House Bill 1727 by Rep. Anthony Moore (R-Clinton) would open eligibility to the state’s tuition scholarship program, OHLAP, to teachers who have taught in Oklahoma schools for at least 10 years.
While traditional OHLAP eligibility ranges from $60,000-$80,000 in annual income, teacher families would qualify at up to 700% of the federal poverty level. For a family of three, that would be about $186,000.
House Bill 1087 by Rep. Dick Lowe (R-Amber) would allow teachers to receive step raises for 10 additional years of service. Currently, step raises stop after 25 years.
Both bills are co-authored by Senate Education Chair Adam Pugh (R-Edmond) and are on Gov. Kevin Stitt’s desk.
Because the bills passed through the legislature during the final five days of the session, Stitt has until June 14 to sign them, or they are pocket vetoed without his signature. The legislature cannot override a pocket veto.
A spokesperson for the governor’s office said Stitt is still reviewing the bills and cited the June 14 deadline.
According to the Oklahoma Policy Institute, Stitt did not use the pocket veto in last year’s session, but did use it five times in 2023 and twice in 2021. Before that, the pocket veto was used only once since 2012.
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