Business Briefs (Week of June 17)

Looking for business briefs? This week's roundup (for the week of June 17) from The Journal Record.

Rich Strike falters at Belmont; Saratoga next
Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike's odyssey through the 2022 Triple Crown campaign ended in disappointment on June 11 at Belmont Park. Despite his 6th-place finish in the 154th running of the Belmont Stakes, owner Rick Dawson has his sights set on another race this summer in the Empire State. The Travers Stakes at Saratoga Race Course is a bucket-list race for Dawson, the landman-turned-thoroughbred owner from Edmond. Rich Strike’s sire, Keen Ice, upset Triple Crown winner American Pharoah in 2015 to win at the historic racetrack in upstate New York.  AP photo/Eduardo Munoz)

In Oklahoma, STDs among seniors skyrocket
In the past decade, sexually transmitted disease cases have skyrocketed in adults ages 55 and older in Oklahoma, a new study reveals, and now health experts are scrambling to help slow that trend. The report, authored by HelpAdvisor.com, used Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data to determine how the rates of chlamydia, gonorrhea and HIV changed in every state from 2010 to 2019 among those 55 and older, and Oklahoma’s older adults continuously ranked in the top 10 in all cases. From 2010 to 2019, Oklahoma’s seniors saw a 518.8% increase in cases of chlamydia, a 695% increase in gonorrhea cases and a 136.2% increase in HIV prevalence.

Turnpike Authority authorizes bonds to fund Access Oklahoma plan
The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority says a last-minute special meeting held to move forward with a contested turnpike extension saved it months of delays. Opponents of the turnpike extension say the unusual tactic was evidence of the agency’s determination to force through an expensive, unwanted project.  The OTA held a special meeting this month, 24 hours after posting notice the meeting would occur, to continue its work on a contested turnpike extension to run through parts of Norman and south Oklahoma City.  During the June 9 special meeting, the OTA authorized revenue bonds to fund its Access Oklahoma plan, which includes the contested south extension.

Swadley's fiasco under review by state panel
Creating a framework that could prevent another Swadley’s deal is not an easy undertaking, lawmakers learned during a House Investigative Committee meeting. Approving contracts through boards and committees rather than by allowing individual agency heads to spend millions with little oversight might help, but that method comes with another set of problems, lawmakers were told. House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, formed the 15-member, bipartisan House Special Investigative Committee in April to get to the bottom of how the state entered an overinflated contract with Swadley’s Foggy Bottom Kitchen to operate restaurants at state parks.

Supply chain issues, war causing empty shelves in Oklahoma
Oklahomans are seeing more empty shelves on everything from pasta to tampons, regionwide experts say. From farmers’ fields to local grocery stores, national supply chains have undergone great strain since the pandemic and the problems are not going away anytime soon. Grocery stores in Oklahoma and nationwide are feeling the pinch. Regional and local retailers are finding it difficult to keep fully stocked shelves, particularly wheat-based items such as bread and pasta. In addition, personal items such as tampons are in short supply locally, a recent Journal Record review shows.

Oklahoma scientists develop promising cancer drug
A new drug developed by Oklahoma scientists to fight cancer without harmful side effects is undergoing clinical trials, officials at the OU Health Stephenson Cancer Center revealed. The drug initially is being given to women with advanced-stage ovarian, endometrial and cervical cancers, but shows promise for fighting other cancers and possibly even preventing cancer, according to researchers. Doris Benbrook, Ph.D., a professor in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, developed the drug over 25 years. She convinced multiple institutes to support the drug, primarily the National Cancer Institute, and also received help from the Presbyterian Health Foundation. The drug received Food and Drug Administration approval to be tested in humans in a phase I clinical trial at Stephenson Cancer Center.

Hamm offers buyout of Continental Resources shares
Oklahoma City-based Continental Resources has received an all-cash buyout proposal from the family trust of billionaire founder Harold Hamm. Continental was evaluating the offer that would take the company private in a deal valued at more than $25.4 billion. Hamm offered $70 per share to buy out 17% of remaining stock that his family doesn’t already own. In a statement, Smead Capital Management, the largest shareholder after the Hamm family with around 2% of Continental, said it believed the offer price "undervalues" the shale producer.

At deadCenter U, training the next generation of filmmakers
One script. 50 students. Four short films. For two days, deadCenter University brought together aspiring filmmakers from across the state for a filmmaking workshop June 9-10. With the help of 34 industry professionals and seven volunteers, 50 high school students received hands-on experience in making a short film and attended panels with guest presenters. They included Matt Payne, Co-CEO of Prairie Surf Media, and Rogelio Almeida Jr., the founder and festival director of the Oklahoma Cine Latino Film Festival.

Study: Financially, OKC a good place for seniors
The Oklahoma City metro area ranks among the top 10 places where senior adults are most financially secure, according to a new study. The study by SmartAsset analyzed data for the 100 U.S. metro areas with the largest 65-and-older populations to determine where seniors are the most – and least – financially secure. Metrics included the senior poverty rate, the percentage of seniors with private retirement income, senior homeownership rates and the percentage of seniors who spend 30% or more of their income on housing costs.

Oklahoma lawmakers fail to come to terms on tax cuts
The Oklahoma House and Senate failed to reach a deal on cutting the sales tax on groceries and the individual income tax that Gov. Kevin Stitt was urging them to pass. The House of Representatives adjourned a special session after passing an array of tax cut options, but Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat dismissed the proposals as “political theater.” Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat said he would assemble a working group to consider a more methodical approach to tax cuts.

O’Connor seeks execution dates for 25 inmates
Oklahoma's attorney general has asked the state's highest appeals court to set execution dates for 25 death row inmates following a federal judge's rejection of their challenge to the state’s lethal injection method. In 25 similar filings with the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals, Attorney General John O'Connor wrote that the federal court's stays of execution are no longer in place and that therefore there are no longer any legal impediments to executing the inmates, who have exhausted their appeals.