Governor speaks, lawmakers applaud

Stitt prioritizes tax cuts, pro-business policies, savings in State of the State address

February 11, 2025‍

The 60th Oklahoma Legislature officially began on February 3, 2025, with Governor Kevin Stitt’s seventh State of the State address, where he outlined his legislative priorities for 2025, including an income tax cut, pro-business policies, maintaining a substantial piggy bank of state funds, the removal of diversity, equity, and inclusion policies, and “defending the Oklahoma way of life.”

Legislators dutifully applauded at several points throughout the governor’s speech, which isn’t surprising given that 81 percent of the current Legislature is Republican.

Only 52.6 percent of state voters, or about 1.3 million people, are registered Republicans. Non-GOP voters make up 1.17 million, or 47.3 percent, of the electorate. Not to sound like sour grapes, but these statistics make Stitt’s speech, and the applause of his audience, feel choreographed, like much of what passes for democracy in our state. Gerrymandering is a thing, and it’s squeezing the spirit from the careful system of checks and balances that were intentionally written into our state and federal constitutions. Even Democrats at the Oklahoma State Capitol joke about how little power they have.

But we digress.

Stitt quoted Churchill early in the address, saying, “the price of greatness is responsibility.” In Stitt’s view, that means sacrifice. “The reality is there is going to be pain either way – the pain of discipline now, or the pain of regret later,” he said. “The greatness of our state depends on discipline and the willingness to set the right priorities, even when it’s difficult.”

Stitt called on state agencies to submit flat budget requests for FY 2026. He also called on legislators to set a savings floor of $4 billion to offset any future revenue shortfalls, like the projected $300 million shortfall for the current fiscal year. “It’s conservative policies like this that protect the American dream in Oklahoma,” Stitt said, “not DEI, government mandates, or regulations.”

Stitt called for “a half and a path,” a half-point cut to the individual and business income tax and a path to zero income tax. “If we don’t act quickly, we are going to be left behind, and we’ll be considered a high tax state,” he said.

Stitt also announced the launch of DOGE-OK, a program like President Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, which has been heavily criticized for subverting legal processes to dismantle government agencies created by Congress.

Stitt then pivoted to his repeated desire for Oklahoma to be a top ten state for business, calling for less regulations, more energy production (just not green energy), and setting up business courts to handle “business disputes and complicated contracts.”

On education, Stitt said Oklahoma ranks fourth for “education freedom,” whatever that means. He praised the creation of what could become the nation’s first ever publicly funded religious charter school, St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School, which was blocked by the Oklahoma Supreme Court last year as being unconstitutional. That decision was appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, who recently announced they would hear the case. “Government shouldn’t stand in the way of a parent’s right to educate their children in line with their values,” Stitt said.

We wonder if the “Prophet Muhammad Islamic Virtual School” would have been similarly lauded.

In the same breath, Stitt said that virtual school days should become a thing of the past in public schools, and that cell phones should be banned from public schools (not a bad idea).

Turning to immigration, Stitt said his administration vocally opposed sanctuary city policies and pushed for the deportation of criminals who were here illegally. “I’m so excited to have a law-and order-president back in the White House that will listen to the American people and our calls for safe communities,” Stitt said. He didn’t mention Trump’s felony convictions or State Superintendent Ryan Walter’s plan to allow federal immigration agents into Oklahoma public schools to detain undocumented children.

Stitt did announce a new initiative, “family dinner nights,” that he said would address the nation’s “crisis of fatherlessness.” This is not actually a government program. It’s more like a suggestion. A government program would be to give every Oklahoma family $200 (or so) a month so they can order pizza and watch Netflix together. That’s a program we can get behind.

Legislative leaders respond

Senate Democratic Leader Julia Kirt responded to Stitt’s speech, saying the governor was merely reciting “political talking points.”

“We didn’t hear anything new from the governor. Republicans have tried tax cuts for big business. Republicans have tried more mandates on classrooms and have diverted funds to private schools,” Kirt said. “Republicans have copied the policies from D.C. think tanks and it’s clear we need a change to put Oklahomans first.”

House Democratic Leader Cyndi Munson said Stitt was focused more on appeasing President Trump than solving problems for everyday Oklahomans. “The Governor’s address did not make me confident that he is prioritizing Oklahomans who are relying on us to find solutions to the financial challenges they face,” Munson said. “He is prioritizing D.C.-style politics and talking points rather than the overwhelming needs of Oklahomans who have had to go session after session not seeing solutions that work for them.”

Oklahoma House Speaker Kyle Hilbert said that tax cuts would be discussed after the Oklahoma Board of Equalization releases its final revenue projections for FY 26, expected this month. “We all agree in wanting Oklahoma taxpayers to keep as much of their hard-earned money as possible while being as prepared as possible for future budget uncertainty,” Hilbert said.

Senate Pro Tempore Lonnie Paxton released a measured statement, saying the Senate “looks forward to working alongside the governor and our colleagues in the House to advance policies that will strengthen our workforce, create new opportunities for business investment and make strategic investments in core services,” said Paxton. “By working together, we can build a stronger, more prosperous Oklahoma for generations to come.”

____________________