By Dylan Jackson Staff Writer Djackson@oklahoman.com
Oklahoma City — State Question 779, a failed effort last fall to raise the salaries of public school teachers through a one-cent sales tax, was proposed, litigated, supported and defeated in large part by political groups in the guise of nonpartisan organizations.
By the time voters cast their ballots, millions had been spent in a flash of advertisements, news conferences and dazzling websites, much of it coming from politically active nonprofit organizations.
More than a half year after the November election, a true figure of what was spent still can't be compiled and donors, some contributing as much as $2.5 million, won't ever be uncovered.
While ballot measures are meant to give power to Oklahoma voters, nonprofits allow for the conversation to be controlled by the well-connected and corporate-backed.
And as 2018 approaches, these nonprofits, often referred to as so-called “dark money” groups, are gearing up for another round of elections.
Political influence
State Question 779 was broad-reaching: a $5,000 pay raise for teachers and their families, $120 million for higher education and a tax hike that would propel Oklahoma near the top of the list in overall sales tax burden.
More than $600 million was on the line, and it all started in the headquarters of Oklahoma Children, Our Future — a 501(c)(4) offshoot of the national group Our Children, Our Future.
The first petition drive to get the tax on the ballot kicked off in the nonprofit's north Oklahoma City office, as Shawn Sheehan, then Oklahoma teacher of the year, signed the first signature.
Flanking him were David Boren, president of the University of Oklahoma and former governor, and Amber England, executive director of the Oklahoma branch of Stand for Children — a national 501(c)(4) based in Portland, Oregon.
Just a few months earlier, Oklahoma Children, Our Future won an Oklahoma Supreme Court case that had threatened to quash the ballot initiative before it even got off the ground.
The challenger was OCPA Impact, another political nonprofit, this one connected to the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs.
Shortly after the petition received all the necessary signatures, Impact sued again on the same grounds, but the court threw out that case as well.
Both OCPA and OCPA Impact assert their organizations are nonpartisan and don't advocate for or against ballot measures.
After the second ruling, fundraising intensified and more nonprofits jumped into the ring.
Oklahoma Children, Our Future went on to raise $7.2 million in support.
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