Editor's Notebook

After visiting with Oklahoma Turnpike Authority officials over the past several days it has become crystal clear to me that the OTA wants to visit with residents of Purcell and the Purcell area about the South Extension turnpike.

They have told me it is very important for them to visit with Purcell people and those residents that live as far north as Noble, at their meeting scheduled for next Wednesday.

That’s because they have had several chances to visit with folks in Norman but haven’t had the opportunity to acquire information from residents down here to visit about the very southern tip of the new turnpike.

They are encouraging Purcell residents to plan on arriving early to the Multi-Purpose Center prior to the 5 p.m. beginning to ensure getting a good seat for the meeting.

The meeting will be especially valuable to area residents that have land where the new highway will pass through.

The possibilities are endless as to the major positive impacts the turnpike could have on the economy of the Purcell area.

The turnpike officials are not required to have meetings like the one scheduled for Wednesday but eagerly want to have such meetings to get input from citizens about the highway.

jdm

In typical government fashion, the Oklahoma’s Parental Choice Tax Credit program which lawmakers said would give lower income families the ability to send their children to private schools isn’t cutting the mustard.

More than 40 percent of the $250 million budgeted by the Legislature for the tax credit program (almost $131 million) went to families with annual incomes of at least $150,000.

Almost half of  that amount, went to families with annual incomes of $250,000 or more.

Those are families that were probably already sending their students to private schools. And, they can dang well afford it.

All those funds were taken away from public school funding. Yet Republicans Gov. Kevin Stitt, Senate President Pro Tempore Lonnie Paxton and House Speaker Kyle Hilbert are sticking with their guns, backing the program.

Another Republican, Sen. Julie Daniels filed a bill to remove the program’s spending cap.

Now there’s a brilliant idea.

That will allow Legislators to give more tax credits to the wealthy leaving the needy with incomes of $75,000 or less going by the wayside like always.

They received approximately 21 percent of the $250 million.

Really?!

The losers are those with the greatest need, that is if you don’t take in consideration those poor public school students who are missing out on millions of taxpayers’ funding.