Conservatives rack up wins in Oklahoma GOP primary and runoff

After some remarkable victories in the June primary, Oklahoma conservatives continued the winning streak with additional successes in today's runoff election across the state. This primary-runoff cycle has been, without a doubt, the best election for conservatives in at least a decade.

Legislative leaders hammer out state budget agreement

Over the past week or so, legislative leaders - as well as Governor Stitt - have met in unprecedented public negotiations for this year's state budget (Tres Savage at NonDoc has a great write-up on the saga). Read the official press releases below:

Pro Tem Treat and Speaker McCall Comment on Budget Agreement

Agreement first in budget transparency process by both chambers

OKLAHOMA CITY (May 22nd) – Senate Pro Tem Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City, and House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, today released the following statements after Senate and House negotiators reached an agreement on the state’s Fiscal Year 2025 budget.

The budget agreement is the first time all meetings were hosted in public and gave Oklahomans a behind the scenes look on how the state budget is negotiated. 

State House schedules annual agency budget request hearings, available for public observation

House Schedules Annual Agency Budget Request Hearings

OKLAHOMA CITY (Dec. 18th) – The Oklahoma House of Representatives is continuing its standard practice and tradition of fiscal transparency this year with upcoming agency performance reviews and budget request hearings.

Each year, House Appropriation & Budget subcommittees hold hearings prior to the legislative session in which state agencies, boards or commissions that receive state funding come before the appropriate committee to present reports on prior year spending and to detail their budget requests for the next fiscal year. House members of each subcommittee are encouraged to ask detailed questions of the agencies as they will be charged with negotiating state appropriations for each entity during the annual budget process.

McCall announces State House committee, leadership appointments

House Committee, Leadership Appointments Made

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma House of Representatives committee leadership and Republican majority leadership appointments have been made for the 59th Oklahoma Legislature.

House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, was formally elected Tuesday by the full House to his fourth two-year term as speaker, making him the longest-serving speaker in state history. Speaker Pro Tempore Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow, was formally elected Tuesday by the full House to his first full term as speaker pro tempore, the chamber’s second ranking officer.

Joint committee advances dozens of ARPA proposals to Legislature

Joint committee advances dozens of ARPA proposals to Legislature

OKLAHOMA CITY (Sept. 20th) – The Joint Committee on Pandemic Relief Funding on Tuesday advanced a comprehensive slate of projects to the full Legislature for consideration in an upcoming special session.

The committee's approvals, combined with previously approved projects, resulted in recommendation of over 60 projects totaling nearly all of Oklahoma state government's $1.87 billion share of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding.

Joint committee sends six stimulus funding projects to full Legislature

Joint committee sends six ARPA projects to full Legislature

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Joint Committee on Pandemic Relief Funding on Tuesday advanced the first slate of projects for consideration in the Legislature's upcoming special session on American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding.

House sends $9.7B state budget to Governor for signing

House Sends General Appropriations Bill to Governor

OKLAHOMA CITY (May 20th) – The Oklahoma House of Representatives today approved a general appropriations bill that includes funding of about $9.7 billion for state services for Fiscal Year 2023, which starts July 1.

Senate Bill 1040 now moves to the governor for his final action. The governor has until Thursday, May 26 at midnight to act on the bill.

State budget agreement announced; includes inflation relief rebate up to $150 per family

State budget agreement reached

Republicans prioritize savings, inflation relief, police, economy & more

OKLAHOMA CITY (May 17th) – Historic state savings deposits and more money returned to taxpayers highlight the Fiscal Year 2023 state budget agreement, which also funds law enforcement at record levels, eliminates the years-long developmentally disabled services waiting list, fights federal overreach, and makes generational investments in economic development.

Legislative leaders on Tuesday announced plans to send the agreement, which continues to fund education at the highest levels in state history, to Gov. Kevin Stitt this week for approval.

