Oklahoma
Oklahoma Democrats highlight concerns about state budget transparency
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (KOKH) — Democrats in the Oklahoma legislature are raising their concerns about what the state budget could look like this year.
Democratic leadership held a press conference on Tuesday to speak on funding concerns they have on everything from healthcare to the Oklahoma Highway Patrol to education as power in how the state budget is crafted rests mainly in the hands of Republicans.
“Oklahomans are really drowning and we’re not throwing them a rope right now,” Senate Minority Leader Julia Kirt (D-Oklahoma City) said.
As Oklahoma lawmakers enter their second month of the 2026 legislative session, budget negotiations and conversations are intensifying in what is expected to be a tight budget year.
Democrats say transparency is lacking from their Republican colleagues.
“There’s so many major troubles in the public eye around our budget when it comes to affording homes, affording childcare, being able to find the healthcare they need, and we are not seeing transparency from our Republican colleagues,” Kirt said.
Kirt said years of tax cuts have left the state with no flexibility coming into this year.
“We’ve had an estimated 1.6 billion in tax cuts in the last five years limiting our options a lot,” she said. “And so when we see these challenges what are we gonna see in terms of solutions? We have not had that transparency to give you any idea what’s happening but we wanna raise the alarm that it’s gonna be too late for people to chime in if they don’t speak up now about what they think the priorities should be.”
House Minority Leader Cyndi Munson (D-Oklahoma City) echoed the same sentiment.
“We’ve heard rumors about cuts to agencies and that there will be flat budgets, but we know that they will go deeper as years go on if the legislature doesn’t get it together and figure out a way to increase revenue to pay for core functions of government,” Munson said.
About a month and a half ago, Republican State Senators proposed a $254 million funding plan that would redirect funds from the Teacher Retirement System.
“I find myself wondering how we will pay for this massive package we’re talking about, the third grade reading and math initiatives that we have set in play and have been highlighted as cornerstones of what we hope to accomplish this session. And it’s exciting and terrifying at the same time. The final price tag of those things continues to swing from one extreme to the other,” State Rep. Melissa Provenzano (D-Tulsa) said.
Right now, nothing concrete has been announced on what the final budget number will be.
Oklahoma
Main Card Results | UFC Oklahoma City
Du Plessis returns to the Octagon for the first time since losing his middleweight title to Khamzat Chimaev last August. Standing across from him is Usman, a former welterweight champion who defended his title five times, with signature wins over Jorge Masvidal and Colby Covington. The pair headline a stacked card filled with rising contenders and can’t-miss prospects.
Where To Watch UFC Oklahoma City
Live results, highlights, fight recaps, post-fight interviews and more will be added throughout the event. Preview each matchup below before the action begins. The main card kicks off Saturday at 8pm ET/5pm PT live on Paramount+ in the United States.
UFC Oklahoma City Main Card Results:
Oklahoma
‘ALWAYS OPTIMISTIC!’ Tulsa’s U.V. Okies level up with Nintendo donation
TULSA, Okla. — Tulsa’s U.V. Okies are six-time undefeated Wii bowling champions of the Tulsa Senior Inter-League — and now they’re leveling up.
Nintendo America contacted University Village Retirement Community after the senior bowling team’s story went viral- thanks to their Instagram reels, and features by news outlets like the New York Times and 2 News Oklahoma.
WATCH: POSITIVELY OKLAHOMA: Tulsa Gaming Seniors level up to Nationals:
POSITIVELY OKLAHOMA: Tulsa Gaming Seniors level up to Nationals
Inspired by their story, the company is donating Nintendo Switch 2 systems to each retirement community in the Tulsa league.
Wayne Wall, Life Enrichment Coordinator at University Village, said the outreach came as a surprise.
“I did not expect to hear from Nintendo at all,” Wall said.
GALLERY: “ALWAYS OPTIMISTIC!” Tulsa’s U.V. Okies level up with Nintendo donation
The company reached out to Wall about what the team had come to represent.
“They contacted me and said we’re excited about how Wii bowling is bringing people together at this stage of their life and helping them to have that camaraderie and have fun in this stage of their life and we would like to do something to contribute to that, to be a part of that,” Wall said.
