OKLAHOMA CITY — Gov. Kevin Stitt’s call to reduce the state’s portion of a sales tax on groceries was praised by his allies and critics alike last week, though neither side has finalized a plan on how to get there.
Stitt’s push to cut the grocery tax was part of the governor’s 30-minute State of the State speech he delivered last Monday at the opening of the First Session of the 59th Oklahoma Legislature.
“In my executive budget, I am proposing to eliminate Oklahoma’s state grocery tax and reduce our personal income tax rate to 3.99 percent,” the governor said. “These cuts will save each family in Oklahoma hundreds of dollars each year. And it will continue to make Oklahoma one of the best states to live, work and raise your family.”
Democrats in the Oklahoma House of Representatives said they were supportive of a plan to eliminate a grocery tax. Last year, then-Minority Floor Leader Emily Virgin proposed legislation that would phase in a grocery tax reduction.
House Speaker Charles McCall, a Republican from Atoka, called the governor’s proposals ambitious. In a statement released after the governor’s speech, McCall said the House had already passed “multiple bills aimed at addressing inflation and allowing Oklahomans to keep more of their hard-earned money.”
“We are once again committed to getting meaningful inflation relief through the legislative process and to the governor’s desk,” McCall’s statement said.
Senate Pro Tempore Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City, also praised the governor’s speech, saying Stitt “outlined numerous priorities that will continue our state’s positive momentum.”
The governor’s plan, Treat said, had attainable results that were focused on making Oklahoma the best place possible for everyone to succeed.
“Improving public education outcomes, tax reform and workforce development are all high priorities for Senate Republicans this year,” Treat’s statement said. “We look forward to working with the governor on these important areas and more. I am optimistic about this year and believe we will have success together to benefit Oklahoma.”
Though Democrats said they supported the governor’s call to cut groceries, they also criticized many of the governor’s other proposals, including school funding and social legislation.
“The governor gave a partisan and highly divisive speech that was more about politics than solutions,” said Senate Minority Leader Kay Floyd, D-Oklahoma City. “That is not the approach Oklahomans need right now. Instead, we should prioritize our state’s real challenges.”
Floyd said Senate Democrats have five priorities for the session: protect and support students and teachers; help Oklahomans find good jobs and pay their bills; make it easier to get the health care you need; improve neighborhood safety with smart criminal justice reforms; and give every Oklahoman a fair shot, regardless of their race or ethnicity.
“Rather than siphoning taxpayer dollars into a voucher scheme that will defund schools, we are calling on our colleagues to put the $4 billion in savings they are so proud of to good use, addressing real problems like COVID learning loss and employment shortages in education and health care,” she said. “We are gravely disappointed that the governor and his colleagues continue to attack Oklahomans’ access to the health care they need and the right of patients and doctors to choose what’s best for themselves.”
Tribal leaders, who have on previous occasions had a difficult relationship with the governor’s office, said they appreciated the governor’s new tone.
Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. attended the State of the State speech. Hoskin told a Tulsa radio station the governor’s speech offered opportunities for the state and the tribes to work together.
“Education, infrastructure and health care — I think those are opportunities to touch upon that any governor of the state of Oklahoma could touch upon the relationship between the tribes in the state and how it’s positive,” Hoskin Jr. said in an interview with Tulsa Public Radio. “Those are the kind of opportunities I’d like to see Governor Stitt take in the future.”
Activists for the LGBT community – who protested at the Capitol last Monday – pushed back against the governor’s call to ban medical transition therapies for those under the age of 18.
“These kids shouldn’t be forced to have to deny that just because the people around them won’t listen to them,” said Benjamin Patterson, a transgender man.
Oklahoma lawmakers began taking a deeper look into the governor’s proposals last week. The legislative session runs until 5 p.m. May 26.