House Republicans put forward five tax relief options

House Republicans push tax relief options to fight inflation, improve economic competitiveness while protecting budget

OKLAHOMA CITY – With inflation remaining at a 40-year high, House Republicans on Thursday advanced five new options the Legislature can choose from to provide tax relief to Oklahomans this session.

"Again, the House wants to address inflation today without causing budget problems tomorrow," said House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka. "With President Biden's policies driving inflation up and more states cutting taxes – especially income taxes – last year than any year since 1986, Oklahoma must stay vigilant on tax relief. The options in these bills allow Oklahoma to aggressively fight inflation and continue competing economically while protecting its strong state budget."

The tax relief options are:

• One-time income tax rebate of $125 for individuals and $250 for households
• Permanent income tax rate reduction of .25%
• Two-year grocery sales tax suspension
• Two-year enhancement of the grocery sales tax credit for low-income Oklahomans
• Eight-year phaseout of the corporate income tax

Each option should have no negative impact on the appropriated budget in the short or long term thanks to the way each is structured and current surplus revenue levels, according to legislators.

Gov. Stitt comments on $9.1B estimate for next state budget

GOVERNOR STITT ISSUES STATEMENT ON OKLAHOMA STATE BOARD OF EQUILIZATION CERTIFICATION

OKLAHOMA CITY (Dec. 27, 2021) — Governor Kevin Stitt issued the following statement today after the Oklahoma State Board of Equalization certified an estimate indicating lawmakers will have $9.1 billion in certified and authorized funds for the 2023 fiscal budget year, which begins July 1, 2022.

“This past fiscal year, Oklahoma’s economy has bounced back in a big way and continues to improve,” said Gov. Stitt “State revenues are climbing while we are cutting taxes for every Oklahoman. I am committed to investing in our future by adding to what is already the largest state savings account in history, and ensure we remain fiscally responsible with Oklahomans' tax dollars."

During the meeting, Gov. Stitt brought attention to $1.1 billion in one time carryover and special cash held over from the FY-2021 budget.

State House passes FY22 Budget bill

House Approves FY22 Budget Bill

OKLAHOMA CITY – The House today passed the appropriations bill to fund state government services for Fiscal Year 2022, which starts in July.

“This is the most comprehensive budget I have seen in my tenure,” said House Appropriations and Budget Chair Kevin Wallace, R-Wellston. “It funds core services across the spectrum, and it gives parents, teachers and students everything they need for success in education.”

A&B Vice Chair Kyle Hilbert added, “This budget provides tax relief to individuals and businesses, makes targeted and historic investments in education, includes money for economic development, health care and infrastructure, and it leaves the state with the highest reserve balance in state history.”

House Bill 2900 passed the House with a vote of 82-19. It now moves to the state Senate.

Bills that specify spending limits for various state agencies also are still pending final passage. 

This budget appropriates $8.8 billion for Fiscal Year 2022, which starts in July. This compares to $7.7 billion appropriated for FY21 – a 14.3% increase. 

Largest State budget in history includes tax cuts, more money for education and Hollywood

STATE BUDGET AGREEMENT REACHED 

OKLAHOMA CITY (May 13, 2021)— A state budget agreement reached Thursday maintains all state core service funding, provides tax relief to individuals and businesses, and makes targeted new investments in key priorities like education, economic development, health care and infrastructure. The agreement also replenishes more than $700 million in state reserve funds that were significantly reduced to offset pandemic-related revenue reductions last year.

Under the agreement, the appropriated Fiscal Year 2022 budget would be $8.3 billion.

The high-level agreement, which is still being finalized between the Legislature and Gov. Kevin Stitt:

House passes state budget, sends to Governor's desk

House approves FY 21 budget

OKLAHOMA CITY – The House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a Fiscal Year 2021 general appropriations bill Thursday designed to spare common education from cuts amid COVID-19 while maintaining adequate funding to avoid service reductions elsewhere in government.

