Latest news with #ParentalChoiceTaxCredit
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
McCall vying to be Oklahoma's next governor
After serving eight years as the Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives, Charles McCall is now vying to be the next governor of Oklahoma. McCall was elected to House District 22 in 2012 and elected Speaker in 2016, serving as the state's longest-serving Speaker of the House. Outside of his political role, McCall is the CEO and Board Chairman of AmeriState Bank in Atoka. He previously served as Mayor of Atoka from 2005 to 2012. According to his campaign, while serving as Speaker, McCall focused on getting the state's fiscal house in order, helped decrease personal and corporate income taxes and was the leader of there Parental Choice Tax Credit, which allowed parents control over their children's education. ' When I came into speakership in 2017, it was just the worst of times here in the state of Oklahoma fiscally,' McCall said. 'We'd done a four-year contraction, no reserves, cut budgets, just really difficult. And I was picked to be the speaker because of that, because I was a banker.' McCall said the caucus chose him to help navigate the state out of a bad financial situation, which he said was achieved in about two years, he said. The past six has been 'record year after record year,' he said. ' So Oklahoma's now in a place where we're not in a hole. We are thriving, we have reserves now,' he said. 'What motivates me (to run for governor) and what I'm excited about is the opportunity that's on the horizon for the people, the state of Oklahoma, as well as businesses. I think we're just right on the cusp of taking another huge step forward.' He said the economy doubled its output in the past six years and the appropriated budget, which was about $6 billion when he became Speaker, is about $13 billion today. ' Oklahoma is no longer a flyover state. We are a fly-to state,' McCall said. ' We have people with great values and good work ethic. So Oklahoma's starting to be recognized on the national stage. We're already, in some areas, we're the best in the country already. But we really, once again, we're just on the cusp of being able to have a real breakthrough for the people of the state economically.' He said the next governor of Oklahoma needs to be somebody with business experience and success while also knowing how the government operates and being able to seize opportunities. He said Oklahoma has yet to land a big industry or company moving to the state, adding that the state has been on the shortlist but is always bumped out. The state has seen growth and success in the aviation and aerospace industry, McCall said, which is the state's second largest industry beating out agriculture and tourism. McCall said he thinks Oklahoma has the best opportunities to grow in the technology sector. ' Our low cost of energy and low cost of living and natural resources — and our proximity in the country— make us the ideal choice. We just have to have the right environment, the right incentive,' McCall said. ' I really think that's where the opportunity is. We're seeing a lot of investment in the state around technology right now. Data centers, in (particular) are the most emerging technology everybody is chasing.' The growth of data centers, and companies interest in building centers in Oklahoma, was a topic of discussion during a legislative summary in Chickasha with Rep. Dick Low, R-Amber, and Brad Bowles, R-Marlow back in February. Boles said it takes the same amount of power required for 250,000 houses to power one 500-megawatt data center. During the meeting with Grady County locals, Boles said potential centers would have to go through the Southwest Power Pool, which takes about two years to get approval. Boles also said he authored a bill during this year's legislative session that would allow data centers or large industrial companies to come to Oklahoma if they were off the grid. This would require the companies to provide their own power generation to the facility while going through the two year process to be added to the grid. McCall said data center companies want to come to Oklahoma because the state has the power capacities but added that the state is approaching some capacity within the power grid and will need to bring additional generation to that state. He also said he believe rural areas have the opportunity to grow as people are looking for more space to live, for quality of life and more space to roam and run, adding that he believes that's why people are leaving Dallas and Houston. EDUCATION While Speaker, McCall authored the bill that created the Parental Choice Tax Credit allowing parents control over their children's education and providing a income tax credit that can be used for tuition and fees for eligible private school educations. McCall said education was a top priority for him as Speaker and will continue to be if elected governor. 