Oklahoma voters on Tuesday rejected State Question 744, the hotly debated initiative petition to mandate more funding for public schools.
SQ 744 failed by a large margin, with 81 percent opposed to the measure in complete, unofficial election results. A related measure, SQ 754, which was initiated in opposition to SQ 744, also was defeated, with more than 60 percent of voters opposed.
SQ 754 would have barred constitutional amendments that would base state appropriations on formulas or how other states spend money.
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Opponents said SQ 744 would have hurt the state.
"The coalition that banded together to defeat this measure is celebrating not only saving Oklahoma's economy from havoc, but also from outside interest groups which made the fight one of the more costly I've seen," said Mike Neal, the president and CEO of the Tulsa Metro Chamber.
The chamber was one of more than 100 members of the One Oklahoma Coalition, which led the campaign to defeat SQ 744.
The measure would have mandated an increase in per-pupil funding equivalent to the average funding in Oklahoma's surrounding states. The increase would have cost $800 million to $1.7 billion per year.
Outgoing Gov. Brad Henry, who established himself as a champion for public education, was the honorary chairman of the campaign to defeat SQ 744. Both gubernatorial nominees, Mary Fallin and Jari Askins, opposed the question.
Jeff Wilson, the campaign manager for the One Oklahoma Coalition, said he was "very proud of our grassroots coalition," whose members, he declared, are not "anti-education."
Neal explained: "The Chamber and our leadership are huge supporters of more funding for education. However, this is simply not the way to do it. The measure had no accountability, no guarantees of impacting the classroom and no reforms. The voters clearly agreed."
Tulsa Superintendent Keith Ballard said SQ 744 may not have been the best way to increase funding for public schools, but the debate over it succeeded in highlighting the fact that Oklahoma ranks 49th in the U.S. in per-pupil spending.
"Oklahoma schools are terribly underfunded. At least this was an attempt to try to raise that up," he said. "We are $1,600 below the average of the states that touch us. It will be interesting to see if there is any movement made to try to increase funding for schools and try to move us up from 49th."
YES on 744's campaign manager, Michael Kolenc, thanked supporters.
"SQ 744 may not have passed, but we have elevated a serious problem, one that Oklahomans are concerned about," he said in a statement. "It is now time for all those politicians, businesses, and special-interest groups that opposed SQ 744 to step up and help resolve this problem facing Oklahoma's schools."
SQ 744
Education funding
Yes 19%
No 81%
Andrea Eger 581-8470
andrea.eger@tulsaworld.com SUBHEAD: Opponents celebrate asSQ 744 and a related measure are soundly defeated.
Original Print Headline: Voters reject school-funding initiative