The House vote on Senate Bill 1922, the general appropriations bill, was 77-23. The Senate previously passed the bill, 36-11. It now goes to Gov. Kevin Stitt.

Legislature reaches budget agreement; no Education cuts, some agencies get 4% reduction

Legislature reaches Fiscal Year 2021 budget agreement

OKLAHOMA CITY – Legislative leaders announced a Fiscal Year 2021 state budget agreement Monday designed to hold education funding harmless while limiting most budget reductions to 4% or less amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This is a far better budget than many expected and that should come as a relief to the citizens who rely on core services and the agencies that serve them, given the effect of both depressed oil and gas prices and the pandemic on state revenues,” said Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City. “We successfully avoided the catastrophic cuts some had feared, and I thank the budget chairs and their committees for their hard work and leadership during this difficult time.”

Under the agreement, most of the $1.4 billion, or 17%, revenue hole Gov. Kevin Stitt projected last month is filled by using reserve funds, cutting one-time spending, temporarily redirecting non-appropriated money into the budget, and agency appropriation reductions of 4% or less in most cases.

Senate approves sweeping licensing reforms

Senate approves sweeping licensing reforms

In an effort to continue growing the state’s economy and address the teacher shortage, the Senate approved two reciprocal licensing reforms Wednesday.  Sen. Adam Pugh, R-Edmond, is the author of the measures to recognize the out-of-state occupational licenses and teaching certificates of qualified individuals moving to Oklahoma.

“We cannot grow our economy without getting rid of the barriers that are deterring professionals from moving to the state.  Qualified professionals who are licensed, accredited or certified in other states shouldn’t have to prove their competency by taking repetitive exams that are both expensive and a waste of their time,” Pugh said.  “As long as they are law-abiding citizens who hold an out-of-state license or certificate that is in good standing in their profession, we want them to know that we look forward to welcoming them and their expertise to Oklahoma.”

SB 1891 creates the “Universal Occupational License Recognition Act”.  It directs occupational boards and commissions to issue an occupational license in the relevant profession to anyone who takes up residency in Oklahoma and holds an occupational license or certificate that has been in good standing in another state for at least one year.  Rep. Kevin Wallace, R-Wellston, is the principal House author.

SB 1125 will allow the State Board of Education to issue a teaching certificate to anyone who holds a valid out-of-state teaching certificate, with no other requirements except a criminal history record check.  The teaching certificate will only be for those subject areas and grade levels most closely aligned to the subject areas and grade levels recognized on the out-of-state certificate.  The bill will go into effect with the governor’s signature allowing districts to begin accepting teacher applications for the upcoming school year. House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, is the principal House author.

The bills will next be considered in the House.

House A&B passes bill to expand apprenticeship opportunities

Bipartisan Bill to Expand Apprenticeship Opportunity Passes A&B

OKLAHOMA CITY – A bipartisan-backed bill to expand employment opportunities for Oklahomans has passed the House Appropriation and Budget Committee with a vote of 27 to 1.

House Bill 3378 -- authored by Rep. Meloyde Blancett (D-Tulsa), Rep. Mickey Dollens (D-OKC) and House A&B Chair Kevin Wallace (R-Wellston) -- would offer employers a $1,000 tax credit per registered apprenticeship position. The plan allows each employer up to 10 apprenticeship credits per year.

“Our economy is strongest when everyone has a skill that can earn a good living - with or without a college degree,” said Dollens. “In 2018, Oklahoma had 99 apprenticeship programs and 1,516 active apprentices across the state. I believe we can grow that number to 300 programs with 2,300 active apprentices by 2022. It’s with this goal in mind that I authored HB3378 which allows Oklahoma business owners to claim an apprenticeship credit for expenses related to apprenticeship training programs.”

In order to qualify for the apprenticeship credit, an apprentice position must be registered with the US Department of Labor and meet the quality standards outlined through the federal government. Each industry has its own standards, which are regulated by the US Department of Labor.