'I think the legislature's done what it needs to do in supporting the funding of education but there's some things that need to happen in the executive branch of government,' McCall said. Despite having an elected State Superintendent of Public Instruction, McCall said he believe the next governor will need to push for a 'very disciplined plan' to improve the state's education outcome. ' That's something that I'm prepared to do. I don't think it can be accomplished, you know, in year one or year two,' he said. 'I don't want to give anybody the expectations that we will move our education outcomes from 48th or 49th to in the twenties in two years. But tackling the problem… We just need to have some discipline on it and we need a good plan that addresses our weaknesses and deficiencies within education.' INCOME TAX In terms of finding success in economic development, McCall said he believes one of the keys is to bring down personal income tax. He said the state should follow the model Tennessee used, which decreases income tax over time as the economy grows. ' We've got to get down to zero because right now, people have a choice to move to Oklahoma or Texas… They are going to bypass Oklahoma because they get a 4.75% raise immediately just by living in Texas,' McCall said. 'They may drive over to Oklahoma for their job, but they want residency there just because they're saving money on the personal income tax.' McCall added that every time income tax was lowered while he was Speaker, the states revenue increased because there was more money left in individuals pockets. ' They're gonna spend it but they get to spend it the way they want to,' McCall said. 'It comes back to the state after it bounces around here (in) Chickasha, at Norman. Both at the city and county level, it throws off consumption revenue to the state of Oklahoma. I think every time we bring that personal income tax rate down and we quit taxing productivity and just focus on consumption, that's a net positive for the state.'
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Oklahoma agencies publish private school tax credit recipients under transparency law
Evie Jenney teaches theology at Cristo Rey Catholic High School in Oklahoma City on May 20, 2024. The school is one of more than 200 participating in the Parental Choice Tax Credit. (Photo by Ted Streuli/Oklahoma Watch) Oklahoma officials have released the names of the thousands of taxpayers who received the new Parental Choice Tax Credit for tuition and expenses at private schools. After repeated requests by Oklahoma Watch dating back to December, the Oklahoma Tax Commission sent the tax credit recipient data to the state's open data website. The information is limited to just the name of the taxpayer and the amount of private school tax credits they received in 2024. It doesn't include school or student information. The tax credit program provides up to $7,500 annually per child for private school expenses. Lawmakers capped the overall cost of the program at $150 million in tax year 2024, but it rises to $250 million in tax year 2026. If they qualified, most taxpayers received half the credit early in the year and the other half later in the year. The total credit amount doesn't show how many children in a family received the private school tuition tax credit. The top recipient received more than $24,000 in tax credits in the second half of 2024, according to the data. The data is posted at the state's open data website, which is maintained by the Office of Management and Enterprise Services. Oklahoma Watch requested private school tax credit data in December from the Tax Commission under the Oklahoma Open Records Act and the Oklahoma Taxpayer Transparency Act. Though most taxpayer data is confidential, recipients of tax credits are an exception under the taxpayer transparency law. Lawmakers passed that law in 2010 to address budget planning issues caused by transferable tax credits. Initially, the Tax Commission referred Oklahoma Watch's request to the state's open data website, which lacked the relevant data. Commission attorneys later determined the data could only be released through the Office of Management and Enterprise Services. Although the Tax Commission administers the program, it would not release the data directly. After a delay and agency miscommunication, the data was finally posted on the state's open data site on April 29. The Tax Commission last week released its latest snapshot of the recipients of the Parental Choice Tax Credit. It showed just 2,963 of the 36,921 students approved for the tax credit so far this year were enrolled in public school the previous semester. In setting up the program, lawmakers gave priority consideration to families making an adjusted gross income of less than $75,000. Proponents frequently referred to that group as 'low income,' even though the state's median household income is $63,600. About 2,700, or 9%, of the students in the program came from families that qualify for income-based public assistance programs, according to the data snapshot. More than 27,000 students receiving the private school tax credit – almost 75% – came from families with household incomes above $75,000, according to the latest Tax Commission data. Shiloh Kantz, executive director of the Oklahoma Policy Institute, said at a minimum, lawmakers should put additional accountability measures into the Parental Choice Tax Credit program. She said it would be helpful to know which private school the student attended and the local public school district. There should also be regular audits of the credit and the percentage of audits where errors were found. Those types of safeguards are built into state and federal programs like the earned-income tax credit, food stamps and Medicaid that benefit low-income families. 