State Questions 844 and 846 are wrong for Oklahoma

By STEVE GLINSKI

This guest column was submitted by Steve Glinski, a candidate for the House of Representatives, District 3, as part of Heavener.news’ public service coverage of the 2026 election. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Heavener.news. Publication does not constitute an endorsement.

On Aug. 25, Oklahomans will vote on two very impactful state questions.

It is important to note that both of these questions originated in the Oklahoma legislature, not by initiative petition of Oklahoma voters.

In both bills, the legislature is asking voters to give them increased power and to inscribe this power into the Oklahoma Constitution, which makes it very difficult to change.

Trying to understand context is very important to me. This importance is amplified when it comes to politics. Here is some background that I hope will be helpful.

The story of State Question 844 actually begins in 1985 when nearly 70 percent of Oklahoma voters agreed to grant a 5-year property tax holiday on all new qualifying manufacturing businesses.

According to the measure, the legislature agreed to reimburse the local counties and municipalities for any revenue they would be deprived of due to the property tax (ad valorem) holiday.

The legislature in 1985 knew that local communities depended on these ad valorem taxes as a core funding source for public schools, career technology centers, county government, emergency management services, libraries and county hospitals.

To assure that local communities across the state were not deprived of these necessary resources, the legislature created a reimbursement fund. They did this by setting aside one percent of Oklahoma income tax revenue for this purpose. The problem for the legislature in 2026 is that Oklahoma income tax revenues no longer adequately supply the fund that covers these reimbursements as required by the 1985 law. They have had to pass supplemental funding bills to pay back our local communities for several years.

State Question 844 is asking Oklahoma voters to replace the current law with a law that does not require the legislature to fully reimburse local communities for the ad valorem holiday. It states that the legislature would be allowed to set the “levels and methodologies…” for these reimbursements.

The failure of our legislature to fully reimburse, as the current law requires, will negatively impact the  revenue sources that our local public schools, technology centers, county governments, emergency management services, libraries and county hospitals depend on.

Voting “No” on State Question 844 just means that the current law remains in effect and the Oklahoma legislature is required to do the job the 1985 law mandates that they do.

State Question 846 also amends the Oklahoma Constitution to require proof of identity to vote in any authorized election in Oklahoma, but, it does not say what those identity requirements are.

It gives the legislature the authority to set those requirements by law, at a later date. Part of the problem is clear from the beginning – Oklahoma voters aren’t being told what requirements we are agreeing on.

In 2010, Oklahoma voters approved a state question requiring people to present a valid, government-issued photo ID or their voter identification card issued by the Oklahoma Election Board when voting in person.

This law has apparently been working very well. A conservative policy group, the Heritage Foundation, has ranked Oklahoma’s election system among the highest in America for election integrity.

State Question 846 is completely unnecessary. Oklahoma has struggled with voter turn-out for many years. Our legislature does not need to add any more confusion to this process.

Oklahomans deserve transparency and full disclosure of anything we are giving our legislature authority to do.

Voting “No” on State Question 846 just means that the current law remains in effect and all people are required to show the identification we agreed on in 2010.

To view a sample ballot, go to OK Voter Portal on the Oklahoma State Election Board website and enter your name and zip code.

You may also view a sample ballot on our Facebook page, Steve Glinski For State House, District 3, 2026.

If you have any questions or comments, email me at glinskiforhouse@gmail.com.

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