“Over the next ten years, Oklahoma’s economy is projected to grow by 135,000 jobs and more than 70 percent of jobs will require some kind of education or training beyond high school,” Blancett said. “Expanding apprenticeships across the state will help to bridge the skills gap and fill jobs in diverse industries such as information technology, healthcare, energy, aerospace, construction, advanced manufacturing, hospitality, financial services, and more.”

The legislation received a boost in support when Wallace signed on as a coauthor.

“With previous decades of pushing four-year college degrees, combined with the aging out of licensed contractors in electrical, plumbing and mechanical trades, we’ve left a gap in our skilled trades,” Wallace said. “Without new recruitment of apprentices, journeymen and contractors, that gap will continue to grow. This bill gives employers the incentives they need to attract and train these future workers, which ultimately results in more and better-paying jobs for the Oklahoma economy.”

House Bill 3378 is now available to be heard on the House Floor.

McCall, Wallace comment on first meeting of LOFT Oversight Committee

STATEMENT: Speaker McCall on First Meeting of LOFT Oversight Committee

OKLAHOMA CITY – “When I was elected as Speaker back in 2016, it was clear the agency budget hearing process was not as efficient and transparent as it should be, and that lawmakers did not have enough time to fully vet budget requests or analyze how effectively agency programs were serving Oklahomans. Since that time, we have strived to make the entire budgeting process more efficient and accountable to the Legislature, which is charged with stewarding the taxpayer dollars we use to run government. LOFT is another important piece of that multifaceted approach – along with recent efforts to rebalance state boards and commissions and efforts to audit state agencies on an annual rolling basis – aimed at instilling accountability, transparency and efficiency into our government. Not only will LOFT track appropriated dollars and analyze agency programs, but it will also provide lawmakers information prior to agency budget request hearings that will allow us to make better informed decisions. I am very appreciative of Senate Pro Tempore Greg Treat and his willingness to address this issue in a way that will make our process much more productive.”

Wallace Comments on First LOFT Meeting

OKLAHOMA CITY – House Appropriations and Budget Chair State Rep. Kevin Wallace (R-Wellston) today commented on the first meeting of the Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency (LOFT) Oversight Committee. Wallace was appointed co-chair of the committee by House Speaker Charles McCall. Sen. Roger Thompson, chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, is also co-chair.

“We had a very productive first meeting,” Wallace said. “Now that we have all committee members in place, we were able to do a deep dive on the statute and our responsibilities as a committee. We were able to assign members to working groups and start to work on establishing a calendar by which we want to have certain action items accomplished.”

The LOFT office and the committee were established with the passage and signing into law of Senate Bill 1 this year. The overall goal of the office is to increase transparency and accountability of the expenditure of taxpayer dollars by state agencies. The 14-member bipartisan and bicameral committee is charged with overseeing and guiding the operations of the office.

Wallace said one of the working groups established in today’s meeting will examine the requirements of the LOFT executive director, so the committee can begin a search for that individual. A director will need to be in place before the beginning of the legislative session, he said.

A second working group will establish the rules for LOFT, which will have to be approved by the Legislature during the next legislative session. The committee also set the date for its next meeting, Aug. 20.

Wallace said members hope to have proposed rules soon. They plan to utilize preliminary LOFT information beginning next session and even more detailed information every legislative session after that.

“This office is necessary for conducting the business of state government,” Wallace said. “The public deserves to know how their tax payer dollars are spent and the benefits of each program and service they pay for as administered by state agencies. This nonpartisan office will help us better track such spending and the necessity of items detailed in agency budget requests each year. Lawmakers are hopeful we can find any waste and improve the efficiency of state government to benefit our citizens.”

Wallace said elected lawmakers are tasked with appropriating funding to state agencies to manage programs and services for Oklahoma. The sheer number of appropriated state agencies combined with the number of new lawmakers each year because of term limits predicates the need for additional help in tracking the intricacies of agency budgets and their yearly requests for state funding.

