Oklahoma voters overwhelmingly rejected State Question 744, a ballot initiative that would have required the Legislature to increase funding for public education.
The measure failed in a landslide, with 81.41 percent of voters voting “no,” with 100 percent precincts reporting.
The measure would have required the state budget to fund public education to, at minimum, the per-student average of six neighboring states — Missouri, Texas, Kansas, Arkansas, Colorado and New Mexico. The measure was unfunded, and estimates of the increased spending ranged from $850 million to $1.7 billion a year after a three-year phase-in period.
Proponents of the measure said it would have helped correct the lack of funding for education and Oklahoma’s position as 49th in the nation and last in the region in education spending.
Opponents said there was simply not enough money in the state budget or accountability built into the measure to ensure the money would be used properly.
Jeff Wilson, campaign manager for One Oklahoma Coalition, a group created to oppose SQ 744, said he was surprised by the margin by which the measure was rejected, but he was pleased with the decision Oklahomans made.
“This isn’t about whether or not Oklahoma supports education — we do,” Wilson said Tuesday night.
Now, the state needs to come together to find feasible solutions to improve the quality of education in the state, Wilson said.
Yes on 744 campaign manager Michael Kolenc struck a similar tone in a statement released Tuesday night.
“SQ 744 may not have passed, but we have elevated a serious problem, one that Oklahomans are concerned about,” Kolenc said in the statement. “It is now time for all those politicians, businesses and special interest groups that opposed SQ 744 to step up and help resolve this problem facing Oklahoma’s schools.”
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SgtB 1 year, 6 months ago
I for one am glad that we won't be spending more on education than we should. Private schools currently spend less money per pupil with decidedly superior results in general. I would like to see our state buck the norm and go with a voucher system that would allow a parent to have the choice of where their child goes to school. Choice is the answer, not more money and government control.
Ron Paul for President, 2012