(The Center Square) – Oklahoma Superintendent of Instruction Ryan Walters complied with a subpoena issued by Rep. Mark McBride and leadership in the state House of Representatives last week.

McBride, R-Moore, said in a statement Tuesday that he is reviewing the documents.

The subpoena requested information about a $2 million contract with a software company and what Walters is doing to help schools not performing at grade level.

McBride also questioned Walters' claim that 950 teachers from out of state applied to teach in Oklahoma. However, specific data on the recruitment was not provided to lawmakers.

"I thought this could be impressive if this really happened and I wanted to know the recruitment process, the interview process, what subjects they teach, the degrees they hold, did they have a degree, were they certified?" McBride said in an interview with The Center Square last week. "I didn't think there was anything there that was like an 'I got your question.'"

In a video posted on social media shortly after the subpoena was issued, Walters said he was being attacked by Democrats and members of his own party but said, "I won't back down."

McBride said he hopes for a "less adversarial" working relationship with Walters in the future.

"As chairman of the Appropriations and Budget Education Subcommittee, I exercised my power to subpoena the superintendent to produce these records, but I wish it would not have had to come to that," McBride said. "My focus has always been, and will continue to be, doing what is best for Oklahoma students. It is my hope that moving forward, the extreme, but sometimes necessary, process of using a subpoena will not be needed, and the superintendent will more openly and willingly communicate with members of the Legislature."

Walters still faces scrutiny from House Democrats, who are asking Speaker Charles McCall to form a bipartisan committee to explore Walters' possible impeachment.

"We continue to have questions about the recent report about the 100 school districts that have not received federal funding approval from the Oklahoma State Department of Education – funding that is vital to many programs and jobs at school districts across our state," House Minority Leader Cyndi Munson, D-Oklahoma City, said last week.

via Oklahoma's Center Square News

(The Center Square) – Newly released data shows the five states where Americans are most and least in debt.

Forbes Advisor released the report, which found the five most indebted states by determining the per capita debt burden when considering the state government’s debt as well as state residents consumer debt, such as their credit cards and car loans.

State and consumer debts varied by state, but when taking into account population, GDP and income levels, Hawaii ranked the worst, followed by California and then Colorado. In fourth and fifth place are Oregon and then Nevada.

“Hawaii is the most indebted state, with government debt at $13,681.67 per capita,” the report said. “The total state debt balance of $19.7 billion represents 19.49% of the state’s GDP."

Colorado, while not the worst when considering GDP, still has the highest household debt per capita, according to the report, at nearly $90,000. That figure is about the average annual earnings for residents of the state.

The next five most indebted residents by state in order are Maryland and Massachusetts with Connecticut, South Carolina and Washington tied for the next spot.

The least indebted state is Oklahoma, according to the report, followed by Iowa and a tie for third with New Hampshire and Nebraska. The fifth best state in the category is Ohio.

The next five best states, from best to worst, are Wyoming, Indiana, and Wisconsin, with Vermont and South Dakota tied in their ranking.

“Idaho has the lowest per capita government debt in the nation, at $3,107.52, which accounts for 5.43% of the state’s total GDP,” the report added.

These numbers do not include the federal debt burden, which recently surpassed $100,000 per American, as The Center Square previously reported.

via Oklahoma's Center Square News

(The Center Square) – A group of attorneys general in 21 states is suing the Biden administration over new highway emissions rules.

The new rule by the Federal Highway Administration and the U.S. Department of Transportation, which goes into effect on Jan. 8, would require transportation departments in states with National Highway System mileage to create targets for carbon dioxide reduction and send results to the federal agencies.

The states' complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western district of Kentucky, argues the federal agencies don't have the authority granted by Congress to require states to reduce emissions.

"Congress has not given FHWA or DOT authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions," the complaint says. "Nor can the Agencies compel the States to administer a federal regulatory program or mandate them to further Executive policy wishes absent some other authority to do so—which is lacking as to this rule."

According to the Federal Register, the rule "requires State departments of transportation (State DOT) and metropolitan planning organizations (MPO) to establish declining carbon dioxide (CO2) targets for the GHG measure and report on progress toward the achievement of those targets. The rule does not mandate how low targets must be."

