School boards group opposes ballot measure

The Oklahoma State School Boards Association on Wednesday announced its opposition to State Question 800 that would create another state savings account.

“Simply put, this state question is vague, filled with unknowns and could erode millions of dollars in dedicated funding for public schools,” said Executive Director Shawn Hime.

SQ 800 would create the Oklahoma Vision Fund, which about 5 percent of gross production tax collections on oil and natural gas would be diverted to beginning July 1, 2020.

The amount would increase by 0.2 percent each year until all gross production taxes are in the fund.

Hime, though, argued that the measure as presented did not go far enough to fund education.

“There’s nothing visionary about the planned erosion of dedicated funding for public education,” Hime said. “It’s bad policy and a step backward.

Schools receive about 10 percent of gross production tax collections, according to the group. The measure will result in reduced funding for schools without a guarantee that the lost revenue would be offset, according to the school boards group.

Senate Minority Leader John Sparks, D-Norman, worked to secure legislative approval for the measure in the form of Senate Joint Resolution 35.

Sparks said the funds would be invested and generate revenue to put back into the General Revenue Fund to pay for education, roads, health care and other needs.

“This provides a fund to generate revenue over the very long run as our oil and gas resources in Oklahoma are inevitably depleted,” Sparks said. “Every other oil and gas producing state and quite a few countries have a fund just like this, except Oklahoma.”

The measure will appear with four other state questions on the Nov. 6 general election ballot.

“The state’s largestever teacher pay raise that passed last session was a great first step, but the work of properly investing in public education isn’t finished, Hime said. "Our per-student investment in education is still last in our region.”

Last session, lawmakers passed a tax hike package to pay for an average $6,100 teacher pay raise.

The Oklahoma Education Association is not taking a position on SQ 800, said spokeswoman Carrie Coppernoll Jacobs.

The idea is part of the State Chamber’s OK2030 strategic plan needed to stabilize the state's budget, said Jennifer Lepard, Oklahoma State Chamber Research Foundation executive director.

Had the Oklahoma Vision Fund been created in 1990, it would have had enough money to give teachers a $2,500 pay raise this year without raising taxes, Lepard said.