Quarterly
Economic
Monitor

Oklahoma
State
Senate

Economic legislation ranging from major education reforms to Quality Jobs Program improvements to tax breaks for the energy industry dominated much of the 1999 legislation in both special and regular sessions.  All of these actions came against a backdrop of depressed oil prices, slow revenue growth, and previous years' spending obligations which led to the leanest legislative session since 1993.  This article summarizes some of the key economic-related legislation passed during the 1999 legislative sessions.

a well-educated workforce in Oklahoma, leaders from education, government and business were involved in crafting a new initiative to begin to improve Oklahoma's public education system.  The Oklahoma State Chamber of Commerce, the Tulsa Chamber, and the Oklahoma City Chamber joined together to create a task force to improve Oklahoma's public schools.  They outlined areas such as charter schools, more rigorous

(Continued on page 2)

* * * *

VEHICLE REGISTRATION FEES
A bill to address the motor vehicle registration fees in Oklahoma received much attention during the past session.  HB 1734 passed both the House and the Senate but was vetoed by the Governor.  The graph below shows how Oklahoma's taxes and fees compare with nearby states when other states' property taxes are included in the calculations.  Oklahoma's vehicle fee includes an in-lieu-of property tax.