TAHLEQUAH, Okla. — A bill to effectively outlaw municipal funding of homeless shelters outside of Tulsa and Oklahoma City is drawing confusion and opposition among advocates and professionals who serve unhoused Oklahomans.
Tahlequah United Methodist Church's community center doubles as one of the biggest homeless shelters in Cherokee County during winter weather events, which is a point of pride for Rev. Shana Dry.
"It takes a whole community to come together," Rev. Dry said of the volunteer efforts combined with municipal support for the warming shelter.
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One of its requirements is having a Tahlequah police officer's presence.
"We serve between 70 and 80 (people)," the minister added. "And any given night, we had over 69 that stay here during different times through the last (freeze and snowfall)."
That could very well end if Senate Bill 484 becomes law.
Authored by first-year Sen. Lisa Standridge (R-Norman), it limits homeless shelters only to municipalities with more than 300,000 people according to the last U.S. census. In other words, only to Tulsa and Oklahoma City.
Dr. Standridge's office didn't answer several calls 2 News made on Dec. 13. inquiring about its need.
"This is not going to be the answer. Mass relocation is not the answer," OKC Housing Authority Assistant Director of Development Greg Shinn told 2 News via Zoom. "I think it's driven by NIMBY in some form or another."
Shinn also has experience in the housing and mental health crises in Tulsa, and served on the governor's Interagency Council on Homelessness before Gov. Stitt disbanded it.
"Majority of people in Oklahoma that have no place to go are Oklahomans," Shinn added. "But there are many services and programs that are helped by the local units of government. They would be disconnected from all of that were they forced to be relocated to the cities -- Oklahoma City and Tulsa -- which do not have capacity."
Both Shinn and Rev. Dry argue SB484 is against Oklahoma values.
"Oklahoma's considered the heartland. And we have to show our heart," Dry said. "And this bill concerns me. Where's the heart in this bill?"
"I cannot make sense of this. I don't understand the intent," Shinn said. "We're in the early stages (of the legislative process), but this is not going to be the answer."
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