OKC Prepares To Make $34 Million Promise To Host 2028 Olympics
Oklahoma City officials are considering a resolution that puts their money where their mouth is for the 2028 Summer Olympics.
City Council is expected to vote on that resolution at a meeting Tuesday.
Oklahoma City confirmed last month it will host canoe slalom and softball for the 2028 Summer Olympics and Paralympics.
Host city Los Angeles doesn’t have existing facilities for those events.
Now, City Council is voting whether to go all-in. If the city passes this resolution but doesn’t stage those events, it (or its financial partners, which include the Greater OKC Chamber) will have to pay Olympic planning organization LA28 more than $34 million.
Mayor David Holt told The Oklahoman newspaper he doesn’t anticipate ever having to write that check.
The resolution also promises to ensure the facilities for those events comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act and that the city will prioritize anti-discrimination and sustainability practices as it prepares to host the games.
Supreme Court Case Involving Oklahoma Could Redefine Church-State Separation
The longstanding separation between church and state may soon be eroded by a Supreme Court case involving Oklahoma. Gov. Kevin Stitt is preparing for that eventuality, and a recent case study in one of the state’s top legal journals suggests he’s right to.
In the case of St. Isidore Catholic Virtual School, Stitt says he thinks the U.S. Supreme Court will decide state tax dollars can be used to pay for religious schools that teach their faith as part of their curriculum.
He says the opinion will likely be a "historic" win for religious freedom in Oklahoma and the U.S.
Brent Rowland is a Tulsa-based lawyer and the author of a recent data analysis trying to predict how the nation’s highest court will rule on state-sponsored religious education.
He says Stitt is on to something.
"This is a huge decision. If the Supreme Court decides that it's perfectly fine for Oklahoma to support St. Isidore with public tax dollars, then the gates will be open for other states to support more and more religious institutions," said Rowland.
Rowland says that is a huge shift from how the country has been thinking about the separation of church and state.
Jason Lowe Resigns from Legislature to Become County Commissioner
The state legislature lost a representative Monday.
Democrat Jason Lowe resigned to become an Oklahoma County commissioner.
He represented House District 97 in Oklahoma City.
Lowe was the first African American attorney from District 97 to be appointed to the House Judiciary Committee.
He served in the Oklahoma House Democratic Caucus and as a Chairman of the Oklahoma Legislative Black Caucus.
Oklahoma Department of Mental Health Temporarily Reinstates COPES Funding in Tulsa
Oklahoma is temporarily restoring funding for mental health crisis services it recently revoked. Tulsa’s COPES program is back on the state budget for a couple more months.
COPES clinicians work directly with police, firefighters and paramedics to respond to 911 calls involving mental health concerns in Tulsa.
Behavioral health professionals can step in during crises, easing the burden on first responders who don’t have the same training.
Since 2001, the Department of Mental Health has helped pay for those efforts.
Now, a $43 million shortfall in the department’s budget and a shifting funding landscape threaten the partnership.
The department says its support will only extend through June, and state mental health care providers and their clients say they are reeling.
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