Pair of Youth Governor Programs Inaugurate Student Leaders at State Capitol Ceremony

I told someone the other day that this time of year is when I am most optimistic for our state to see better, but that I am also highly concerned about what direction Oklahoma will go through policy. On Monday, February 2, Oklahoma saw the Second Session of the 60th Oklahoma Legislature commence. Lawmakers convened to officially begin business for 2026 by conducting the “first reading” of bills by announcing the bill number associated with the filed legislation. This term is spelled out in Oklahoma’s Constitution, requiring each bill to have three readings, with one only occurring every 24 hours. This is a protection for the people allowing them to mobilize should a bill be controversial, rallying support or opposition before reaching the desk of the governor. “Readings” of a bill are called such because the bill’s title, number, and content in earlier days were read aloud to the legislative body, a tradition originating before widespread literacy and the ability to photocopy bills. Now, a motion is submitted stating the bills are considered as read thanks to improvements in both those areas. On Tuesday, legislators will hear the “second reading” of the bills filed, announcing to which committee bills are assigned for consideration. Once bills pass out of committee and go to a hearing in the full house of origin (House bills in the House of Representatives, Senate bills in the Senate), then they will reach the “third reading” and be up for passage by the entire membership of the body. The process is then repeated in the opposite body. If agreement cannot be reached between the bodies, it goes to further negotiation in a conference committee later in the session. The bill will be considered on a “fourth reading,” and it cannot be amended but simply passed or sent back for further conference. So, the quickest a bill can pass is five calendar days due to three readings with 24 hours in each of the two bodies, with the third reading in the first house overlapping with the first reading in the other. I will say that it rarely happens for something to pass that quickly. In the coming weeks, I will outline the different issues which will highlight this session, including education policies to improve early learning skills, issues tied around the federal “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which shifts cost burdens on many programs to the states, the likely reduction of expendable revenue as compared to last year’s amounts due to tax cuts and other economic issues, the increased costs facing several state agencies, and the priority bills pursued by OICA. I was pleased with several bills which were submitted that align with our “Children’s Legislative Agenda” as built by attendees to our annual Fall Forum conference and through the efforts of our board members to provide ideas for policymakers, lawmakers, and state agencies, to improve conditions for the youth of Oklahoma. We have had our team going through the submissions by lawmakers and with those bills which carried over from the previous session, which is allowed only over a two-year period in the first and second sessions of each Legislature. In total, there are more than 350 bills which have been submitted that we have on our tracking list, with almost that many carrying over from last year. We hope you will follow this column and our weekly newsletter, which you can sign up for at https://www.oica.org to receive on Thursdays. OICA Policy Director Greg Sawyer writes a weekly update on many of the bills which we are following to allow our advocates to learn more and use as a tool to effectively engage in policies important to them. Next week, I will cover events from our Kid Governor and 4-H Junior Governor program as we held their inaugurations following the governor’s speech and the adjournment of the Legislature on that first day. 

The conversation of immigration continues to weigh heavily on many Americans, especially following the death of a Minnesotan over the weekend who was protesting. Eight people have been killed since the ramp up of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) going back to the beginning of the Trump Administration, which includes officers, civilians and those investigated, with an additional 32 people confirmed to have died in custody. On one side, you have those who are passionate about the need for people to earn citizenship if they want to live in this nation, compared to those who view the laws as too rigid: unjustly preventing the opportunity to live here as a documented resident while seeking legal status, having committed no crime other than being here. Data from the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) at Syracuse University shows a significant majority of individuals in ICE detention nationally have no criminal convictions (70%). In Oklahoma, according to This Land Press in an article published in September, 1,994 people were flagged and booked across Oklahoma. At least 440 of those passed through the Tulsa County Jail, with 80% having no prior convictions, according to reporting by KOSU. Of course, there are opposing stories generated claiming those percentages are not accurate. This effort has been aided by a federal program called “287(g) agreements,” a contract with local law enforcement agencies to assist and oftentimes provide detainment facilities with signed partnerships which allocate federal funding to the local law enforcement agency. The Tulsa Sheriff’s office has been a part of this program since 2009, making it one of the first to participate, with dozens more departments signing up just last year. While this program might anger many, collaboration with local law enforcement does provide personnel who have undergone much longer training with proper deescalation protocols than recently hired ICE agents receive. Many have been put into the field after only 47 days of instructional training per new guidelines. An AP-NORC poll conducted recently revealed President Trump’s approval ratings on immigration had dropped to 38% nationally, and a Quinnipiac poll found 57% of Americans disapproved of ICE’s enforcement of immigration laws. In contrast, this also shows how many people approve of these policies. I will note that these are national polls, and I suspect that favorability is much higher in Oklahoma. One overwhelming sentiment though is support for children. We as a nation should not place any children in cages with only a silver-colored blanket as a possession, and yes, that has been the case with both parties over the past three administrations. I ask our elected officials of both parties and law enforcement to do better. Gov. Kevin Stitt summed it up best on Sunday by saying, “We have to stop politicizing this. We need real solutions for immigration reform.” Senator Lankford worked on an immigration policy which was cast aside. No others have shown the fortitude to continue that discussion. I also do not want to see any more deaths. Am I angry, depressed, frustrated and disillusioned? Yes. I have peacefully participated in marches, walks, and protests throughout my life, hoping it would influence policy. I never feared for my life. Participating in peaceful protests is a constitutional right guaranteed to us no matter what side of the issue you support, as long as it remains nonviolent and does not obstruct law enforcement. But, while protesting might generate stories and make someone feel involved by bringing pressure to policymakers, the ultimate power we have as Americans is at the ballot box. If you don't vote because a candidate doesn’t “check all the boxes” for you, then you allow other people to choose for you who will decide policy decisions, including immigration. 