'We got told this program will uplift educational outcomes, that it offers families educational choice and opportunity through that choice,' Kantz said. 'But really it just rewards those people who can already afford private education, and it just leaves our public school students further behind, especially in a state where one in five kids live in poverty.' Kantz said few private schools are adding capacity to take additional students. Meanwhile, some schools have increased tuition since the tax credit was implemented. 'So it is not about having parental choice,' Kantz said. 'It is about checking a box as a political red state to say, 'We did the thing.' But it's not helping working Oklahomans.' The Legislature considered several changes to the program this year. Lawmakers didn't act on Senate Bill 229, by Sen. Julie Daniels, R-Bartlesville, this session. It would have eliminated the $250 million annual cap on the private school tax credit, a change Gov. Kevin Stitt called for at a rally at the Capitol in March celebrating the private school tax credit program. SB 684, by Senate Pro Tempore Lonnie Paxton, R-Tuttle, could come up for a vote in the House this week. It mostly deals with accreditation organizations for private schools participating in the Parental Choice Tax Credit. But it also prioritizes existing recipients if they still meet income eligibility requirements. This article first appeared on Oklahoma Watch and is republished here.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Most Private School Tax Credit recipients came from families making $75K+
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — New Tax Commission numbers released this week show most recipients approved for the Parental Choice Tax Credit were awarded to families earning above average income. The total amount approved was $236 million with a cap of $250 million. Oklahoma Policy Institute first reported the findings earlier this week and found that families earning more than $250k/year made up more than 1 in 4 recipients. The numbers showed that most of the money went to students who had already been enrolled in private school, too. It showed that just 2,963 of the 36,921 students approved for the tax credit so far this year were enrolled in public school the previous semester. Lifting cap on Oklahoma's School Choice Tax Credit could have high cost 'They were sold as being a way to help public school kids who were in bad public schools get into private school. Clearly that's not the case since 92% of the people using them are already in private schools,' said Senator Julia Kirt (D-Oklahoma City). Also, almost 75% came from families with household incomes above $75,000, according to the latest Tax Commission data. Numbers from March showed that a $27.1 million portion, about 30%, went to families making below $75,000 a year. A nearly equal amount, $26.3 million, went to families making between $75,000 and $150,000. Another $15.7 million, or 17%, went to families making between $150,000 and $225,000. 'Almost half of the folks that are receiving the tax credits are making more than $150,000 annually, and 92% of the families were already in private school to begin with. So, again, the question that we have is, who's getting a different choice now?' asked Senator Carrie Hicks (D-Oklahoma City). Republicans have long approved of the program. Governor Stitt has asked as recently as March for there not to be a cap on the program. On Wednesday, News 4 asked the governor's office if they had looked at the recent snapshot from the Tax Commission and if he still wants the cap removed. We have not heard back. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Lifting cap on Oklahoma's School Choice Tax Credit could have high cost
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — The conversation about no cap on Oklahoma's School Choice Tax Credit could come at a cost after another state implemented a similar measure. Several bills related to the Parental Choice Tax Credit program we discussed this legislative session. However, lawmakers voiced concern that there are close to none that serve to provide accountability or oversight. The program was billed, in large part, as a way to help low-income families get their kids the best education possible, but new state data showed a major share of its funds went to the state's wealthiest families that participated. The data from the Oklahoma Tax Commission showed Oklahoma paid out $91.7 million to families taking part in the Parental Choice Tax Credit system. The cap is a tiered system; the credits are capped at $200 million