Fees Offset State Tax Cut
State fee increases offset Oklahoma income tax cut
By Randy Ellis
The state raked in nearly $600 million from fees, licenses and permits last fiscal year — an eye-popping 48 percent increase over the amount taken in just one year earlier.
The $194 million increase outpaces the $136 million a year that tax officials have projected taxpayers will save if the House-approved one-quarter percent cut in the state’s highest income tax rate is implemented.
Conservative Oklahomans have groused for years that fees have proliferated and soared in the state since 1992 when voters curbed the Legislature’s ability to raise taxes by passing a constitutional amendment. The amendment requires a statewide vote on all state tax increases unless lawmakers can get approval from three-fourths of both houses of the Legislature.
Faced with a roadblock to tax increases, the Legislature and agencies often have turned to fees for more income.