Wednesday, March 18, 2026 • Partly cloudy and significantly warmer. Upper 70s, low 80s — with even warmer air headed to Oklahoma. ⛅

PHOTOS: Tulsa turns green for St. Patrick’s Day celebrations (Tulsa Flyer) ☘️

By Clifton Adcock, The Frontier
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U.S. Sen. Markwayne Mullin, who is awaiting a confirmation hearing to become President Donald Trump’s Secretary of Homeland Security, has a political action committee that has shelled out nearly $1.5 million since 2021 for expenses including flights on private jets, limousine rentals, golf outings, clothing and outdoor gear, luxury hotel stays, tickets to Washington Nationals baseball games and bar tabs.

Boots Political Action Committee, a type of fundraising group known as a leadership PAC, raised more than $2.7 million between January 2021 and February 2026, according to Federal Election Commission records. The PAC allows Mullin to raise money to support his political allies. Boots PAC spent more than $2.1 million on expenses and campaign contributions during that time period, more than any other leadership PAC associated with Oklahoma’s congressional delegation. Less than a third of the money Boots PAC spent during that time — $703,579 — was donated to other candidates, records show. Most of it went to other expenses. Boots PAC was formed in 2014, when Mullin served in the U.S. House of Representatives. He was elected to the Senate in 2022. 

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👀 See also: Live updates: Markwayne Mullin’s DHS confirmation hearing and what it means for Oklahoma (News 9)

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A hand-curated list of the best journalism from across the state:

• Oklahoma State graduate was 1 of 6 crewmembers killed in Middle East (Oklahoma Memo)

• Missing: Osage Nation citizen was last seen Feb. 3 at Osage Casino in Tulsa (Tulsa World)*

• Norman City Council postpones discussion of contracts with Oklahoma Turnpike Authority (OU Daily)

• Here’s how a 2024 law may have helped sink Oklahoma's SQ 836 (KOSU)

• Looming retirements and a staffing shortage. Is Tulsa’s college requirement for police holding up recruitment? (Tulsa Flyer)

• Critics question the fairness of Oklahoma liability insurance bill (Oklahoma Voice)

• 'Not just a job': Oklahoma bill seeks to expand opportunities for mental health workers with lived experience (KOSU)

• What to know about Oklahoma’s first public Rural Health Transformation Program grant application (StateImpact Oklahoma)

• Edmond City Council to weigh ‘bad options’ for incoming water rate increases (NonDoc)

• New Crest store proposed near Scheels retail development in NW OKC (The Oklahoman)*

• Volunteer fire departments facing staffing shortages across Oklahoma (KFOR)

• Tenth Circuit ruling confirms Citizen Potawatomi Nation reservation is disestablished (KOSU)

• Bill would make fireworks more accessible to Oklahomans (Oklahoma Voice)

By Paul Monies, Oklahoma Watch
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The executive director of a state agency that supports science and technology startups resigned suddenly at the end of February, one day after being summoned to a meeting with the state commerce secretary and the state’s chief operating officer. 

Jennifer McGrail, who headed the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology for almost four years, didn’t provide any details about her departure in a resignation letter obtained under the Open Records Act. The board that oversees OCAST appointed Commerce Secretary Deb Moorad as interim director at a special meeting on March 2. 

In December, the OCAST governing board approved almost $8.7 million in grants, providing early-stage funding for 21 companies in biotechnology, aerospace and energy. But for the first time, the board gave conditional approval to four of those start-up companies. Final approval was up to Moorad, the chair of the Oklahoma Science and Technology Research and Development Board. That change in the conditional approval process was not debated or presented at previous board meetings. 

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A daily briefing connecting Oklahomans to the state’s best journalism — and original content from Oklahoma Memo. Got a news tip? Somebody I need to interview? Message me at [email protected].