head Start for the first months of President Donald Trump's term, a government watchdog reported Wednesday. [Oklahoma Voice]
Tribal Nations News
Muscogee high court rules 1866 treaty requires Freedmen citizenship, strikes 'by blood' language: The Muscogee Nation Supreme Court affirmed a district court's ruling that Muscogee Freedmen are entitled to citizenship within the tribal nation and held that references to a "by blood" requirement in the nation's laws have been unlawful since their inception. Muscogee Freedmen — people of African descent held in slavery by some Muscogee citizens prior to the U.S. Civil War — were granted citizenship by the nation's Treaty of 1866 with the United States. [NonDoc]
Southern Oklahoma tribe sues town over threats to shut off water to casino: Casino Oklahoma, under the tribe's business Lenape Oklahoma LLC, operates on federal trust land located within the town's boundaries. But Hinton officials claim the tribe must pay local taxes to the city. The tribe states in the lawsuit that because the casino is on trust land, local ordinances do not apply to the casino and therefore the threats are without legal basis. [KOSU]
Jennifer Turner, Earl Smith talk economy, health ahead of Choctaw Nation District 5 runoff: Candidates Earl Smith and Jennifer Turner will face off in a runoff election Saturday, Aug. 9, for the vacant District 5 seat on the Choctaw Nation Tribal Council. Turner has emphasized access to health care throughout her campaign. If elected, she said she would advocate for extended hours at local clinics to reduce the burden on emergency rooms. [NonDoc]
Voting and Election News
Two more Republicans enter Oklahoma 2026 governor's race: Two more Republicans have indicated they are running for governor, bringing the total candidate field to seven. Kenneth L. Sturgell, of Goldsby, and Jake Anthony Merrick, of Tuttle, are running. [Oklahoma Voice]
Campaign to legalize cannabis in Oklahoma will start collecting signatures in August: The latest effort to relax marijuana laws in Oklahoma has passed a critical procedural hurdle, and the campaign will begin collecting signatures to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot. State Question 837 would ask voters to let adults 21 years of age or older buy marijuana without a medical marijuana license. [The Oklahoman]
Anti-abortion group backs law putting restrictions on Oklahoma's initiative process: An anti-abortion group is asking the Oklahoma Supreme Court to uphold a new law putting more restrictions on the initiative petition process after residents in other states used it to expand abortion access. [Oklahoma Voice]
Education News
Oklahoma student proficiency expected to drop this year: Student proficiency scores are likely to drop when reading and math test scores are released Friday, officials said. Educators and parents will have more transparent information about where students stand with proficiency, and it can "spark" conversations about what students need to be ready for college or a career, Oftedal said. [Oklahoma Voice]
Oklahoma schools rank 50th in the nation in latest education quality study: A new survey ranks Oklahoma as the 50th worst state for its school systems. Why? For many reasons that Oklahomans are already aware of. [The Oklahoman]
Education Watch: We Read the Textbooks Under State Review. You Can, Too: Social studies is quite often a flashpoint for politics in the classroom. And I wanted to report on whether the state's controversial new social studies standards influenced publishers' decisions to submit textbooks and materials for approval. First I had to get a closer look at the textbooks. [Oklahoma Watch]
We fact-checked Oklahoma schools chief Ryan Walters' claims about school lunch: Walters claims schools are flush with cash and the new requirement "will force districts to cut the fat." But the districts have called Walters' decree an unfunded mandate and say they don't have the money to feed every student. We fact-checked claims on school funding using interviews and public records and found several false and half-true statements about school finances. [The Frontier]
State board of education members question Walters on true cost of his free-meals demand: Members of the Oklahoma State Board of Education on Thursday questioned the validity of Superintendent Ryan Walters' claims about the cost for local schools to meet his demand that they furnish every student with a free lunch. [Tulsa World]
- Ryan Walters claims schools are 'gaslighting' OSDE board over budget numbers [The Oklahoman]
- State education board questions Ryan Walters' math on cost of school lunches [The Oklahoman]
Ryan Walters is 'demanding' the Oklahoma Supreme Court allow his agency to buy Bibles: State schools Superintendent Ryan Walters is — in his own words — "demanding" the Oklahoma Supreme Court lift a stay that prevents Walters' agency from moving forward with the purchase of thousands of Bibles for public school classrooms. [The Oklahoman]
Deriding media and the 'peanut gallery,' Walters touts new teacher test that could face 'legal problems': During his nearly 45-minute-long remarks at Thursday's Oklahoma State Board of Education meeting, Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters drew questions from board members by making controversial claims about available money for statewide free lunches, his proposed "America-first assessment" for "woke" teachers entering Oklahoma from certain states, and the department's new partnership with an Arizona-based online private school. [NonDoc]
- Walters says an 'anti-woke' test for teachers moving to Oklahoma will be ready soon [The Oklahoman]