He said LOFT staff will be able to regularly:

• gather information related to proposed agency budgets;
• evaluate the extent to which each agency fulfills its statutory responsibilities;
• determine the amount of revenue available to the agency from various sources;
• compare current budget information to prior agency requests; and
• conduct an investigation of any agency as needed to fulfill its responsibilities.
• The office also is authorized to conduct performance evaluations, independent comprehensive performance audits and will provide up-to-date information and analysis on state spending and the performance of state programs and service to the House and Senate to aid in the yearly appropriations process.

Aside from Co-Chairs Wallace and Thompson, other committee members are:

• Rep. Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow
• Rep. Jon Echols, R-Oklahoma City
• Rep. Mike Osburn, R-Edmond
• Rep. Jeff Boatman, R-Tulsa
• Rep. Cyndi Munson, D-Oklahoma City
• Rep. Meloyde Blancett, D-Tulsa
• Sen. Kim David, R-Porter
• Sen. Dewayne Pemberton, R-Muskogee
• Sen. Frank Simpson, R-Springer
• Sen. Chuck Hall, R-Guthrie
• Sen. Michael Brooks, D-Oklahoma City
• Sen. Julia Kirt, D-Oklahoma City.

LOFT oversight committee to hold first meeting July 30

LOFT oversight committee to hold first meeting July 30

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency (LOFT) oversight committee will meet for the first time later this month at the Oklahoma Capitol.

LOFT is legislative office created this year in a bill by House Speaker Charles McCall and Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat. LOFT will provide the public and policymakers with independent, objective research and data on state spending and program evaluation and performance.

The Speaker and President Pro Tempore appointed a bipartisan group of legislators to serve on the committee that will oversee and guide the work of LOFT. The oversight committee will meet at 3:30 pm Tuesday, July 30, in Room 419-C at the Oklahoma Capitol.

“LOFT will be a game-changer because it will enhance and expand transparency and accountability in state spending by providing independent, objective data on state spending and program performance,” said Treat, R-Oklahoma City. “I’m confident the oversight committee will do a great job guiding LOFT. I’m excited to see the progress made in the coming weeks as LOFT begins to take shape.”

“I am excited for the LOFT Committee to meet and begin the process of getting implemented,” said McCall, R-Atoka. “LOFT is a much-needed resource for the Legislature that, frankly, should have been created long ago. We have members that are ready to roll their sleeves up and solve problems, but it is difficult to do without timely and accurate information about agency spending and programs. LOFT will provide the House and Senate the information and analysis we need to make good, informed decisions on behalf of Oklahoma’s citizens.”

Treat appointed Senator Roger Thompson, R-Okemah and Senate Appropriations Committee chair, to serve as the co-chair of the oversight committee, while McCall named Representative Kevin Wallace to serve as co-chair.

“LOFT is a tremendous concept that will serve the Legislature and the public by increasing transparency and accountability in the expenditure of our tax dollars. We’ve already been at work behind the scenes and I’m looking forward to our first oversight committee meeting. We’re going to hit the ground running and set LOFT up for great success moving forward,” Thompson said.

“It is the Legislature’s job to ensure agencies are spending taxpayer dollars wisely and without waste, and LOFT will help us do that more effectively,” said House Appropriations and Budget Committee Chairman Kevin Wallace, R-Wellston. “LOFT will ensure that lawmakers from both chambers are working off the same information, and it will get that information to us prior to agency budget requests so we are making decisions based off of what we know rather than just trusting what agency leaders tell us. I believe LOFT will drastically improve our budgeting process and help us work more efficiently for our citizens.”

LOFT Oversight Committee members:

• Kevin Wallace, co-chair
• Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow
• Jon Echols, R-Oklahoma City
• Mike Osburn, R-Edmond
• Jeff Boatman, R-Tulsa
• Cyndi Munson, D-Oklahoma City
• Meloyde Blancett, D-Tulsa
• Senator Roger Thompson, co-chair
• Senator Kim David, R-Porter
• Senator Dewayne Pemberton, R-Muskogee
• Senator Frank Simpson, R-Springer
• Senator Chuck Hall, R-Guthrie
• Senator Michael Brooks, D-Oklahoma City
• Senator Julia Kirt, D-Oklahoma City.

