Recent Developments: No new developments.
Click here for detailed information on Oklahoma's public school system and see below for school choice contacts and a history of school choice legislation in Oklahoma.
State Contacts
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Oklahoma Christian Home Educators Consociation
3801 Northwest 63rd Street Building 3, Suite 236 Oklahoma City, OK 73116 Phone: (405) 810-0386 Website: www.ochec.com E-mail: staff@ochec.com |
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
Mr. Brandon Dutcher, Vice President for Policy 1401 N. Lincoln Blvd. Oklahoma City, OK 73104 Phone: (405) 602-1667 Fax: (405) 602-1238 Website: www.ocpathink.org E-mail: bdutcher@ocpathink.org, ocpa@ocpathink.org |
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Oklahoma Family Policy Council
Mr. Michael L. Jestes, Executive Director 3908 North Peniel Avenue, Suite 100 Bethany, OK 73008-3458 Phone: (405) 787-7744 Fax: (405) 787-3900 Website: www.okfamilypc.org E-mail: info@okfamilypc.org |
Oklahoma State CAPE
Todd Goldsmith, State Cape Organizer and Contact Superintendent Schools, Diocese of Tulsa 820 S. Boulder Avenue Tulsa, OK 74119-1624 Phone: 918-582-9177 Fax: 918-582-1851 E-mail: todd.goldsmith@dioceseoftulsa.org |
Archived History, Pre-2006
In June 1999, the
Also in 1999, H.B. 2671 was introduced to provide parents with a non-refundable tax credit of up to $500 for tuition. The bill died in committee.[4]
The
In 1999, then-Governor Frank Keating signed H.B. 1650, which established a pilot Internet schooling program, the
Two choice bills were introduced in 2001. H.B. 1473 would have provided a $500 tax credit to parents for tuition and fees, and H.B. 1818 would have provided an income tax credit to donors of scholarships that enable students to attend a private school. H.B. 1818 specified that, "In order to claim the credit authorized by this section, the school board for the district in which the student provided with the private-school scholarship resides must approve a measure authorizing a scholarship to fully or partially subsidize the cost of attendance by students at a public school located within such district." Both bills died in committee.[8]
A voucher bill for low-income preschoolers (Senate Bill 1654) was introduced during the 2002 legislative session. This bill would have used Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds to provide vouchers to low-income parents to send their children to private preschools.[9] The bill died in committee.[10]
Three tax credit bills--House Bills 2413, 2620, and 2676--were introduced during the 2002 legislative session. H.B. 2413 would have provided an income tax credit of up to $500 for individuals or corporations that donated money to charitable scholarship organizations to fund scholarships for families with incomes below $50,000 and credits of up to $200 for donations for public school extracurricular activities. H.B. 2620 would have provided an income tax credit of up to $1,000 to corporations for donations to charitable scholarship organizations in
In 2003, S.B. 311 would have allowed public school officials to require home-school students to take state assessment tests. The bill also would have allowed the state board of education to create rules that would affect home-school students. The bill was defeated in the Senate on March 12, 2003, by a vote of 22 to 16.[12]
A bill to create vouchers for students with disabilities, S.B. 15, was introduced in February 2003. This bill would have created the Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Program to begin in 2004. To qualify for these scholarships, students must have attended a public school in 2003-2004, and their selected private school must be approved to participate in the program.[13] S.B. 15 was referred to the appropriations committee, but no action was taken.[14]
H.B. 1749, introduced in 2003, would have created tax credits for contributions to scholarship organizations. The credits would have been worth up to $250 for an individual and $500 for couples filing jointly. The donations would have been made to scholarship organizations that provided the majority of their tuition assistance to students who are eligible for the federal free-lunch program. No action was taken before adjournment.[15]
A May 2004 poll of 400 registered
[1] See National School Boards Association Web site at www.nsba.org/novouchers.
[2] "Oklahoma Charter School Information," at www.uscharterschools.org/cs/sp/view/sp/40
[3] See
[4] See National School Boards Association Web site at www.nsba.org/novouchers.
[5] See Oklahoma City Public Schools Web site, at www.okcps.k12.ok.us/general/highlights.htm, and Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs, "School Choice in
[6] Oklahoma Policy Council Blueprint 2004, "Homeschooling," at www.ocpathink.org/ViewPolicyStory.asp?ID=536 (September 2, 2004).
[7] Ibid. and Oklahoma Legislature Web site at www.lsb.state.ok.us.
[8] Oklahoma Legislature Web site at www.lsb.state.ok.us.
[9] See National School Boards Association Web site at www.nsba.org/novouchers.
[10] Ibid.
[11] Ibid.
[12] See
[13] Ibid.
[14] Ibid.
[15] Ibid.
[16] George Clowes, The Friedman Report: School Choice Roundup, July 2004 at www.heartland.org/Article.cfm?artId=15221#Oklahoma.
