The chair of the state House common education committee called reports of declining state funding for public schools “fake news” in an email to Republican lawmakers on Tuesday.

“I know there is a lot of talk about educational funding and the massive cuts we have caused education funding (fake news) but the numbers don't lie,” State Rep. Michael Rogers, R-Broken Arrow, wrote in his email, a copy of which was provided to The Oklahoman and its authenticity confirmed by Rogers.

“You can see how we have increased funding per pupil every year since 2010,” wrote Rogers, referring Republican lawmakers to a link in his email to the state Department of Education website.

The link in Rogers' email includes per-pupil funding from all sources, including federal sources and other dedicated funding sources, which showed an increase in per-pupil funding when the total is divided by the number of students.