Speaker McCall Names Members to LOFT Oversight Committee

Speaker McCall Names Members to LOFT Oversight Committee

House Budget Chair Kevin Wallace Named Co-Chair 

OKLAHOMA CITY – House Speaker Charles McCall today appointed members to the oversight committee for the Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency (LOFT), a recently created legislative office to evaluate agency budgets and programs for lawmakers.

Speaker McCall named House Appropriations and Budget Chairman Kevin Wallace as co-chair of the LOFT Oversight Committee. In addition, he appointed the following members to the Committee:

• State Rep. Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow, Co-Vice Chair
• State Rep. Jon Echols, R-Oklahoma City
• State Rep. Mike Osburn, R-Edmond
• State Rep. Jeff Boatman, R-Tulsa
• State Rep. Cyndi Munson, D-Oklahoma City
• State Rep. Meloyde Blancett, D-Tulsa

LOFT was created, effective immediately, when Gov. Stitt signed Senate Bill 1 into law. Senate Bill 1, by House Speaker Charles McCall and Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat, creates LOFT within the existing Legislative Service Bureau (LSB). The LSB is a shared office between the House of Representatives and the Senate that currently has limited functions. LOFT will be similar to the federal Government Accountability Office within Congress.

LOFT will have an oversight committee made up of seven members of the House and seven members of the Senate. All members and the co-chairs of the committee are to be appointed by the Speaker of the House and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, with at least two members from each chamber being members of the minority party.

"Taxpayers expect lawmakers to ensure their dollars are being spent efficiently, without waste and as they were intended," said Speaker McCall, R-Atoka. "LOFT will give the Legislature an office that works for lawmakers, not the state agencies, and give us confidence that the information and analysis it provides our members will be unbiased, timely and accurate. The members I have chosen to serve Oklahomans on the LOFT Oversight Committee have shown the temperament and willingness to roll up their sleeves and do the hard work that digging through agency budgets and complex agency programs requires."

LOFT would employ financial examiners who would routinely audit agency budgets and spending and evaluate the effectiveness of agency programs and services. The office would then provide reports to the House and Senate.

"LOFT has been a priority for House Republicans for several years, and I am glad we finally got this legislation passed and are ready to utilize these new resources to benefit citizens," said Co-Chair Kevin Wallace, R-Wellston. "Having worked on the state appropriated budget for three years now, I can tell you it can be difficult at times to get accurate information from the agencies, and there have been times when some agencies have provided different information to the House and Senate. As lawmakers, we have to get useful information quickly in order to make good budgeting decisions on behalf of the Oklahomans that sent us here. LOFT will help us do that."

Senate Bill 1 requires agencies, boards and commissions to turn over to LOFT upon request all records, documents and budgets and make personnel available. LOFT will also have subpoena and investigation authority.

The Legislature appropriated $1.7 million to fund LOFT in the Fiscal Year 2020 budget that just passed.

House passes $8.1B State Budget

House Passes $8.1 Billion State Budget

Budget Puts $230 Million into Savings, New Money into Classrooms, Teacher Pay Raises and Healthcare

OKLAHOMA CITY – The House of Representatives passed the Fiscal Year-2020 general appropriations bill today, approving an $8.1 billion state budget that includes historic savings, pay raises for teachers and state employees and builds upon the historic investment made in common education by the Legislature last year.

The budget is a $633 million increase – or 7.8 percent – over the FY-2019 appropriated budget. The Legislature provided an additional $157.7 million for common education, which comes just one year after providing $480 million in new funding for public schools. The Legislature has now increased funding for public schools 26.25 percent during the last two years. The $157.7 million in new funding includes an average $1,220 teacher pay raise and $74 million for classrooms and increases to flex benefits.

