Alva Review-Courier -

With about a week to spare, we successfully passed the Fiscal Year 2023 budget. As required by our state’s constitution, we approved a $9.7 billion balanced budget that utilized our state revenues in a variety of ways – bolstering our savings account, investing in a variety of public safety needs and providing inflation relief for all Oklahomans.

Headlining the 2023 budget is the highest balance of our state’s savings account in Oklahoma history. With our deposits from this year’s revenues, we’ll have $2.6 billion in the bank to use in future economic downturns. Like many of you, I’m concerned about inflation and the direction of our nation’s economy. It’s vital that we have sufficient reserves to weather a future economic downturn. We’ll still need adequate dollars to invest in our public schools, healthcare, roads and public safety, and our savings will help fund these core services during the next inevitable downturn.

We also made a substantial investment into public safety, giving additional funding for much needed pay raises for a variety of careers. Oklahoma Highway Patrol Troopers will see a 30 percent pay bump, and Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) agents, court reporters and bailiffs will also see a raise.

The Legislature gave additional funding to the Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training (CLEET) to address some of their capital needs, including a new training track, parking lot, lighting and additional personnel. CLEET plays a vital role in public safety across the state, providing peach officer certification for full-time law enforcement officers employed by cities, counties and state agencies here in Oklahoma.

Within public safety funding, we also approved a budget increase for the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control (OBNDDC) as they continue their fight against illegal marijuana grows across the state. The Attorney General’s office also received another deposit to go towards fighting against federal overreach we’ve seen again and again from the Biden administration.

I am proud to co-author House Bill 4464, a part of the budget which creates the Progressing Rural Economic Prosperity Fund and deposits $250 million into the account. This fund will be vital to business development across rural Oklahoma, a win-win for our small towns since we know how supportive our local businesses are in our communities.

The Legislature is very aware of how crippling inflation has been over the last year, and unfortunately, we don’t see an end in sight. We wanted to give all Oklahomans some sort of financial relief in this budget, and we’ve agreed upon a cash rebate for taxpayers - $75 for individuals or $150 for those filing jointly. This rebate will be paid in December. We also reinstated the sales tax exemption on vehicle and truck purchases, which was removed back in 2017 when the state was in desperate need of additional revenue. Reinstating this sales tax exemption will make these large purchases a bit more affordable for Oklahomans needing a new car or truck.

While no budget is perfect, I’m proud of the framework we came to since it addresses important needs right now while still planning for the future.

The Legislature also convened in a special session last week that is running concurrently with our regular session and will continue for the foreseeable future. This special session will allow the Legislature more control over how the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds are being spent, ensuring they are used for the projects that have been vetted and approved by the APRA committees. I’ll keep you updated as we continue this work throughout the summer.

It’s an honor to serve as your voice at our state Capitol, and one I don’t take lightly. Please feel free to reach out if there is anything I can help you with. You can contact me at 405-521-5630 or via email at [email protected].