Oklahoma
Oklahoma set to receive $797 million in federal funds for improved internet access
Oklahoma is poised to receive almost $800 million in federal grant funds to expand internet access across the state.
Mike Sanders, executive director of the Oklahoma Broadband Office, said this week that Oklahoma, Montana and Vermont would receive a total of $1.6 billion from the federal Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment – BEAD – program this year.
“This is a game changer,” Sanders said. “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
On Thursday the National Telecommunications and Information Administration announced approval of the state’s Initial Proposal Volume II, which outlined the selection process. Sanders said the Oklahoma Broadband Office has a year from the approval date to complete the process and award funds to eligible internet service providers.
Created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the BEAD program is a $42.45 billion state grant program. The states, U.S. territories and Washington, D.C., received billions in federal funding to deploy or upgrade high-speed internet networks to ensure the public has access to reliable, affordable, high-speed -internet service.
Sanders said Oklahoma would eventually spend a total of $1.3 billion in federal funds to expand internet access in remote areas. While the $797 million grant was “by far the largest pot,” Sanders said, he added that private funds would supplement that investment.
More: High-speed internet grants of more than $300 million awarded by Oklahoma officials
Sanders said the BEAD program was the largest high-speed internet expansion effort in Oklahoma history.
“We’re going to be changing generations for the better,” he said. “Whether it’s education, whether it’s heath care, whether it’s economic development. This will level the playing field between areas that have had high-speed internet and those who have not.”
Once the expansion is complete, he said, Oklahomans will see the benefits for years to come.
How will the federal money be used to expand broadband in Oklahoma?
Sanders said Oklahoma’s $797.4 million share of the program will be used to fund last-mile connections for unserved and underserved homes and businesses. However, before the award process can begin, the office will administer a challenge process to determine which locations in Oklahoma are eligible for funding.
Under the program, BEAD-eligible entities — the states, territories and the District of Columbia — are required to submit proposals to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration for approval. The initial proposal must show how each entity plans to spend their BEAD allocation.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law includes an earmarked $65 billion investment to expand affordable and reliable high-speed internet access in communities across the United States.
All states submitted their initial proposals last December.
Opinion: Older Oklahomans need affordable high-speed internet service ― and the skills to use it
One year from initial proposal approval, states must submit a final proposal that details, among other things, the outcome of the selection process and how the state will ensure universal coverage. Oklahoma’s grant was the largest of the three awarded. The two other grants included $668 million allocated to Montana and $228 million to Vermont.
Gina Raimondo, the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, said a reliable internet connection was a necessity that enables access to jobs, health care and education.
Sanders said federal approval of the state’s plan was the result of many months of intensive planning and stakeholder engagement.
“We want to ensure we can bridge the digital divide in this state once and for all,” he said. “Our office will continue to ensure this money goes directly to areas that don’t have high-speed internet access.”
OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLA. (KOKH) — An investigative audit into the Oklahoma County Criminal Justice Authority; it’s something the Oklahoma County Board of Commissioners is considering.
Fox 25 has been covering issues with the Oklahoma County Detention Center for years, from failed inspections to staffing issues and missed paychecks.
The issues had members of the Jail Trust recommending last June they undergo a performance review. Now, in a letter recently issued, county commissioners are asking State Auditor Cindy Byrd to look into the county Criminal Justice Authority, also known as the jail trust. But whether it’s tied to those ongoing issues remains unclear.
“I really wouldn’t know. I wouldn’t know where to begin with that. I just wouldn’t even want to speculate, honestly,” said Commissioner Myles Davidson.
Commissioner Davidson told FOX 25 if the audit were to happen, it wouldn’t be cheap.
“To go into a budget that we’re extremely tight on, and start adding hundreds of thousands of dollars, and time, these audits don’t happen overnight. I don’t know that we would have an answer to any question we could possibly ask before the budgetary cycle is over,” said Davidson.
Davidson said that cycle ends June 1. Instead, he’s suggesting they look into existing audits to see if there’s any useful information there first.