The budget also includes $230 million in savings, with $29 million of that set aside in an FMAP Preservation fund to be available for future reductions in Oklahoma’s Federal Medical Assistance Percentages (FMAP) rate, a formula used by the federal government to determine each state’s match rate for Medicaid. Those rates fluctuate based upon each state’s per capita income levels. The remaining $201 million will stay in the state’s General Revenue Fund to be saved for future economic downturns. Combined with expected deposits in the state’s Rainy Day Fund, Oklahoma will have close to $1.2 billion in savings by the end of June.

The Legislature provided $37.7 million to give state employees a pay raise for the second consecutive year and an additional $3.3 million to higher education to fully fund concurrent enrollment options, which allows seniors the opportunity to earn college credit while still in high school. The Fiscal Year 2019 budget included $7.5 million for concurrent enrollment, meaning the Legislature has increased funding for the program by $10.8 million since last year, bringing the program’s annual budget up to $11.7 million. Higher education also received a total increase of $28 million for the second consecutive year over the previous year’s appropriation, giving them more than $56 million in new funding during the last two years.

Lawmakers provided $2 million to decrease the wait lists for the Developmental Disability Services (DDSD) wait list and $8 million to increase provider reimbursement rates by 4 percent for doctors to care for those DDSD patients. The budget also provides funding to increase Medicaid provider reimbursement rates by 5 percent for doctors and healthcare facilities and funding to create an incentive reimbursement program for nursing homes that would improve health outcomes and quality of life for patients.

The State Auditor’s Office received a $700,000 increase to hire new auditors, and lawmakers approved $1.7 million to create a legislative-level budget office to give the House and Senate more resources to review agency budgets and analyze programs and services.

The budget also fully funds the Oklahoma Department of Transportation’s 8-Year Construction Work Plan to maintain and build new roads and bridges and provides an additional $30 million for the County Improvements for Roads and Bridges (CIRB) Program on top of their annual $120 million budget.

Lawmakers also provided a $3 million increase to the Rural Economic Action Plan (REAP) for economic development in rural communities, a $1 million increase for county extension offices and $19 million for the governor’s Quick Action Closing Fund, which helps attract new businesses to Oklahoma.

“House Republicans had several priorities at the start of the 2019 legislative session that we based on conversations we had with voters on the doorsteps during the summer,” said House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka. “Those priorities included another teacher pay raise on top of the historic pay raise we provided last session, more money for the classroom on top of the large investment we made to public education last session, reestablishing our county infrastructure investment plan, more resources devoted toward rooting out waste and inefficiencies in government spending and increasing our savings to be better prepared for future economic downturns. We have accomplished all of those goals with this budget agreement.

“We believe increasing teacher pay directly addresses the teacher shortage by incentivizing new teachers into the classroom and keeping the veteran teachers we already have, and we think the nearly 1,200 new teachers we have hired since the previous pay raise reinforces that belief. We have provided nearly $640 million in new funding and increased the total common education budget by more than 26 percent during the last two years. We also prioritized funding for nursing homes, state employees and corrections officers and concurrent enrollment programs for high school seniors. This budget is an investment in Oklahoma, and I am very grateful for my colleagues in the House for getting this bill across the finish line.”

“I said last year to ‘not let the perfect be the enemy of the good,’ but this year I said to ‘not let the perfect be the enemy of the great’,” said House Appropriations and Budget Chairman Kevin Wallace, R-Wellston. “The Fiscal Year 2019 budget was the best budget that I had seen since I arrived in the House, and I believe the Fiscal Year 2020 budget is substantially better. This is a great budget, and it has a little bit of everything, including new funding to meet the needs of our most vital government agencies and a historic savings of surplus funds that will put future Legislatures in a much better financial position than we arrived in.”

House Bill 2765 passed out of the House by a vote of 76-23 and now heads to the Senate for consideration.