Friday, January 19, 2018
OKLAHOMA CITY – Governor Mary Fallin today amended the call of the second special session of the 56th Legislature, which has been in recess since Dec. 22.
The governor did not set a date when lawmakers would return to address the shortfall in the current fiscal year budget.
“Discussions are continuing about a revenue and reform plan, which seems to be growing in momentum,” said Fallin. “We’re excited that we have an opportunity to build some grass-roots support among our fellow Oklahomans to solve our budget crisis, to be able to put Oklahoma on a stable path forward, and to provide teachers a much-needed pay raise.”
The governor’s amended call asks lawmakers to consider providing a long-term revenue solution to the state’s budget shortfalls by:
Other items in the governor's call are:
The items in the governor’s call mirror many of the items recommended by Step Up Oklahoma, a group of Oklahoma business and community leaders.
“I appreciate the efforts of these business and community leaders working together to build statewide, nonpartisan support to help the Legislature address teacher pay raises and fix our budget crisis,” Fallin said. “It is critical to our state's future to fix the budget's structural problems and put our state on a predictable, stable foundation for success. I’m optimistic, with the effort and determination shown by Step Up Oklahoma, that lawmakers can pass a realistic solution to the state’s current budget problem.”