Crisis Pregnancy Centers Get New State Funding
Oklahoma’s mostly religious-affiliated nonprofits that counsel against abortion will get millions of dollars in new state funding.
The money will be used to reimburse pregnancy-support services.
Republican lawmakers put $18 million into the Choosing Childbirth Revolving Fund during the 2024 legislative session.
That money can be used by nonprofit entities like crisis pregnancy centers to cover ultrasounds, mental health and substance abuse services and transportation for expectant mothers.
Lawmakers also moved to allow the Oklahoma State Department of Health to reimburse these centers directly.
Nonprofit news outlet Oklahoma Watch reports these changes followed an internal audit in 2022 based on critiques that the Choosing Childbirth program vendor was taking too long to reimburse centers and wasn’t meeting service goals.
The health department released a notice of funding opportunity for nonprofits.
Cities, Counties To Receive $5 Million To Combat Opioid Epidemic
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond has awarded $5 million in grants to dozens of cities and counties to combat the opioid epidemic.
In all, the state has received nearly $1 billion for the effort.
Oklahoma has been heavily affected by the opioid epidemic, a fact reflected in the amount of money the state has been awarded in settlements and lawsuits.
The money from the drug manufacturers and distributors is meant to be funneled back into the communities most affected, funding solutions and treatment programs.
The Attorney General’s office lists Norman, McAlester and Tahlequah as the cities at the top of the docket in terms of funding.
Norman is eligible to receive more than $1 million.
The AG says, cities and counties that opted to participate in the settlement “finally will have the opportunity” to fund remediation initiatives.
Norman, McAlester and Tahlequah all have meetings scheduled with the Attorney General’s office, and city officials say they are working out how to best spend the funds.
Statewide Charter School Board Defies Court Order, AG Demands Action on St. Isidore Contract
The Statewide Charter School Board continues to defy an Oklahoma Supreme Court order to rescind its contract with St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Charter School — the would-be first in the nation publicly funded religious school.
Now, state Attorney General Gentner Drummond is repeating his call for action.
The state supreme court on Monday rejected a request to stay its order to rescind the contract in a 7-1 decision.
The board is expected to file an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court soon.
Also on Monday, Drummond sent a letter to the Statewide Charter School Board saying that for 39 days it has blatantly ignored the court’s order and that he expects a vote on rescission to be on the agenda at next week’s board meeting.
Drummond goes on to tell the board’s members they are public officials under Oklahoma law, and must immediately rescind St. Isidore’s contract as ordered.
Barnsdall's Largest Employer Shuts Down Due To Tornado Damage
The city of Barnsdall is losing its largest employer: a century-old chemical refinery.
The plant’s corporate owners say they no longer plan to rebuild it after extensive tornado damage in May.
The EF-4 tornado left 2 dead, 33 injured and a trail of destroyed buildings.
Among them was the NuCera Solutions chemical refinery, which manufactures specialty polymers.
Its corporate owners say they no longer plan to rebuild the facility like they’d previously announced. That means 93 jobs will disappear, hugely affecting the community of about 1,000 people.
Barnsdall Mayor Johnny Kelley said the news came as a surprise.
"The talk before now has been about the rebuild. They actually reskinned all the buildings in our school colors. So everything was really positive and going forward," Kelley said.
Kelley said he hopes someone will buy and reopen the refinery, but for now he’s focusing on clearing the debris so people can rebuild their homes.
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