In addition to Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, 20 other attorneys general from the following states joined the complaint: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, South Carolina, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

"President Biden is unconstitutionally ramming his radical climate agenda through administrative agencies that lack Congressional authority to implement such actions," Cameron said in a statement. "We will not stand by while this administration attempts to circumvent the legislative process."

Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen's office noted in a statement the rule would disproportionately harm rural states where drivers have to drive farther distances.

"This rule is another unlawful and overreaching regulation by the Biden Administration to force the President’s radical green agenda onto Americans regardless of the costs,” Knudsen said. "This one-size-fits-all approach might work for the Washington, DC bureaucrats who cooked it up, but it won’t work for Montana."

President Joe Biden, Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, and FHWA Administrator Shailen Bhatt are named as defendants.

The states ask the court to vacate the rule and block its enforcement.

via Oklahoma's Center Square News

(The Center Square) – Manufacturing stayed flat in December in some Great Plains and Mountain states, according to a Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City survey.

“Regional factory activity stayed steady in December, and expectations for future activity rebounded,” Chad Wilkerson, the bank’s senior vice president, said in a statement. “Accordingly, firms increased their number of employees this month, with further increases expected.”

The bank’s survey covers the Tenth Federal Reserve District, which consists of Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Wyoming, western Missouri, and northern New Mexico.

The bank’s composite index – which averages production, new orders, employment, delivery and raw materials – increased from -2 last month to -1 this month.

“The year-over-year index for factory activity ticked up to -8 from -9,” the bank said, while its composite index for the future went from -1 to 6 this month “as sentiment for production and new orders is higher than earlier this year and employment is anticipated to rise.”

Of the manufacturing firms surveyed, 42% said they expect “slightly higher” demand in their products next year, while 22% anticipate no change in demand, and 23% expect “slightly lower” demand.

via Oklahoma's Center Square News

(The Center Square) - Oklahoma House Republicans want to know more about a $2 million contract with a software company and what State Superintendent of Instruction Ryan Walters is doing to help schools not performing at grade level.

The items are two of seven included in the subpoena signed by Rep. Mark McBride, R-Moore, Rep. Rhonda Baker, R-Yukon, chairman of the House Common Education Committee and House Speaker Charles McCall.

Walters was asked for an update on the contract with Metrics Systems in November and failed to provide the information before a Nov. 27 deadline.

"I am not saying they misused the money," McBride said in an interview with The Center Square. "They have just not put it out there to my knowledge for request for proposal on it. That's my understanding. That's what I've been told. I would like more information on that."

Also at issue is a claim by Walters that 950 teachers from out-of-state applied to teach in Oklahoma. However, specific data on the recruitment was not provided to lawmakers.

"I thought this could be impressive if this really happened and I wanted to know the recruitment process, the interview process, what subjects they teach, the degrees they hold, did they have a degree, were they certified?" McBride said. "I didn't think there was anything there that was like an 'I got your question.' That was not provided."

Walters said constituents could file complaints through an email from his former employer. He has also ignored requests from legislators to share the contents of those emails.

Legislators are also asking Walters to tell them what he is doing to address schools where students are not performing at grade level.

McBride said the Legislature had no choice but to subpoena the information. Walters has until Jan. 5 to provide the information.

The recourse if Walters does not reply is not known at this time, McBride said.

"I kind of feel like he wants a confrontation," McBride said. "I don't want a confrontation. I want them to stop using our children as political pawns."

In a video posted on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter, Walters said he was being attacked by Democrats and members of his own party.

"I will not back down," Walters said.

House Democrats are asking for more transparency from Walters. Last week, they asked House leadership to form a bipartisan committee to explore impeachment.

House Democratic Leader Cyndi Munson, D-Oklahoma City, said Wednesday the subpoena is a step in the right direction but wants members of both parties to have access to the information if it is received.

"We continue to have questions about the recent report about the 100 school districts that have not received federal funding approval from the Oklahoma State Department of Education – funding that is vital to many programs and jobs at school districts across our state," Munson said.

via Oklahoma's Center Square News

(The Center Square) - House Democrats want a special bipartisan committee to investigate Oklahoma Superintendent of Instruction Ryan Walters.

Members of the House Democratic Caucus said Friday that Walters' actions may warrant impeachment.

