tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57024232156513109952024-03-13T14:19:04.716-07:00Rep. Leslie OsbornRep. Leslie Osbornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00245415931847164869noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5702423215651310995.post-60950486566616515662010-03-13T10:06:00.000-08:002010-03-13T10:10:06.573-08:00SQ 744 FACT OF THE WEEK<span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 255, 0);">SIGN THE PETITION!</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 0);">Go to</span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">stop744.com</span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 0);">and sign the petition to help fight this</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 0);">devastating state question that is on the November ballot!</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 0);">You can receive push cards, bumper stickers, and information</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 0);">to spread the word about this potential catastrophe.</span>Rep. Leslie Osbornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00245415931847164869noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5702423215651310995.post-63841933287023707792010-02-23T21:00:00.000-08:002010-02-23T21:06:28.250-08:00SQ 744 FACT OF THE WEEK<span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204); font-weight: bold;">The Numbers Game</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">The OEA website for SQ744 has changed the numbers utilized for their "per pupil</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">spending". Their original figures showed a difference in Oklahoma spending on</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">common education students and the regional average at $1,463 per student....which</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">meant common education would receive $850 million more per year in funding.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">Now...........their website says the difference spent is $1,627 per student, which means</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">they would get an increase of $1.032 billion per year.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">An increase of over one billion a year................coming from higher taxes --OR-- that </span><br /><span style="color: rgb(204, 51, 204);">much cut from every other agency in the state................WOW!</span>Rep. Leslie Osbornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00245415931847164869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5702423215651310995.post-20562964734288214642010-02-12T15:32:00.000-08:002010-02-12T15:37:01.804-08:00SQ 744 FACT OF THE WEEK<span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 255, 51);">No Guarantee that even $1 more gets to the classroom</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 255, 51);">The way State Question 744 is written there is absolutely no accountability for</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 255, 51);">the huge infusion of dollars that would be allocated. Even though the State</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 255, 51);">Question is being pushed on the idea of getting more dollars to the classroom,</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 255, 51);">there are no criteria for spending the money. That means it could all go</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 255, 51);">to administration, travel, salaries, buildings, programs...............and not one</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 255, 51);">dollar to the kids.</span>Rep. Leslie Osbornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00245415931847164869noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5702423215651310995.post-2174629068082185412010-01-15T12:39:00.000-08:002010-01-15T12:51:49.321-08:00<span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">SQ 744 Fact of the Week<br /> <br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"> I love it!<br /><br /></span></span><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">When asked at a forum this week if they were in favor of SQ744's passage,<br />even the two Democratic candidates for Governor said NO! Jari Askins and<br />Drew Edmondson both stated that they oppose the measure because of the<br />havoc it would create with the state budget. Amen!</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span></span></span>Rep. Leslie Osbornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00245415931847164869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5702423215651310995.post-85077032442633434762009-12-19T16:43:00.000-08:002009-12-19T16:48:10.805-08:00SQ 744 FACT OF THE WEEK<span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">Do you want a tax increase?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">Our state is dealing with massive cuts to state agencies right now, due to the</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">economy, before we even consider what SQ 744 would add to the problem.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">Unless we want to cut every agency at least another 20% the only option is</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">tax increases. To fund the question it would take one of two options:</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">1. Individual Income Tax increase of 32%</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);"> or</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">2. State Sales Tax increase of 37%</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0);">I can't imagine asking the public to go for that.........................can you?