The final pre-session deadline has been reached for the Oklahoma Legislature with the completion of bill filing for the Oklahoma House of Representatives and the Oklahoma State Senate. Over the past month, lawmakers have worked with their staff members to complete the drafting of potential new laws in preparation for the Second Regular Session of the 60th Legislature. The session will commence on Monday, February 2 at noon with Governor Kevin Stitt’s State of the State address as he begins the final year of his second term in office. The legislative bodies completed bill filing Thursday, January 15. A total of 1,578 House bills and 50 House joint resolutions were filed before the deadline. Likewise, a total of 996 Senate bills were filed for 2026, with 23 Senate joint resolutions and two Senate concurrent resolutions. This flurry of bills joins more than 1,600 House measures and more than 900 Senate bills and resolutions carried over from 2025 which remain eligible for consideration in the 2026 legislative session. The Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA) team is combing through these bills to see which, in their initial stages, will be pro-child. Over the next few weeks, we will be sharing with you which among all these measures are good for children in Oklahoma and those which might cause harm. The House of Representatives is currently comprised of 80 Republicans and 19 Democrats with two vacancies. The Senate currently has a membership of 40 Republicans and 8 Democrats. Lt. Gov. Matt Pinnell, who serves as the President of the Senate, is also in his final year under the two-term limit to hold an executive office. With this, if you are a casual observer of Oklahoma politics and the legislative process, but you might want to learn more so you can engage in policymaking as an advocate, I have a great recommendation for you. For years, OICA held a conference to help educate about the nuances of the lawmaking process called the Legislative Learning Lab (LLL). In 2025, the decision was made to turn this program over to the Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits (OKCNP) to hopefully broaden the scope of this training to reach more interested individuals. This year, LLL will be held both in-person and virtually for attendees to participate and learn best practices of the legislative process. The two-day training will be held on Thursday, January 29 and Friday, January 30 at the OKCNP headquarters located at 701 N. Lindsay in Oklahoma City from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The link to register for this training is https://okcnp.org/events/EventDetails.aspx?id=1980898&group= . For those attending in person or virtually, instructions will be sent upon registration. Across the two days, topics include: conversations with state legislative leaders; understanding the state budget and its impact; working with government agencies and lobbyists; building coalitions and grassroots advocacy campaigns and discussing key issues for nonprofits, including the Johnson Amendment; and the upcoming 2030 Census, along with other relevant and timely topics. We will hear from such speakers as Sen. Chuck Hall, the Senate Appropriations and Budget Committee chair about Oklahoma’s budgetary process; Dr. Keith Gaddie will present about Oklahoma’s political history and how we got to where we are; Reps. Emily Gise, R-Oklahoma City, and Andy Fugate, D-Del City, will discuss caucus priorities for their respective caucuses; panels of Capitol reporters and lobbyists will discuss how their work functions during the legislative session; and, I will present an overview of the three branches of government and how they work as a dynamic to create laws. The cost to attend in-person is: OKCNP members $150, non-members $300; and virtually online OKCNP members $100 and non-members $200. I hope that you will be able to join us for this program which will certainly benefit those who want to help in the policymaking process.

Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. famously stated, “Taxes are what we pay for civilized society.” This quote illustrates that taxation is a necessary component to fund public services, infrastructure, and a collective well-being that defines a functional and civilized society. In Oklahoma, we have a tax structure unlike any found in the United States. Our different levels of government rely upon separate tax collections for providing services. For state government services, some major sources of the $12,180,552,061.03 collected in tax collections include: • Individual Income Tax: The single largest source of state government revenue. In Fiscal Year 2025, collections were estimated to be $5,199,756,734.11. • General Sales Tax: The second largest source of state collections was recently modified when the state eliminated this tax specifically on groceries, which was at a rate of 4.5% on those items, which is expected to reduce state revenue by $418 million per year. $2,788,283,516.29 was collected in the last fiscal year. • Alcohol and cigarette taxes: Revenue generated from these two taxes totaled $271,221,152.24 • Gross Production Tax (Severance Tax): A tax on the extraction of natural resources like oil and natural gas. In FY-2025, $1,041,709,252.19 was collected. You can review the wide variety of taxes collected by the state at https://oklahoma.gov/tax/reporting-resources/statistics.html#ca and also where the funds go if it is not to the General Revenue Fund, which is allocated by lawmakers and the governor. Local governments (counties, cities, towns, and school districts) primarily rely upon different revenue streams than the state for delivering services, which includes: • Local sales tax is used by cities and counties at a rate above the percent charged by the state. This generally serves as the major funding source for municipal operations. Oklahoma is unique in that many municipalities must rely on sales taxes as their primary revenue source for general operations. • User charges are fees for services like water, electricity, and sewer utilities which provide a significant revenue source for municipalities. • Intergovernmental revenue: Local governments also receive significant funding from the state (e.g., shared motor vehicle and motor fuel taxes) and allocated federal government funds. Both the state and several local jurisdictions also have agreements with Native American tribal governments within Oklahoma to help fund a variety of improvements and services. • Property taxes are used almost exclusively by school districts and counties; cities can use their allotment to pay off bonded indebtedness approved by voters. State government is prohibited from levying property taxes. Why is knowing this information important? A group is circulating a petition to send to a vote of the people a state ballot question to eliminate property taxes for homeowners. Under their plan, homeowners’ property taxes would be cut by one-third in 2027, another third in 2028, and eliminated entirely by 2029 for homesteads, removing $1.2 billion from local governments. In FY 2024, overall property taxes, which include the taxes paid by homeowners, businesses (including rental property), commercial enterprises, and farming operations, brought in $3.9 billion for schools and county governments and made up at least half of the budget in 62 of Oklahoma’s 77 counties. Last week, Canadian County officials stated that about 85 percent of their property tax collections went to fund schools in their county. This will fluctuate per county depending upon the types of property, but each would face a significant shortfall for providing public schools and services should this question make it to the ballot and pass by a vote of the people. So, what will make up lost revenue if people want to retain their public schools? One of the petition organizers questioned whether Oklahomans would even want these services, saying the Legislature would need to approve other funding if Oklahomans wanted to continue the services. As Justice Holmes puts it, consider what parts of services provided do you want eliminated should this pass, and what other taxes you would want raised to not see a decline in our society. 

