Oklahoma’s Taxing Devil Details

By Mike Mazzei, Candidate for Oklahoma Governor

Editor’s Note: It is a refreshing change when a candidate for office actually covers details of governance rather than just glittering generalities. Today, Mike Mazzei released his latest “Mazzei Minute: April 16, 2026” a column we have carried on Tulsa Today long before he declared for Oklahoma’s top government job. We invite other candidates to provide byline columns for publication, but this piece is especially timely.

After analyzing the budget agreement that recently passed through the Oklahoma legislature there are a few things for taxpayers to like and a lot to loathe.

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Grand Lake Hosts Fireworks Bassmaster

By David Arnett

B.A.S.S. announced this week that Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees in Grove, Okla., will serve as the host site for the 2026 TNT Fireworks Bassmaster Team Championship, scheduled for Dec. 9-12 the organization declared in a national media release.

The championship will bring together top grass-roots team trail anglers from across the country to compete on one of the most respected fisheries in the United States. The four-day event will feature team competition followed by an individual finale, where qualifying anglers will compete for a coveted berth in the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour.

*Oklahoma’s Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees will host the 2026 TNT Fireworks Bassmaster Team Championship Dec. 9-12.*

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The Money Reset Every Couple Needs

By Brigette Engstrom, Blue Monarch Financial

Money is rarely the real argument in a marriage.

What looks like a disagreement about spending, saving, debt or retirement is often something deeper. It is stress. It is fear. It is control. It is silence that has gone on too long. It is one spouse feeling alone in the responsibility and the other feeling cornered by the conversation. It is two good people, often working hard and trying to do the right thing, slowly drifting onto different financial pages without realizing how far apart they have become.

That is what makes money so powerful inside a relationship. It is never just numbers. Money touches security, freedom, dignity and the future. It affects where a family lives, how they raise children, how they care for aging parents, when they can retire, and whether they feel at peace or under pressure when they look ahead.

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Nearly Imposed Anarchy on Oklahoma

By Governor Kevin Stitt

As published by The Wall Street Journal on April 10, 2026:

It was an anticlimactic end to a legal and political horror story: On Monday the U.S. Supreme Court said it wouldn’t review Stroble v. Oklahoma Tax Commission, a state Supreme Court decision that upheld Oklahoma’s authority to tax residents regardless of their race. Why would that even be an issue? It’s a long and complicated historical tale.

Before Oklahoma gained statehood in 1907, its eastern part was known as Indian Country—an area consisting largely of the historical reservations of the Five Tribes that were forcibly relocated from Southeastern states along the Trail of Tears between 1830 and 1850. After the Civil War, Congress dissolved the reservations and land was allotted to the individuals who lived there as federal law weakened or abolished tribal governments.

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American Workers See Real Gains

By David Arnett

With Tax Day right around the corner, President Donald J. Trump is delivering on his promise to put working Americans first. Through historic tax relief, higher wages, and a manufacturing resurgence, his policies are delivering real results for families and service workers across the country.

To highlight his tax agenda, President Trump ordered DoorDash straight to the White House. The delivery driver was Sharon Simmons — a full-time Dasher since 2021. For Sharon, this work is her primary source of income, and like millions of gig workers, restaurant servers, and bartenders, she relies on tips.

Sharon received $11,000 in tips last year — and thanks to President Trump’s Working Families Tax Cuts, her tips are now tax free. Those savings have been especially meaningful because in 2024, her husband reduced his work hours due to cancer treatment. Sharon has been able to retain her tips to pay for her husband’s cancer treatment debt, supplement her husband’s reduced income, and afford travel expenses to visit family.

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