State Labor Commissioner Against Tax Cut Proposal
Oklahoma’s Republican labor commissioner is speaking out against Gov. Kevin Stitt’s proposed income tax cut.
Commissioner Leslie Osborn claims the rhetoric surrounding the tax cut doesn’t hold up to scrutiny.
Oklahoma’s House of Representatives is currently in special session to consider a .25% income tax cut, which would cost about $250 million dollars if implemented.
Stitt has referenced a state surplus of roughly $1.2 billion as reason for the cut.
During a town hall Tuesday night, Osborn said Oklahoma is already a minimally taxed state.
According to WalletHub, Oklahoma was one of the ten least tax-burdened states in the U.S. last year.
“It might be time to consider, when we have some surplus, instead of cutting, investing in the things that change the trajectory for our state,” Osborn said.
Osborn - who was the state legislature’s house budget chair during a shortfall -said one bad year in Oklahoma would significantly impact the surplus.
She also said federal American Rescue Plan Act money should be used before considering any tax cuts.
Osborn cited an Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy estimate that shows the poorest Oklahomans would only save about $19 with the proposed cut.
Wynnewood Audit Found Lack Of Diligence
State Auditor and Inspector Cindy Byrd has released a forensic audit report for the city of Wynnewood.
Citizen concerns from 2017 to 2021 prompted the audit.
The audit revealed a lack of diligence in handling earmarked sales tax funds with nearly $700,000 inappropriately transferred to the city’s utility bank accounts.
Byrd said no fraud or waste was found. She said the city simply put the money in the wrong account.
But, the City Clerk gave herself an unauthorized $10,000 annual raise, which Byrd says violates the Oklahoma Constitution.
Additionally, nearly $120,000 in sales taxes meant for other purposes was used for street maintenance.
The audit also revealed missing agendas, minutes and records.
The final audit report has been delivered to the Garvin County District Attorney’s office.
Cushing Oil Spill Payout
Oil companies have agreed to pay millions of dollars and fix environmental damage after spilling nearly 300,000 gallons of crude oil into a Payne County creek.
In July of 2022, a 5-foot-long breach in the Osage Pipeline gushed half an Olympic swimming pool of crude oil into Skull Creek, north of Cushing.
The spill killed fish and wildlife, and leftover oil was still visible in the creek more than a year later.
The involved oil companies will pay $7.4 million in civil penalties for violating the Clean Water Act, per an agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice and the Environmental Protection Agency.
Holly Energy Partners and Osage Pipeline Company will also need to finish cleaning up the creek with oversight from the Sac and Fox Nation and the EPA.
Inspections identified the section that ruptured as a “potential area of concern” back in 2014. But the feds say the oil companies took no action until after the line burst.
AG Drummond Requests 90-Day Interval For Executions
Attorney General Gentner Drummond is requesting a 90-day interval between executions.
Drummond and Department of Corrections Executive Director Steven Harpe filed a motion asking the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals to schedule the next phase of executions at 90 day intervals.
Harpe said in a news release that the scheduling of an execution date triggers a series of tasks DOC staff must complete during the weeks leading up the execution.
That includes putting the Oklahoma State Penitentiary on lockdown.
He said readjusting the pace of executions would reduce strain on the DOC and protect the integrity of the process.
The adjustment would affect six of Oklahoma’s death row inmates, all convicted of murder. Drummond said he personally visited the family members of the inmates’ victims prior to filing the motion.
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