Michelle Gentry stands outside her 3rd grade classroom at Madison Elementary School in Norman, Okla.

Logan Layden / StateImpact Oklahoma

Tax Break for Big Corporations Could Mean Even Less Money for Oklahoma Schools

  • Logan Layden

Logan Layden / StateImpact Oklahoma

Michelle Gentry stands outside her 3rd grade classroom at Madison Elementary School in Norman, Okla.

State Question 766 passed in November 2012, and eliminated the tax on intangible property:  business licenses, trade secrets, company logos, things with value beyond their physical traits.

Before the election, the state Tax Commission estimated 766 would mean revenue losses of around $30 million for Oklahoma public schools.

Five months later, a new estimate predicts the impact could be double that, and administrators are wondering what it means for their districts.

Common education took deep cuts during the state budget crisis that began in 2008, like most other agencies. But for schools, the cuts keep coming. The amount of money the state spends on each student has dropped more than 20 percent over the past five years.