Senate President Pro Tempore Brian Bingman today said the federal government’s decision to deny the extension of Oklahoma’s No Child Left Behind waiver will punish the state and further an agenda to control schools.

The decision could force Oklahoma schools to reexamine their budgets to comply with federal regulations. Bingman said the denial was a political statement intended to punish Oklahoma for implementing reforms that empower parents and communities and encourage the adoption of more rigorous educational standards.

Sen. Dan Newberry today said most Oklahoma employers will pay lower unemployment taxes in 2015, due in part to key unemployment measures signed into law in recent years. Reforms have strengthened the state’s workforce system and unemployment insurance trust fund, allowing for lower unemployment benefit payments, he said.

As a result, the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission (OESC) this week announced that unemployment tax rates for all Oklahoma employers will be dropping to the minimum rate next year.