Poor service should never be rewarded with more money
For several months, one of Guthrie’s foremost fast food restaurants experienced a tremendous drop-off in the quality of service. Long lines of customers found themselves…
Local Government
Special session and stand your ground
The Oklahoma Legislature will likely convene in the next few weeks for a special session. A recent ruling of the State Supreme Court invalidated the…
Sensing the coming storm
Many Oklahomans have learned over the years to predict stormy spring weather. During the early afternoon hours prior to an evening outbreak, we can sense…
The State did not steal the pot of gold
Last week I wrote about my desire to help local school boards save money for infrastructure needs while avoiding debt and property tax increases. House…
Balancing expense accounts for greatest effectiveness
Near the middle of each month, commissioner districts are notified about how much they will receive from the Tax Commission for the following month. We…
County Commissioner Mark Sharpton: General Duties
Each county in Oklahoma has three County Commissioner districts, which are approximately equal in population and are numbered as districts one, two, and three. One…
A Solution to the Property Tax Increase Problem
A month ago I wrote about this area’s rapid growth and described local tax collections continue to grow as formerly empty fields fill up with…
Safeguarding your data
If you’ve read my previous articles, you probably already know about Oklahoma’s wasteful and segmented system of governance. A 2007 study showed that Oklahoma has…
State employee pay
Near the end of last session I wrote an update in which I opined against the political grandstanding conducted at the end of this year’…
Has your elected official been co-opted? Part II
Sometimes voters elect officers on a platform of reform and innovation. The new office holder starts out with the best intentions, excited and ready to…
Lucas announces upcoming town hall meeting
Congressman Frank Lucas has announced an upcoming town hall meeting to be held in Guthrie and surrounding towns.
Has your Elected Official been Co-opted?
As a newly elected official I was excited, optimistic, and ready to change the world. When I gave a presentation to a local civic group…
I pay property taxes … please fix my road
Imagine paying thousands of dollars every year in property taxes and at the same time watching your roads literally crumble under the strain of increasing…
Cost saving modernization proposals set to go into law
OKLAHOMA CITY – With Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin’s recent approval of numerous government modernization initiatives, Oklahomans should expect to pay less for government while gaining additional…
Two Examples of Courage
With the recent news coverage of the government’s inappropriate use of the IRS, citizens have paid special attention to practices within various federal agencies.
The right kind of leadership
Before this year’s legislative session, pundits opined about the divided Republican caucus in the House. The 2012 session had not been an easy one and…
The Assimilation
As the legislative session came to a close last week, it was my job to filter incoming bills. Lobbyists are notorious for putting dramatic last…
I Will Vote No!
All indications point to this being the last week of this year’s legislative session. The Legislature will go home a week early. This is good…
Saying goodbye to the earmark
Before I print my update for this week, I have attached a press release from the Governor’s office regarding her government consolidation measures which I…
My views on the State budget proposal
On Thursday, the Governor and legislative leaders announced an agreement for the composition of the state’s next budget. Capitol insiders as hard pressed to recall…