"Financial mismanagement and the inability to access information to do their jobs has caused essential employees and cabinet-level officials to resign, taxpayer dollars may have been used for campaigning, and Superintendent Walters has vowed to dismantle the very agencies that help fund our public schools," said Rep. Cyndi Munson, D-Oklahoma City. "Not to mention it has been reported that over 100 school districts have yet to receive final approval from OSDE on federal program funding, and jobs in our schools hang in the balance. This is clearly willful neglect of duty and incompetency – both grounds for impeachment."

Democrats asked House Speaker Charles McCall for an investigative committee in August. McCall denied their request.

"I have so many concerns about what is happening at the State Department of Education right now,” said Rep. Trish Ranson, D-Stillwater. “Who is tracking the funding and expenditures? Who is making sure our districts get the funding owed to them? Who has oversight of the agency without a Secretary of Education?"

Rep. Melissa Provenzano, D-Tulsa, said she will file legislation requiring the Department of Education to submit a quarterly financial report to the Legislature.

"The total lack of transparency is ongoing and alarming,” Provenzano said.

Matt Langston senior advisor to Walters, said in a statement to The Center Square: "Oklahoma democrats embody the temperament of a 5-year-old spoiled brat. Temper tantrums and political assassination are their only tricks left. Oklahomans elected Walters with historic margins because they know he will never back down and he will never stop fighting the radicalism that the left pushes."

via Oklahoma's Center Square News

(The Center Square) – Oklahoma’s 25 state colleges and universities will need more than $1.1 billion in funding in the next fiscal year, according to representatives from the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education.

The amount is 12.2%, or $122.4 million more than last year's budget, Chancellor Allison Garrett told the Senate Education Committee on Thursday. The budget also includes $200 million in capital needs and maintenance on older buildings.

Before discussing the budget, Garrett told the committee that enrollment in state colleges and universities declined, but graduation rates were higher.

The number of degrees and certificates is up 8.1%, while the number of nursing degrees awarded is up 26.4%. 42.4% increase in STEM bachelor’s degree production; 26.4% increase in nursing degrees conferred at all levels.

“We continue to see huge increases in the demand by employers for degreed individuals," Garret said. "Last year we awarded almost 37,000 degrees and interestingly as we look at critical occupations, nearly 32,000 of those degrees were in those high demand fields. The higher the level of educational attainment, the more likely the individual is to be in the labor force in Oklahoma today.”

A large percentage of students are enrolled in critical occupation programs that train students for jobs where there are the most significant needs. Oklahoma Works website lists the top 100 occupations. Trucker drivers are at the top of the list, followed by managers, nurses and maintenance or repair workers.

Of those enrolled, 88.9% of students at the state system institutions were enrolled in programs directly aligned with Oklahoma’s critical occupations, and 86.1% of degrees and certificates conferred were in critical occupation fields of study.

“So the vast majority of students that are at higher ed institutions are studying in those high demand fields,” she noted. “We are really pleased that we see that across our system.”

via Oklahoma's Center Square News

(The Center Square) - Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said he is "taking the politics" out of education by ordering universities to cut taxpayer-funded positions that diversity, equity and inclusion positions.

The executive order issued by Stitt on Wednesday also bans the universities from mandating DEI training and disclosure of personal pronouns.

Universities have until May 31, 2024 to submit a report showing their compliance with the order.

“In Oklahoma, we’re going to encourage equal opportunity, rather than promising equal outcomes,” Stitt said. “Encouraging our workforce, economy, and education systems to flourish means shifting focus away from exclusivity and discrimination, and toward opportunity and merit."

Sen. Mary Boren, D-Norman, called the executive order "a threat to every economic development strategy in Oklahoma."

"Governor Kevin Stitt’s claim that ‘Oklahoma is open for business’ cannot be taken seriously by banning future business leaders from learning about diversity, equity, and inclusion on college campuses – and that is his goal," Boren said in a joint statement with other Democratic lawmakers representing Norman and Stillwater. The University of Oklahoma is in Norman and Oklahoma State University is in Stillwater.

The move uses students to "score some cheap political points," said Rep. Annie Menz, D-Norman.

"Trying to swindle college kids out of their opportunity to interact with and understand that diversity is absurd and futile," Menz said. "Additionally, this action will have a negative impact on faculty and staff at our universities but also on students with disabilities, international students, veterans, and so many others who rely on these services to support their education."

Others backed Stitt's order.

