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Updated as of Oct 31, 2026 (CT)

Oct 31, 2026 · morning CT Norman / Cleveland County
Updated Oct 31, 2026

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The Oklahoma County jail tax: what the Nov. 3 ballot question says

Updated as of Oct. 31, 2026

OKLAHOMA CITY — On Tuesday, Nov. 3, the county’s ballot asks whether to add a 0.40% countywide sales tax for 25 years to pay for county detention, diversion and mental health facilities and programs, including the new jail now under construction.[8] The measure needs a simple majority to pass.[1] This fact sheet does not take a position on the question.

The ballot wording

As published by Ballotpedia and News 9; Facts First has not yet compared it with the election board’s sample ballot. The rate, term, dates and purposes match the county commissioners’ resolution.[8]

“Shall Oklahoma County be authorized to levy and assess a new four-tenths of one percent (0.40%) sales tax? This sales tax will apply to all sales taxable under the sales tax laws of the State. This sales tax will be in addition to existing state and local sales taxes. This sales tax will be used to operate, maintain, construct, renovate, finance, equip, and pay staff of county detention, diversion, and mental health facilities and programs. This sales tax will be for a period of twenty-five (25) years. This sales tax will start on April 1, 2027, and will end on March 31, 2052. A ‘yes’ vote will increase sales taxes in Oklahoma County by 0.40%. A ‘yes’ vote will not decrease taxes in Oklahoma County. This sales tax will only be used for the purposes described by this Proposition.”[1][2]

Voters can view their own sample ballot through the Oklahoma County Election Board.[6]

The numbers

ItemDetail
Rate0.40% — 4 cents on a $10 taxable purchase[8]
DatesApril 1, 2027 – March 31, 2052 (25 years)[8]
Estimated revenueAbout $70 million a year, an estimate by oversight board chair Steve Mason, as reported by OK Politics Today[3]
Estimated splitRoughly $44 million yearly for debt and $26 million for running the jail plus diversion and mental-health work (Mason’s estimate, per OK Politics Today)[3]
Limits added by commissioners800,000 square feet and 1,800 beds, per OK Politics Today; the motion left out a $605 million financing cap the oversight board had recommended[3]
Fixed percentages by useNone in the ballot language[1]
New jail cost estimateAbout $860 million, per KOSU[4]

Controls in the implementation plan

OK Politics Today reported that commissioners also adopted an implementation plan. Under it, tax money would be kept apart from the county’s general fund, financial reports would come out every quarter and performance reports every year, and an online dashboard would track the money and the projects. The board could name an advisory citizens’ committee, which could not spend money on its own.[3]

How it got to the ballot

DateEvent
1991Current downtown jail opens, per OK Politics Today[3]
June 28, 2022Voters approve $260 million in jail bonds, 59.26% yes (61,282) to 40.74% no (42,131), according to Ballotpedia’s certified tally[5]
Aug. 2024Commissioners vote to build a Behavioral Care Center on the same site, funded with $40 million in federal ARPA money[4]
Jan. 2026A proposed permanent five-eighths-cent tax dies without a second, per OK Politics Today[3]
June 2026A proposed permanent half-cent tax dies without a second, per OK Politics Today[3]
May 2026 (reported June)The current jail fails a state Health Department spot inspection, its 12th straight failure, KOSU reported[9]
Aug. 12, 2026Commissioners pass the election resolution[8]; OK Politics Today reported the vote as 2–1, with Maughan and Foster for and Lowe against[3]
Nov. 3, 2026Election[1]

Where construction stands

OK Politics Today reported that crews at the Grand Boulevard site are building phase one of the new adult jail alongside a 60-bed Behavioral Care Center, and that the county says the 2022 bond money cannot cover the whole jail or its operating costs.[3] The jail holds about 1,500 people on average, according to KOSU.[4]

What officials say happens if it fails

Commissioner Brian Maughan told KOSU that construction would halt once bond money runs out, leaving a facility that could house up to about 400 people as a possible first phase, and that the county would then have to keep running the old jail at the same time. He also said operation of the Behavioral Care Center depends on whether the tax passes.[4] These are the commissioner’s statements; Facts First has not found a written county contingency plan.

What each side says

Interim Commissioner Paul Foster, who voted to put the tax on the ballot, said delaying a public vote would make the project more expensive, OK Politics Today reported.[3] District Attorney Vicki Behenna told an Oct. 7 forum that the current building slows booking, which takes officers two to four hours.[4]

Commissioner Jason Lowe, who voted against putting it on the ballot, said the proposal does not lay out enough for diversion, rehabilitation and mental health care, OK Politics Today reported.[3] He also told KOSU the plan could allow a jail larger than needed.[4]

Note on dates

KOSU’s Oct. 19 story gives an end date of March 1, 2051. The ballot title says March 31, 2052, and this fact sheet uses the ballot title.[1][4]

Sources

  1. Ballotpedia, Oklahoma County jail sales tax measure (Nov. 2026), ballot title: https://ballotpedia.org/Oklahoma_County,_Oklahoma,_Increase_Sales_Tax_to_Fund_Construction_of_Detention_and_Mental_Health_Facilities_Measure_(November_2026)
  2. News 9, ballot measures on the Nov. 3 ballot (ballot text): https://www.news9.com/oklahoma-elections/oklahoma-ballot-measures-nov-3-elections
  3. OK Politics Today, Aug. 12, 2026: commissioners send jail tax to ballot: https://okpoliticstoday.com/2026/08/oklahoma-county-jail/
  4. KOSU, Oct. 19, 2026: jail sales tax explainer: https://www.kosu.org/ok-county-jail-funding-sales-tax
  5. Ballotpedia, Oklahoma County jail bond (June 2022), certified results: https://ballotpedia.org/Oklahoma_County%2C_Oklahoma%2C_County_Jail_Bond_Measure_%28June_2022%29
  6. Oklahoma County Election Board (sample ballots, polling places): https://oklahoma.gov/elections/county-election-boards/oklahoma-county.html
  7. Oklahoma State Election Board (results are posted after the polls close): https://oklahoma.gov/elections.html
  8. Oklahoma County Board of County Commissioners, Legistar file 2026-3396 (election resolution, passed): https://oklahomacounty.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?GUID=BE54051B-F5BD-4A48-9788-301A7F6C0E44&ID=8167032
  9. KOSU, June 2026: Oklahoma County jail fails another health inspection: https://www.kosu.org/oklahoma-county-jail-fails-another-health-inspection