“I would simply say that we need to look at the audits that have been submitted already to the state auditor that the jail trust has already paid for, and then if we have questions about those, we need to bring in that auditing agency and question them. We do have the authority to do that,” Davidsons said.
However, Davidson isn’t sure they have the authority to request this audit.
“When it comes to statute, we have to have it lined out, expressly in statute that we have this authority, and every county commissioner across the state has to abide by that,” he said.
Davidson said they’ll be meeting Monday to find out whether or not they do have the authority to request this audit. He told FOX 25 the Oklahoma County District Attorney’s office reached out to folks with Cindy Byrd’s office and was told the audit would cost $100,000, adding that she’s so swamped that she can’t do it this calendar year.
FOX 25 also reached out to Jason Lowe’s office but they said they have no comment.
OKLAHOMA CITY (KSWO) — Oklahoma lawmakers have voted to honor country music artist and Oklahoma native Toby Keith.
House Concurrent Resolution 1019 recognizes Keith’s lasting impact on music and proposes renaming a planned turnpike in his memory.
The concurrent resolution was authored by Rep. Jason Blair, R-Morgan, and Sen. Lisa Standridge, R-Norman.
The planned route will extend from Interstate 44 east to Interstate 35, then continue east and north to I-40 at the Kickapoo Turnpike.
Copyright 2026 KSWO. All rights reserved.
Governor Kevin Stitt has said he wants the State Superintendent of Education to be a governor-elected position instead of an elected one. Political analyst Scott Mitchell examines what this would mean for the state.
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt is urging lawmakers to send a state question to voters that would make the state superintendent an appointed position, as he named Lindel Fields of Tulsa to the role and announced a turnaround team to help implement his education agenda.
Is the State Superintendent an elected role?
Yes, the State Superintendent of Education is still an elected role. Elections are scheduled for Nov. 3, 2026.
Cons of making the superintendent an appointed position
Mitchell said making this position appointed could cause distrust among some Oklahomans
“Over the years, we’ve seen that capture of regulatory sort of is easy to do when you have term limits, then lobbies become more powerful, and they have all the history. It’s very complicated.
He also said if the position were to be elected, they would likely have the same agenda as the governor.
“Yes, and I think the governor would be absolutely saying, ‘Yes, they’re going to do what I want them to do.’”
Changing how the superintendent is chosen changes what the founding fathers set.
“Voters are going to have to say yay or nay if it gets to them, is whether or not we want to change the way that the founding fathers set up the way that we make sure that power is not concentrated in Oklahoma,” he said.
Is Ryan Walters’ term the reason Stitt wants to make this position appointed?
Mitchell said he believes the former State Superintendent played a role in the government wanting to appoint this position.
During his time as superintendent, Walters was known to have multiple controversies. He resigned in 2025, allowing Stitt to appoint Lindel Fields.
“His impact on this, even though he’s gone, is certainly evident,” said Mitchell. “Walters left midstream, right? And so the governor had a chance to appoint someone. Well, it wasn’t just an appointment; it was chaos before and relative calm and competency after. And that has given the governor an opening for people to see with their own eyes. Yeah, you can put somebody in, we’re talking about Lindel Fields, that appears to get up every day, not trying to find some, get a click on social media, but rather to do his job. And across the board, for the most part, this guy’s getting thumbs up.
Stitt said electing Fields has already given him some leverage since he has been well perceived so far.
“That allows a governor to say, Look, I’ve got some standing, some leverage to go to the voters and say, let’s put expertise as the main reason that a person’s there, not because they were able to win an election because they had some sort of populist or dramatic ideas.”
Who is running for Oklahoma State Superintendent?
Republican Ballot
- Sen. Adam Pugh
- John Cox
- Rep. Toni Hasenbeck
- Ana Landsaw
Democrat Ballot
- Craig Mcvay
- Jennettie Marshall
Independent
To learn more about each candidate, click here.
A full breakdown of candidates in the 2026 Oklahoma State Superintendent race, including party affiliation, background and key education priorities.
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