"Unfortunately, programs and policies operating under the guise of diversity, equity, and inclusion, particularly in our universities, have been shown to neither achieve meaningful diversity nor prepare our students for work and citizenship," said Brett Farley, executive director of the Catholic Conference of Oklahoma. "Instead of giving opportunity to the underserved, they've given rise to religious intolerance and created a chilling effect on the free exercise and expression of strongly held religious faith and moral principles."

Sen. Rob Standridge, R-Norman, has filed four bills that would ban DEI practices in state universities.

"If an employee of our universities or colleges would discriminate against or favor one student or faculty member over another based-on race, gender, pronouns, religion, or other reason apart from merit, they should be terminated immediately and replaced with someone that understands the protections against this our US Constitution gives each and every citizen," Standridge said Wednesday.

via Oklahoma's Center Square News

(The Center Square) - Three men are facing a long list of charges connected with a scheme to illegally grow medical marijuana, Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond said Monday.

Richard Gregorio Ignacio, 36, is accused of being a front for a medical marijuana operation in Kingfisher County, according to a news release.

The two men who are accused of paying Ignacio, Kevin Paul Pham, 47, and Alex Shiang Lin Chang, 48, were bypassing a law that prohibits anyone from out-of-state from growing medical marijuana in Oklahoma.

The three men are charged with conspiracy against the state. Pham is also indicted on six counts of filing a false or forged instrument, one count of aggravated manufacturing of a controlled dangerous substance, one count of trafficking of a controlled dangerous substance over 20 grams of methamphetamine, one count of possession of a controlled dangerous substance with the intent to distribute, one count of financial transactions involving proceeds of unlawful acts and one count of possession of a firearm after former conviction of a felony, according to Drummond's office. Ignacio also faces six counts of filing a false or forged instrument, and one count of aggravated manufacturing of a controlled dangerous substance.

Ignacio was charged in December 2022 with conspiracy against the state for allegedly illegally obtaining a marijuana grow license in Kingfisher County for a company named Liu and Chen.

“We cannot and will not tolerate these illegal enterprises enriching themselves at the expense of rural Oklahoma,” Drummond said. “While there are many law-abiding participants in the state’s medical marijuana industry, law enforcement has seen an influx of others who are using the situation to supply black-market marijuana throughout the country."

Legislators passed several bills over the past two years to further regulate the medical marijuana industry. A bill passed in 2022 placed a moratorium on all medical marijuana licenses until August 2024.

House Bill 2096 passed earlier this year extended the moratorium until 2026. The bill also revoked the licenses of growers who did not pay their retail taxes and banned growers from hiring illegal immigrants.

Only one owner can be listed for a medical marijuana grow, the bill said.

via Oklahoma's Center Square News

(The Center Square) – Oklahoma City is preparing for Tuesday’s public vote on whether to approve a 1% sales tax as part of a $900 million public funding plan for a new Oklahoma City Thunder arena downtown.

As voters prepare to cast their decisions, Mayor David Holt and associates have leaned on a commissioned report saying a new arena will pay great dividends for the city as the Thunder bring $590 million of economic impact and 3,000 jobs to the city annually.

The problem?

Those who research and study the impact of pro sports arenas and the public funding surrounding them have never seen that type of positive impact when looking at the numbers.

A group of 21 professors at Oklahoma universities, in fact, wrote a letter opposing the data the mayor is touting from Applied Economics of Phoenix.

“The discrepancies between such consulting reports and the analysis of actual outcomes are well known,” the economists’ letter says. “The report, itself, includes a disclaimer clearly stating that the estimates of possible impacts are not likely to be accurate.”

It’s a process seen across the country in everything from sports stadiums and arenas to tax breaks for shopping centers to public incentives for new or existing companies.

A company or government entity chooses a project, determines a tax plan to publicly pay for that project and then hires a marketing firm to put together an economic impact paper that will show how the project is good for the community.

The Milwaukee Brewers, Tennessee Titans, Oakland Athletics, Phoenix Coyotes, Memphis Grizzlies, Tampa Bay Rays, Kansas City Royals and Buffalo Bills are just some of the professional sports teams to make similar claims over the past year, hiring companies such as Victus Advisors, Applied Analysis, Younger and Associates and Convention, Sports and Leisure – owned by Dallas Cowboys and New York Yankees venture Legends Hospitality Management – to push public funding for the deals.

