Contact: David Blatt, Director

(918) 794-3944; (918) 859-8747 - cell

Oklahoma Policy Institute Report Shines Light on Need for Greater Scrutiny of State Tax Breaks

(Tulsa, February 17, 2010):  Oklahoma's budget crisis creates new needs and new opportunities to review the state's extensive system of tax breaks, according to a research brief released today by Oklahoma Policy Institute, a state policy organization.

(Oklahoma City, Nov. 18, 2009): State and local taxes take a bigger toll on the incomes of Oklahoma’s low- and moderate-income households than on higher-income households, according to a new study by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a non-partisan research and education organization focused on government taxation and spending policies. The study measures state and local taxes paid by different income groups, and reveals that low and moderate-income Oklahomans pay a greater percentage of their incomes in taxes than those with higher incomes.

(Oklahoma City, Nov. 10, 2009): The impact of the current recession will be long and deep in Oklahoma, and state services will continue to deteriorate, according to a report released today by the Oklahoma Policy Institute.

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK-Oklahoma Policy Institute today released its Online Budget Guide, a comprehensive look at how Oklahoma state and local governments collect and spend money to provide public services.

The Online Budget Guide is designed to give citizens and policy makers a useful tool for understanding how the budget process works and how it impacts Oklahomans.  With this knowledge, Oklahomans can actively observe the legislature's steps in weathering the current economic storm.

(Oklahoma City, September 21, 2009): The release of a comprehensive new state-level  Scorecard on assets and financial stability provides an opportunity to focus on efforts to help Oklahoma families get ahead and become more financially secure, according to the members of a state coalition dedicated to asset building.

(Oklahoma City, June 3, 2009): The use of federal stimulus managed to cushion the impact of declining state revenue collections and help minimize or avert funding cuts to most large state agencies, but funding gaps and hard choices will remain during the coming budget year, according to a new brief on the FY '10 budget released by Oklahoma Policy Institute.