</span><br /></span></span>Rep. Leslie Osbornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00245415931847164869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5702423215651310995.post-83324666428781342512009-12-02T19:47:00.000-08:002009-12-02T19:56:04.544-08:00SQ 744 FACT OF THE WEEK<span style="color: rgb(102, 255, 153); font-weight: bold;">According to Commissioner Terry White of the Dept. of Mental Health & Substance Abuse Services</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 255, 153);">if SQ 744 is passed it will mean a $40 million reduction to her department. There are currently</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 255, 153);">600-900 people on waiting lists for residential substance abuse help.......the wait and the number of people waiting would increase dramatically. Thousands of Oklahoman's would lose their community support services, become more acutely ill, lose their jobs, drop out of school, and no longer lead productive lives because of this potential cut.</span>Rep. Leslie Osbornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00245415931847164869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5702423215651310995.post-84209064127399248182009-11-11T08:22:00.000-08:002009-11-11T08:32:17.660-08:00SQ 744 FACT OF THE WEEK<span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">The Hypocrisy!</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">Did you know that the way the teachers labor union worded this state question.........</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">if our 6 surrounding states average per student expenditures go up, our spending</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">is mandated to go up..........if their averages go down, ours don't, they have to stay the same!</span>Rep. Leslie Osbornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00245415931847164869noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5702423215651310995.post-44737080447236377252009-11-04T21:20:00.000-08:002009-11-04T21:24:25.304-08:00SQ 744 FACT OF THE WEEK<span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">According to Neville Massey of the Department of Corrections</span></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"> If State Question 744 passes we can expect 2 things from</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"> the Oklahoma prison sytem...............</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"> **Up to 8400 early prisoner releases(there are not enough</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"> prisoners in minimum security to reach this number)</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"> **Up to 9 state prison closures(and the ripple effect of that</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 0);"> in those small Oklahoma towns)</span>Rep. Leslie Osbornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00245415931847164869noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5702423215651310995.post-10401878359165142072009-10-20T09:09:00.000-07:002009-10-20T09:42:35.017-07:00SQ 744 - A catastrophe for working Oklahoman'sIn November 2010, Oklahoma voters will decide the fate of State Question 744, which would tie Oklahoma's common education funding to a regional average set by lawmakers in other states.<br /> If approved, SQ 744 would require spending at least $850 million more for common education per year, on top of the $2.5 billion provided this year.<br /> Because the ballot question does not explain how to provide that additional funding, I requested a legislative study to explore the issue in depth.<br /> If SQ 744 is approved, an analysis by non-partisan fiscal staff shows it will require increasing the income tax rate 34% or the state sales tax rate 38%.<br /> The only other option is to cut spending across the board in all areas of government, except for common education, by as much as 20%.<br /> As a small-government conservative, I am certainly not opposed to spending cuts, but I also believe government should do a few core jobs and do them well. Unfortunately, SQ 744 could imperil even the most basic functions of government.<br /> * Experts predicted the potential cuts at the Department of Transportation could ultimately<br /> strip $395 million from road programs.<br /> * At the Department of Safety, up to one half of state troopers could be laid off.<br /> *At the Department of Corrections, the cuts could require cl0sing up to nine state prison<br /> facilities and releasing as many as 8,400 criminals onto the streets.<br /> *College students could face tuition increases of as much as 33% to make up for potential<br /> SQ 744 budget cuts.<br />Worse yet, SQ 744 would provide no clear benefit to school children. The ballot question does not specify how the extra money will be used. When Kansas attempted a similar measure, they nearly doubled spending, but saw little improvement in student performance. In 1997/98, Kansas spent more than $6,828 per student and roughly two out of three students were not proficient in reading according to national tests. Ten years later, Kansas spent $12,188 per student, yet two out of three children were still not proficient in reading.<br /> Oklahoman's have long supported our schools, but can Oklahoma afford to fund this initiative, proposed by the teacher's labor union, at the high cost of punitive tax hikes on working families during a recession? Because of our state's balanced budget amendment the alternative would be to early release thousands of criminals onto our streets and end the repair of crumbling bridges.<br />More money poured into a system is not always the answer. Sometimes the answer requires restructuring, administrative changes, and results based plans.<br /> The OEA believes that natural growth of the state's economy would pay for this measure. However, fiscal experts disagree, as potential state growth is met with inflation in all areas of state government spending. State Question 744 is an unfunded mandate on the citizens of our state, and I urge voters to weigh the consequences before going to the ballot box.Rep. Leslie Osbornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00245415931847164869noreply@blogger.com0