After a year of uncertainty, what s next for Oklahoma schools? oklahoman.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from oklahoman.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Oklahoman
A polarizing lawsuit settlement by Oklahoma s top school board is no more, almost two months to the day that the board shocked the state by granting local tax revenue to charter schools with the agreement.
The Oklahoma State Board of Education voted unanimously Monday evening to rescind the settlement, pending certain stipulations.
The original agreement, approved March 25, resolved a lawsuit the Oklahoma Public Charter School Association filed in 2017. The charter school group sued for access to local tax dollars, a revenue source that supports school facilities.
The board voted then 4-3 to allow charter schools a share of local tax revenue. Until then, local dollars, such as property and motor vehicle taxes, were reserved for traditional school districts.
Oklahoma s Budget Deal Includes A Big Boost For Education Following COVID Cuts kosu.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from kosu.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
By Janelle Stecklein/ CNHI State Reporter May 14, 2021
5 hrs ago
Fifth-grade students sit in class during the first day of school Aug. 18, 2016, at Jefferson Elementary. Kyle Phillips / The Transcript
OKLAHOMA CITY â Public school proponents and lawmakers are heralding the stateâs budget agreement that would see a record high $3.2 billion investment in public schools and ensure class size reductions in kindergarten and first grade.
House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, said his caucus was focused on increasing public school funding by $171.8 million â or 6% â to allow lawmakers to comply with a provision of House Bill 1017, the stateâs landmark Education Reform Act passed in 1990. It mandates the smaller classroom sizes as long as itâs properly funded.
Oklahoma school funding boost earns unanimous House support
Oklahoman
A bill that would do away with a polarizing charter school settlement and offer new revenue to public schools passed unanimously in the Oklahoma House.
The Redbud School Funding Act, or Senate Bill 229, advanced past the House floor on Wednesday. It will return to the Senate for further consideration.
The bill would invest $38.5 million in medical marijuana tax revenue to give grants to school districts and charter schools that receive below-average local tax funds for construction and maintenance of school facilities.
Virtual charter schools wouldn’t receive funds from this legislation.