OKLAHOMA CITY – With just a few weeks remaining before they are forced to adjourn by the Oklahoma Constitution, state legislators will return to the Capitol this week to finish writing a budget for the next fiscal year.
Lawmakers are expected to return Monday to address the state’s budget needs for FY 21 and to answer a second call for a special legislative session issued by Gov. Kevin Stitt.
Difficult, at best, during a “normal” legislative session, this year’s budget effort has been complicated even more by the global COVID-19 pandemic and a catastrophic drop in the price of crude oil.
Late last month, during a meeting of the state Board of Equalization, state budget officials predicted a budget gap that could reach $1.366 billion for 2021 fiscal year and a $1.6 billion hole for FY 22.
“State government is going to be hurting for the next couple of years,” Republican Governor Kevin Stitt said.
On April 20, the equalization board officials declared a revenue failure for the remainder of the 2020 fiscal year. That action cleared the way for Stitt and the legislature to tap the state’s Constitutional Reserve Fund for about $459 million to help backfill the remainder of the 2020 budget.
But with more budget difficultly on the horizon and no end, yet, to the coronavirus pandemic, lawmakers are anticipating cutting many state agency budgets. Senate Minority Leader Kay Floyd, a Democrat from Oklahoma City, called the COVID-19 created crisis an unprecedented challenge.
“Oklahoma’s economy has taken a hit from historically low oil prices and the global COVID-19 pandemic,” Floyd said. “The Legislature will have to make many difficult decisions regarding the state budget for Fiscal Year 2021.”
Those choices, which could also include spending cuts to the common education system and a proposal by Stitt to use some federal COVID-19 funds to pay for a program that funds private school scholarships, have quickly become controversial.
Just hours after Stitt confirmed a plan to use part of a $40 million stimulus payment to backfill the Equal Opportunity Scholarship Program, members of the House Democratic Caucus sent the governor a letter, calling on him to earmark the funds for public schools.
“We wrote this letter to make sure the governor understands not only our position but the position of Oklahoma’s education community,” said Rep. Melissa Provenzano, D-Tulsa, in a media statement accompanying the letter. “About 700,000 Oklahoma students are served by our public schools. Public money that is earmarked for education should first and foremost go toward improving the educational opportunities for these children.”
House Minority Leader Emily Virgin, D-Norman, said lawmakers were constitutionally charged with adequately funding public education.
“In the face of next year’s $1.3 billion revenue shortfall, it would be insulting to many Oklahomans if this money was funneled to private schools,” Virgin said.
In some portions of the state, businesses have been slowly reopening after being locked down since late March. This week, some restrictions which had limited access to the Capitol will be “partially loosened” House Speaker Charles McCall said.
McCall said social distancing protocols, disinfection, masks, and entry point screenings will be part of the Capitol’s opening. He said the protocols were developed in consultation with health professionals from the University of Oklahoma’s Health Sciences Center.
“The building will be safe for everyone under the health and safety guidelines, and our infectious disease and public health experts will be on-site to lead the implementation of this reopening plan,” said Dr. Jason Sanders, Senior Vice President and Provost of the OU Health Sciences Center. “These will not be normal days at the Capitol, but they will be safe days at the Capitol.”
The legislature has until May 20 to finish its work.