SQ 744 Facts
The OEA’s FAQ on SQ 744 says it will cost $850-million dollars.
There is no funding mechanism for SQ 744. That means money will either have to be shifted out of other agencies or funded through tax increases.
House Fiscal staff says paying for SQ 744 (which it estimates will be $850-million) only through spending cuts will require a 20% cut from each agency.
House Fiscal staff says paying for SQ 744 through a tax increase would raise income taxes by 34% or sales taxes by 38%.
There is nothing in SQ 744 that mandates the money be spent in the classroom. In fact, the OEA says it will be local administrators that decide what to do with the windfall.
Testimony by agency heads at an interim study found that:
- A 20% cut for the Department of Corrections would mean 8,400 criminals let loose from prisons with 8 or 9 facilities being shut down
- There are not enough minimum-security prisoners to meet that number, so some of those released would be medium-security felons.
- A 20% cut for Higher Education would mean higher tuition, fewer class choices and severe cuts in scholarship and student work opportunities.
- A 20% cut for Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services would mean either cutting services for the patients with the most severe problems so that the most people could be helped or cutting services to low-cost treatment for many people which could result in an increase in severe cases.
- It would also mean the elimination of programs like drug courts which would mean more people going to prison.
- A 20% cut for the Department of Transportation would be more than a loss of just state dollars because of federal matching funds.
- ODOT would lose $395-million from its 8-year plan
- That’s enough money to pay for 200 bridges
- A 20% cut for the Health Care Authority would be $196-million in state dollars plus another $343-million in federal matching dollars for a total of $539-million reduction in state health dollars.
- HCA would need to either reduce the number of people covered by SoonerCare, reduce benefits offered under SoonerCare or both.
- This would come at a time when more people are requiring and qualifying for SoonerCare because of the economy.
- A 20% cut for the Department of Public Safety would mean the elimination of 253 jobs.
- 125 of those would be troopers with the other 128 civilian jobs.
- DPS Commissioner Kevin Ward says, “no doubt highways would not be safer” with the cuts.
- Department of Human Services has some programs that federal law says can’t be cut. That means other programs will be cut more than 30%
- Some of those include senior nutrition programs and foster care/adoption subsidies for children not eligible for federal help.
- Would also mean more than doubling the waiting list for services for those with developmental disabilities.
OEA says regional average does not include Oklahoma because doing so would lower the regional average.