As 2026 begins, the topic of insurance affordability and what can be done to keep costs from going up is top-of-mind. While much of that discussion will occur at the federal level and involves adults, there are things occurring locally which can assist many Oklahoma youth. For the past several years, the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA) has promoted the work of My OK Plan, a nonprofit program operated by Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma (LASO), Inc. Their team of local assisters are real people who are standing by to assist Oklahomans statewide, at no cost, in finding the health insurance coverage that works for them. You can get information on the program on the front page of our website at oica.org . This effort is a funded project through a federal grant administered by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Under this grant, our two organizations have promoted awareness of SoonerCare/SoonerSelect coverage. SoonerCare (Oklahoma Medicaid) is a health insurance program for lower income people/families to receive coverage provided by the state. SoonerSelect is Oklahoma’s managed care program for SoonerCare, implemented by the Oklahoma Health Care Authority (OHCA) and operated through plans provided by selected insurance providers. To qualify for SoonerCare/SoonerSelect, you must: • Reside in Oklahoma. • Be a US citizen or qualified documented resident. • Meet financial income and guidelines in certain categories Income eligibility varies depending on household size. It is important to know that children and pregnant women qualify at higher income limits. For those who qualify for this insurance coverage, you can receive: • Child Health & Wellness visits to doctors. • Primary Care/Preventive Care support services. • Behavioral/Mental Health coverage. • Dental coverage. • Prescription Drugs authorized by a provider. • Pregnancy & Postpartum Care for expectant mothers. There is no monthly or yearly cost to have SoonerCare/SoonerSelect coverage for those who meet the income guidelines. Some services may require a small copay ($4-$10) at the time services are received. As of November 2025, the age breakdown of total enrollment for children under the OHCA was 511,209 Oklahomans ages 18 and under, more than half of the children estimated to live in our state. In the 2025 KIDS COUNT Data Book, Oklahoma ranks 43rd in health and 7% of children are uninsured (around 77,000 kids). That is a slight improvement from previous years but still concerning. These are children who either fall above the income threshold, or their caregivers simply have not enrolled them. For our part in this project, OICA is doing outreach to school districts, daycares, and other early childhood organizations across the state to promote information about this nonprofit’s work and how those who qualify might sign up. We also have received funds to distribute printed materials to these entities in 20 selected counties across the state. Our work makes a difference in reaching Oklahomans who qualify for this support. Over a six-month span at the end of last year, 6,866 children were new enrollees for coverage. Another bonus, in 2023, the state started using a new federal option to count students who get help from Medicaid (SoonerCare) to also qualify for free school lunches, and the impact was successful. Now, almost 300,000 students in Oklahoma receive free meals at school thanks to the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), a federal program which helps schools in high poverty areas serve meals to all students at no cost to their families. This has doubled support around the state and provided a lifeline for many families to help survive tough economic times. To see if your children qualify for SoonerCare or SoonerSelect, or if you know of a family with children who might qualify, please direct them to myOKplan.org to have a navigator assist with enrollment, or you can call (833)465-7526 and an operator will assist. 

OICA CEO Joe Dorman presents gift cards for teen foster children to Codi Darakhshan, M.Ed., community engagement coordinator strategic engagement for Oklahoma Human Services (OHS). OICA helped raise thousands of collars for the holiday gift cards to help foster teens have a happy holiday season. – Courtesy Photo

I hope each of you is looking forward to the upcoming Christmas break and will have time to spend with loved ones. As a Christian, Christmas is one of my favorite holidays and is a very special time for those of us who celebrate. It is especially enjoyable for children. While gifts are important, I also believe it is important to share the reason for the season with young ones and the teachings which align with peacefully practicing your faith. Not all religions recognize Jesus or December holidays the same. In Christianity, Jesus is the Messiah (Christ) foretold in the Old Testament and the Son of God. Christians believe that through his death and resurrection, humans can be reconciled to God and thereby are offered salvation and the promise of eternal life. Christmas is the celebration of his birth and the promise associated. Judaism does not recognize Jesus as the Messiah or divine. While some Jewish scholars value him as a historical figure, they do not see his life as having fulfilled the messianic prophecies outlined in scripture. Those of the Jewish faith await a messiah to bring peace and restore Israel. In Islam, the Quran mentions Jesus by name 25 times - more often than Muhammad - and emphasizes that Jesus was a mortal human who, like all other prophets, had been divinely chosen to spread God's message. The Quran describes Jesus as one of four major human messengers sent by God to guide mankind. Many Islamic people celebrate Christmas, but not as a religious holiday. With the Hindu faith, views on Jesus vary widely. Some may see him as a holy man or a saint, while others may include him among their pantheon of deities. However, he is not considered the only path to God. Like Hinduism, Buddhism does not have a unified view of Jesus. Some Buddhists may appreciate his teachings and moral example, but he is not a central figure in Buddhist belief. The religious composition of America in 2025 reflects both historical foundations and contemporary demographic shifts. Christianity maintains majority status at 62% of the adult population, equivalent to approximately 160 million Americans across all Christian denominations. Within this total, Protestants comprise 40% (103 million adults), while Catholics represent 19% (49 million adults), and other Christian groups comprise 3% (8 million adults). Non-Christian religious populations make up 7.1% of Americans (approximately 18.3 million adults), with Jewish Americans at 1.7% (4.4 million), Muslims at 1.2% (3.1 million), Buddhists at 1.1% (2.8 million), and Hindus at 0.9% (2.3 million). The religiously unaffiliated population stands at 29%, representing approximately 75 million American adults who identify as atheist, agnostic, or “nothing in particular.” The freedom to practice religion without government influence is guaranteed to Americans, and it is regarded as one of our most sacred Constitutional rights. The Founding Fathers’ acceptance of other religions was influenced by their diverse backgrounds and the Enlightenment ideals of reason and individual liberty. This allowed for a wide range of religious beliefs to coexist peacefully within the framework of a secular state. I hope this conversation does not offend, but I believe it is important to have respect for others’ beliefs, even if you do not believe the same as them, and for children to learn that respect. Please do not view another person’s peaceful beliefs as an endangerment to your own, but as a celebration of the ability to live together in a nation where people can rejoice in the peace promised from the season. Whether you are celebrating Christmas (Christianity), Hanukkah (Judaism), Bodhi Day (Buddhism), Kwanzaa (African American heritage), Immaculate Conception (Catholicism), Yule (Pagan), Winter Solstice (several Native American tribes), or some other festivity, I wish you the happiest and peaceful time of year, and please make sure the children in your life have an equally joyous time! 

