Infrastructure bill: Gov. Kevin Stitt joined 15 other Republican governors asking the Biden administration to exempt states from “excessive consideration of equity, union memberships, or climate as lenses to view suitable projects” for the the infrastructure bill largely opposed by the GOP.
“Your administration should not attempt to push a social agenda through hard infrastructure investments and instead should consider economically sound principles that align with state priorities,” says a letter to Biden signed by Stitt and the others.
“Innovation, not regulation, is the driver of economic growth, and we ask that your administration not burden states or private sector partners with needless and unnecessary red tape. … (Y)our administration should halt any attempts to put unnecessary restrictions on the sourcing of labor or materials that would exacerbate the crises our industries are already facing.”
Taxes: The Oklahoma Tax Commission said it will start processing 2021 tax returns on Monday, the same as the Internal Revenue Service. Also like the IRS, the Tax Commission is giving taxpayers an extra weekend, until April 18, to file their returns because of the District of Columbia’s Emancipation Day holiday.
Taxes II: Lowering its corporate income tax rate from 6% to 4% ties Oklahoma for second-lowest among the 44 states that levy the tax, according to the Tax Foundation. Only North Carolina, at 2.5%, is lower.
