Minimum wage will not cover the cost of rent for a modest one-bedroom apartment in any Oklahoma county, according to an annual report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition.
The nonprofit examines federal data to gauge the gap between state wages and housing prices.
To afford a one-bedroom rental in Oklahoma, a person making minimum wage has to work an average of 93 hours per week, or more than two full-time jobs, the latest report found.
It's an increase from last year's estimated 88 hours per week.
The report also examined the median wages of the state's most common occupations including waiters and waitresses, cooks, nursing assistants, truck drivers and sales representatives. It found many of the jobs' salaries don't meet the requirements for one-bedroom or two-bedroom apartments.
Minimum wage in Oklahoma
The state's minimum wage is set at $7.25 per hour, which matches the federal wage. Oklahoma hasn't increased the rate for close to 16 years.
In 2024, nearly double the necessary signatures were submitted to get a minimum wage increase on the state ballot. The measure faced legislative hurdles, including a court challenge, but still made it to Gov. Kevin Stitt's desk.
Oklahomans won't vote on the proposal for another year. In a proclamation, Stitt said the decision would come before voters during the June 16, 2026 statewide election. The vote will mark the longest period in the last decade between an initiative petition's signatures being turned in and its actual election.
If passed, the measure would gradually increase minimum wage until it reaches $15 an hour in 2029. Then, it would increase every year with the cost of living.
Still, the National Low Income Housing Coalition's report acknowledges simply raising the minimum wage will not do enough to fix housing issues in Oklahoma.
It estimates there is a shortage of close to 85,000 affordable and available rental homes for extremely low income renters. It also found 74% of extremely low income renter households have a severe cost burden, or spend more than half of their income on housing, and are more likely than other renters to sacrifice other necessities like healthy food and healthcare to pay the rent. They are also more likely to experience unstable housing situations like evictions, especially in a state with one of the fastest eviction timelines in the nation.
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