State Education Leaders Approve Rule For Documenting Students’ Immigration Status
The State Board of Education advanced an administrative rule change Tuesday that would require schools to collect students' citizenship or legal immigration documentation at enrollment.
The board passed the rule unanimously.
The rule would require districts to record the number of students who did not provide proof of citizenship or legal immigration status and submit that number to the State Department of Education, excluding personally identifiable information.
Walters said the rule is intended to help make decisions about resource allocations.
“Despite the ‘gaslighting’ from the media, despite the stoking of fear and hatred that they continue to promote, look at the language of the rule. Look at the object of the rule. And look at what’s best for Oklahomans and the taxpayers of our state,” Walters said.
The slate of proposed rule changes now heads to the legislature, where it can choose to take a vote or pass it to the governor’s desk without a vote.
Federal Funding Freeze Could Impact State Agencies, Nonprofits and Universities
A federal freeze of grant funding is creating confusion in Oklahoma’s state government, tribal nations and non-profit sector.
Federal grants are Oklahoma’s largest revenue source, accounting for billions of dollars each year. That money pays for a wide range of services from health care to school lunches to tuition grants for low-income college students.
The far-reaching memo from the Trump administration has stirred confusion about which programs will see their funding frozen.
In Oklahoma, the move could affect state agencies, nonprofits, universities and other federally funded entities.
Though the White House insists the freeze won’t impact federal funds that go directly to individuals, like food stamps or Medicare, the impact on programs and services administered by organizations with federal funding is unclear.
It’s unknown how long the pause will last, but the memo calls it “temporary.”
Oklahoma Files Another Lawsuit Related To 2021 Winter Storm Uri
Utility rates soared during 2021’s Winter Storm Uri, and litigation over the prices is ongoing.
The state attorney general filed a new lawsuit this month against natural gas companies.
The latest document names more than 10 companies like Chevron and BP, claiming the entities reached record profits by using their market power to drive up natural gas prices.
As first reported by The Oklahoman newspaper, Attorney General Gentner Drummond filed two related lawsuits in Osage County last year.
Freezing temperatures during the 2021 winter storm caused a dramatic increase in demand for electricity and heating fuel.
The latest filing expands the number of companies involved, stating they knew the weather was coming more than a month before it arrived.
The document says the average daily price of natural gas sold on Feb. 11, 2021 was just under $9. It states the next day, Oklahoma declared a state of emergency and those prices shot up to about $76, peaking on Feb. 18 at around $1,230.
Drummond’s office declined a request for comment.
Proposed Legislation Focuses On Housing, Homelessness
State lawmakers are suggesting multiple bills to consider that address housing and homelessness.
Some approaches involve expanding resources while others propose banning them.
Democratic Senator Nikki Nice’s Senate Bill 262 would create the Oklahoma Rental Assistance Grant Program, which is designed to provide rental subsidies to people who were evicted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Republican Representative Daniel Pae’s House Bill 2014 would expand Legal Services Revolving Funds for indigent persons to include those facing eviction.
Republican Senator Lisa Standridge’s Senate Bill 484 would ban cities with populations under 300,000 from offering shelter or outreach services to the homeless.
It would also require any shelters and services currently operated by those cities to cease operation. Only Oklahoma City and Tulsa have populations larger than 300,000.
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