for the current school year and will be $250 million for 2026. Governor Kevin Stitt has voiced his support to remove the cap altogether. Several lawmakers voiced concern about removing the cap as there have been examples of that causing concern. Arizona has a school-choice program where they removed the cap and it caused problems according to the latest data. A non-partisan think-tank group, the Grand Canyon Institute (GCI), conducted research regarding their program. A report released by GCI over the summer last year looked at the net cost of Arizona's school choice program. The report aimed to find the costs or savings the state was taking on because of the program. Research director Dave Wells said the school choice program in Arizona contributed to the budget deficit, adding a whole new cost to the state. Governor Stitt calls to extend the cap on Parental Choice Tax Credit 'We're taking a whole bunch of children who were never going to be in a public district or charter school and now we're subsidizing them,' Wells explained. 'What these programs do is they primarily seem to elevate the needs of higher-income parents over the needs of lower-income parents.' Representative Melissa Provenzano (D-Tulsa) is the author of a bill that is expected to be voted on come Friday that is one of the only ones that has some accountability on the tax credit program. Her bill HB 1396 would essentially not require parents to sign up for the program if they are enrolling in a private school. Before it came to the floor, it did have a restriction where schools couldn't raise their tuition just because of the program. That was taken out in committee. 'Just like in Arizona, if we take the cap off of how much we're willing to spend each year, we're going to put ourselves in a financial crisis. And so I'm very concerned about that,' said Rep. Provenzano. The money from the Oklahoma program was divided among families based on their income. A $27.1 million portion, about 30%, went to families making below $75,000 a year. According to census data, the average household income from last year totaled just over $63,000. A nearly equal amount, $26.3 million, went to families making between $75,000 and $150,000. Governor Stitt was asked about removing the cap and was presented the issues Arizona has seen, but he didn't answer the concerns. He did comment later during his Wednesday presser on a push towards slightly more privatized education programs. 'If we can do what I think we're able to do on education with our free market approach, with our, you know, more charter schools, more Christian schools, more Catholic schools, more options for parents,' said Gov. Stitt. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
23-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bill aimed at tackling Oklahoma's childcare crisis moves forward
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – Lawmakers voted to move forward with a bill that could ease the childcare crisis in Oklahoma. It would give companies a tax credit for helping workers with solutions to childcare. House Bill 1848 easily passed through the House on March 12 and will now head to the Senate side for consideration, but, it will face some challenges. The bill, co-authored by Rep. Suzanne Schreiber (D-Tulsa) of the House and Sen. Kristen Thompson (R-Edmond) of the Senate, would give employers a tax credit that they can use in three ways; provide child care onsite, give money to workers to cover part of the cost, or work with a licensed daycare center to reserve spots for the company's employees. Governor Stitt calls to extend the cap on Parental Choice Tax Credit Oklahoma-based company, Simple Modern, is on board with the program. 'We don't pretend to think that this stipend covers everything, but we think that it helps, and we want it to help,' said Jon Kuhlman, Chief Culture Officer for Simple Modern. 'That's the main goal behind why we do it.' Simple Modern employs 110 people. 'Child care is just so expensive that we just felt like it was something we really wanted to do to show our support for families who are balancing the desire to be healthy parents, a good parent, a supportive parent, but also who have career ambitions,' said Kuhlman. Rep. Schreiber tried to pass a similar law last session. 'We need to take it seriously,' said Schreiber in September while the bill was running through the legislature. But it failed in the final stretch. If House Bill 1848 becomes law, it would give tax credits of $30,000 per worker, spread over five years, to help cover the cost of child care. There would be a cap of $5 million per year. Those lawmakers questioning the bill said the focus should be on trimming the state's budget which was one of Governor Kevin Stitt's priorities this session. Schreiber said it would be money well spent because it would strengthen Oklahoma's workforce while tackling a major crisis. 'We're addressing an economic issue,' said Schreiber. 'We need a workforce. There's many families that have a single parent that may need to go to work that don't have a choice.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