- Ryan Walters talks Prager U-backed 'anti woke' test for out-of-state transfer teachers (video) [The Oklahoman]
Ryan Walters Promotes AVA online School with Troubled Record: Branded as a conservative alternative to traditional public schools, American Virtual Academy touts a back-to-basics curriculum and a flexible, fully online K–12 platform. But behind the glossy promotional materials and patriotic rhetoric lies a trail of academic underperformance, ideological controversy, and financial scrutiny. [The Black Wall Street Times]
- Walters defends partnership with Arizona-based online school that's under scrutiny [The Oklahoman]
Oklahoma Education Board asks to hold special meeting regarding its duties: Members of the Oklahoma State Board of Education on Thursday said they want to hold a special meeting to discuss how their authority aligns with the state's superintendent. [Oklahoma Voice]
Oklahoma education board members want to influence meeting agendas. Ryan Walters doesn't agree: Oklahoma State Board of Education members received a prickly response from state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters and the board's contracted attorney when they brought up what's been a thorny issue in recent months – their lack of power to place items on their own meeting agenda. [The Oklahoman]
Board questions why it didn't receive resignation letter from former Oklahoma education employee: A member of the Oklahoma State Board of Education on Thursday questioned why an agency official's resignation letter addressed to the board was never provided to her. Becky Carson asked state Superintendent Ryan Walters why the letter, which contains accusations of "fundamental operational issues" within the agency, was never sent to the panel, despite being addressed to both the Republican leader and the state governing board. [Oklahoma Voice]
Opinion: Oklahoma educators are not the enemy, but Ryan Walters keeps dragging them down: It's hard to watch the chaos coming out of the state schools superintendent's office and not shake your head. Ryan Walters seems less interested in solving real problems in Oklahoma's schools than in manufacturing controversies based on false narratives. Instead of focusing on the challenges we know exist, like teacher shortages and low test scores, Walters is busy chasing headlines with political theatrics that distract, divide and degrade our public education system. [Mark McBride / The Oklahoman]
Health News
Opinion: Federal Medicaid Cuts Threaten Oklahomans with Disabilities—and the Communities That Support Them: Congress recently passed the largest Medicaid cuts in our nation's history. While some might see that as just a budget line item, here in Oklahoma, the consequences will be personal and devastating. [Ellyn Hefner / City News OKC]
Criminal Justice News
Richard Glossip denied bond as he awaits new trial: Glossip had sought to be released on bond as he waits for a new trial — his third for a 1997 murder that has twice landed him on death row. In her Wednesday ruling, Coyle denied bond because she believes the state has shown that the presumption of Glossip's guilt in the case is significant. [NonDoc]
Oklahoma District Attorneys Gain Ally in Glossip Case: Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond has appointed the assistant executive coordinator of the District Attorneys Council as a special prosecutor in the Richard Glossip case, raising eyebrows among attorneys and prompting scrutiny from supporters of the former death row prisoner. [Oklahoma Watch]
What did the OK County Sheriff's Office get for the money spent lobbying state lawmakers?: Sheriff Tommie Johnson III must have gotten his money's worth — Oklahoma County's anyway — from the lobbying firm hired for his use for the last state legislative session: Officials have OK'd a full-year contract. [The Oklahoman]
ICE agents surface in OKC leasing offices: A few apartment complex leasing offices throughout parts of Oklahoma City are finding themselves being confronted by ICE agents looking for tenants. It is something that has been happening in other states like Georgia, where immigration authorities are demanding landlords turn over leases, rental applications, and even want them to provide forwarding addresses. [News 9]
Housing & Economic Opportunity News
Oklahoma lawmaker looks to address youth homelessness: Rep. Daniel Pae, R-Lawton, was one of 24 legislators and legislative staff selected for the 2025 National Conference of State Legislatures Youth Homelessness Fellows Program. The program brings together lawmakers from across the country to learn about youth homelessness and discuss strategies for addressing the issue. [Frontier]
Make minimum wage in Oklahoma? Report finds you won't be able to afford rent: Minimum wage will not cover the cost of rent for a modest one-bedroom apartment in any Oklahoma county, according to an annual report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition. To afford a one-bedroom rental in Oklahoma, a person making minimum wage has to work an average of 93 hours per week, or more than two full-time jobs, the latest report found. [KOSU]
Landlord with history of neglect proposes redevelopment, residents question good faith: The owner of the shuttered Vista Shadow Mountain apartments near 61st Street and Memorial Drive has proposed a renovation plan for the dilapidated complex, but nearby residents are doubtful things will pan out. Neighbors voiced their questions and concerns to City Councilor Lori Decter-Wright at a small public meeting Tuesday night. [Public Radio Tulsa]