Nintendo donated two Nintendo Switch 2 systems for each retirement community in the league, along with additional gear like extra Joy-Cons, and games. Teams from across Tulsa picked up their gifts at the championship celebration on July 16, 2026, at University Village in Tulsa — and the timing could not have been better. The old equipment had run its course.
“The Wii systems were becoming obsolete and hard to replace,” Wall said.
Come spring 2027, the Tulsa league will make the switch to bowling on the Switch 2. Competing Tulsa teams hope the new systems evens things out.
Fritz Gernandt of the Town Village Strikers had a message for the six-time champions.
“I can only say it once and really loud, look out,” Gernandt said.
The U.V. Okies are not intimidated. Phyllis Wimer, 95 — known on the lanes by nicknames like “The GOAT” and “The Killer” — has already been putting in work on the Switch 2.
KJRH
“I’ve got the new system at home, and I have bowled a 300 on it, and I’m the only one so far that has,” Wimer said.
Dorothy Salen, 101, who led the U.V. Okies in the national league last fall and goes by “Dangerous Dorothy,” is keeping her trademark outlook heading into the new season.
“Always optimistic!” Salen said.
For the U.V. Okies, the game — and the fun — is never over.
The team has one more Wii bowling match planned before their equipment gets retired. They will play the staff at University Village to raise money for Alzheimer’s awareness next week.
2 News Oklahoma was the first to bring you the story of the U.V. Okies success, and we’ve been updating you along the way.
You can learn more about University Village HERE.
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere —
Oklahoma
Oklahoma first responders join rescue efforts as deadly Texas floods claim more lives
OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklah. — Deadly flooding in Texas has prompted another wave of Oklahoma first responders to head south to help with rescue and recovery efforts as the death toll continues to rise.
Days of relentless rain have battered the Texas Hill Country, an area often called “Flash Flood Valley,” turning rivers into violent torrents that ripped out trees, washed away roads, and left communities underwater.
In Kerr County, floodwaters tore apart a roadway, leaving twisted pavement and debris behind.
The devastation comes one year after catastrophic flooding that claimed more than 130 lives across Texas.
Hundreds of rescue crews from across the nation have mobilized to Texas, including teams from Oklahoma and the United Cajun Navy, to save lives and limit further loss.
On Tuesday, Gov. Kevin Stitt and the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management deployed 25 members of Oklahoma Task Force One to Texas. Brad Smith, an Oklahoma Task Force leader, said, “It’s nothing we haven’t seen before. We know what to expect.”
By Thursday, another Oklahoma team rolled south, made up of Oklahoma City firefighters, an Oklahoma City police officer and members of the Yukon Fire Department. Guymon’s specialized swiftwater search and rescue team also responded. “This is a highly trained group of people, very experienced,” Smith said. “We’ve been to out-of-state deployments on this type of thing before and feel very confident in the type of work we’ll be expected to do down there.”
The crews are joining a growing interstate response centered in the Texas Hill Country, now the epicenter of the flooding disaster.
Amy Metz, chief meteorologist with the United Cajun Navy, described the intensity of the flooding and the challenges it has created for rescuers. “They couldn’t get boats to somebody who was submerged in a vehicle in a tree, and so I did hear later after about an hour and a half there were able to get that man to safety,” Metz said.
Metz also described damage caused by the force of the water. “It picked up a barge, one that was there to do some cleanup from last year’s floods, got lifted and thrown down the dam probably a half mile up to a mile away, crashing into a bridge that is now gone,” she said.
At least two people have died, and more than 200 people have been rescued.
Several rounds of slow-moving thunderstorms during the past two days have flooded six Texas counties.
Metz said the rainfall totals have been extreme. “Since Monday, the Hill Country has seen at least 20 inches of rain. That could very well have gone up to 30 in some places and with it river rise. The gauges did show within one hour it shot up 25 feet,” she said.
Metz said the United Cajun Navy is prepared to help with boat ferry deliveries and highway cleanup with chainsaws once flooding subsides.
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