This time of year can bring stressful times for children who endure traumatic experiences. As we approach the end of the year and with the holidays of celebration occurring, OICA is once again assisting Oklahoma Human Services (OHS) with their Holiday Hope program to provide support for foster youth in the state. Our goal, which was requested of us by OHS, is to raise $30,000 – enough to provide $150 gift cards to 200 teens in foster care. As of Monday, December 15, we have only raised about one-fourth of the amount needed to complete this mission. While this will certainly help those young people who will receive a card, I hate that we have not achieved our goal and might not reach it before the deadline next week. If you would like to help with this mission, please consider donating any amount to help us fulfil our mission. OICA has created a link for individuals to directly donate to the program. The donation page is found at https://tinyurl.com/2026HolidayHope . We also have the link on our social media accounts. With full transparency, OICA has factored the processing fee for each card into the donation amount to ensure all needs are met at a level of ten percent to cover expenses and our costs to complete this project. This holiday season, you have the power to show a young person in foster care that they are seen, valued, and deserve joy. These are youth who often feel overlooked during a time of year that celebrates family, warmth, and belonging, and their foster families are overwhelmed with the costs associated with caring for these youth. Your support helps ease this burden. By doing gift cards, these will give Oklahoma’s foster teens a chance to choose something for themselves, to experience independence, and feel the excitement every young person should during the holidays. Together, we can make sure no young person in foster care feels forgotten. Your support can turn a simple gesture into a lasting message for them: you matter. If you are unable to help, we certainly understand how difficult finances are for many during this time of year. If you provide support for a different youth-related mission, we are grateful for what you and wish you the happiest of holidays with your loved ones. I want to close this week with another special request. Just about eight years ago, I had the pleasure of meeting Miller Hines through his mother, Miranda, who was working for OICA as the director of our OK Foster Wishes program and who operated our special projects. Miller was a typical young boy who enjoyed all the activities which boys do. I will never forget the phone call from his mother as we were preparing for a conference that they had to rush Miller to the hospital and found out he had been diagnosed with leukemia. In the years since, Miller has been a champion through his health battles, ranging from extended periods in the hospital to being able to participate in sports in his school during healthier periods. I have watched over that time as he has often struggled to live the normal life in which we all hope children will be able to experience. He has even developed a large following of supporters who hoped that #MightyMiller would be able to stay in remission and grow into adulthood. Miller had to enter the hospital this past week, and the news has not been good. His 15th birthday will be Saturday, and he wants to not only be able to celebrate this special day, but he also really wants to be able to watch the University of Oklahoma football game on Friday night and for his team to bring home a win. If you believe in prayer, please reserve one for Miller as he goes through his health battle.

The Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA) announced today that Axay “Ax” Parekh of Tulsa has been elected President of its Board of Directors for 2026-2027. Parekh, a recognized leader in real estate, advocacy, and community engagement, brings a strong commitment to championing the needs of Oklahoma’s nearly one million children. OICA is a statewide nonprofit organization which has a primary focus on elevating advocacy issues and awareness regarding youth policy. Their goal is for every child to have access to safety, opportunity, and a brighter future. Parekh’s leadership marks an exciting step forward for the organization as it has been several years since the board president has resided in eastern Oklahoma.. “It is an honor to serve in this role,” Parekh said. “Our children deserve a future filled with hope, stability, and opportunity. I encourage everyone to join us in supporting this work.” As OICA launches its year-end fundraising drive, Parekh calls on friends, family, and supporters statewide to give before December 31 to help advance programs and advocacy efforts across Oklahoma. Contributions toward this nonprofit organization are classified as charitable donations and can be declared on one’s tax returns. Other officers elected to two-year terms include Rebekka Lucas of Oklahoma City, Vice-President; Terry Boehrer of Washington, Okla., Treasurer; Samonia Byford of Oklahoma City, Secretary; Sandy Foster of Lawton, Governance Chair; and Amanda Mullins of Norman, Past President. To contribute or learn more, please visit OICA’s website at https://www.oica.org