The Carolina Panthers plan to be next.

Economist J.C. Bradbury of Georgia’s Kennesaw State University said that the “fantasy reports” began popping up in the 1980s and were studied starting in the 1990s, with more and more team owners using them to woo local politicians into voting to spend larger amounts of public money on professional sports venues.

It’s resulted in economic impact reports being used for everything for tax breaks for a variety of industries as some local governments even require a report before handing out a public subsidy.

“It’s resulted in a larger cottage industry for giving out tax incentives in general,” Bradbury said. “These are totally fake and they mean nothing but they are required to provide some sort of guidance, even though they don’t.”

Neil deMause co-wrote the book “Field of Schemes” and operates a blog with the same name. He’s covered this “scheme” related to professional sports stadiums for 25 years and said he’s surprised progress hasn’t been made on exposing the fake reports and financial numbers.

He wrote about how Convention, Sports and Leisure has produced notoriously bad reports, calling them the “Wile E. Coyote of the sports stadium racket” after the company produced a report on baseball in Montreal that failed to factor in the exchange rate from the U.S. to Canadian dollar. It also had to walk back a report on the impact of professional soccer in Washington, D.C., after it was pointed out the city would receive some of the same revenue whether the team existed or not.

“You’re basically trying to sell something mostly to legislators, but also to the press,” deMause said. “Maybe a little bit to the public.

“You have crappy economic arguments, but you have a lot of money, which is what most team owners do. Then you spend the money. You can’t buy the numbers but you can certainly buy the way you spin the numbers.”

deMause said that it’s clear the return on investment for team owners is huge, paying marketing firms for reports to convince politicians to give millions in public funds.

In recent years, the process has accelerated with federal COVID-19 funds inflating state budgets and local media outlets having to do more with less and having little time to dig into the numbers as presented by politicians.

“The media climate is not good for actually reporting on things and questioning things,” deMause said. “I think developers are taking advantage of that to try and put across B.S. as fact.”

Stadium subsidies only come around once every 20 years, Bradbury explained, so local reporters don't often cover them multiple times despite the fact that the same tactics are used across the country in public funding efforts by pushing the claimed economic impact numbers related to the deals.

Bradbury said that it should be clear what’s happening when a consulting firm comes back with different numbers than all of the educated experts. But he encourages economists to push back on the reports, something he did in Nashville as he presented a report to the city’s East Bank Stadium Committee on the work of economists studying the impact of public stadium subsidies.

“It takes economists stepping up to combat this,” Bradbury said. “Like exactly what the economists did in Oklahoma, signing a letter saying ‘This is incorrect.’ I think that carried quite a bit of weight.”

That doesn’t mean the public subsidy proposals won’t succeed.

The NFL’s Buffalo Bills are getting $850 million in public funding toward a $1.4 billion stadium, outdone only by the Titans’ $2.1 billion new stadium, with $1.27 billion in public funding for construction and a $3.1 billion estimated tax capture fund.

Applied Analysis’ Jeremy Aguero, who isn’t an economist, presented and led discussion during a special session of the Nevada Legislature before a $380 million tax deal was approved if Major League Baseball's Athletics come to Las Vegas. He made similar large claims before and after Las Vegas’ Formula One debut, despite track issues, delays that marred practice runs for the race and fans booted from the stands before practice was complete.

The Tampa Bay Rays recently announced a new deal including $600 million in public funding for a $1.2 billion stadium while the Brewers pointed toward a CSL report before striking a deal with the Wisconsin Legislature for $500 million in public funding for a renovation of the Brewers’ American Family Field.

Memphis received $600 million from the state of Tennessee for the Grizzlies’ FedExForum and three other stadiums and intend to still ask for more state funding.

The only deal that didn’t succeed was the Coyotes’ Tempe tax deal accompanying a new $2.1 billion arena, which required a referendum and was voted down by taxpayers.

"People are inherently skeptical of what people in government say," Bradbury said.

Oklahoma City voters will now have the opportunity to do the same.

“Economic impact reports are a scam and have always been a scam and I don’t think anyone in that industry pretends that it’s anything other than paid consulting work,” deMause said. “It’s marketing work. It’s not really economics work.”

via Oklahoma's Center Square News