From staff reports OKLAHOMA CITY – From an alumnus to vice chair, Rep. Daniel Pae (R-Lawton) is making a name in the Fiscal Affairs & Government Operations Committee for The Council of State Governments Southern Office. He was recently elected unanimously.
“As an alum of CSG South’s leadership development program, I appreciate the opportunity to share and learn best practices and policies from leaders across the region,' Pae wrote. “Fiscal and government operations policies directly impact every aspect of state government, and I am honored to serve as the incoming vice chair and work with our chair, CSG South and the 15 Southern states.”
CSG South is a nonprofit, nonpartisan member organization that serves the southern governments of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia. Its mission is to promote and strengthen cooperation among the member states.
The organization was founded in 1947 and is composed of state legislators and legislative staff from the member states. Policies and programs are developed on a wide variety of fiscal issues impacting state budgets and finances. The committee also addresses governmental operations topics such as regulatory oversight and artificial intelligence.
Pae authored or co-sponsored several bills in the last legislative session pertaining to artificial intelligence, including an Artificial Intelligence Bill of Rights which did not advance to Gov. Stitt’s desk. It stalled last March in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
As vice chair, Pae will assist in forming the committee’s policy focus and projects, according to a legislative press release. In addition, he will be involved in programming for the 79th annual Southern Legislative Conference next July to be held in Alabama.
He is a longtime appointee to CSG South’s Fiscal Affairs & Government Operations Committee and is a graduate of the Center for the Advancement of Leadership Skills Class of 2019. According to the news release, Pae was also a 2022 Henry Toll Fellow and received CSG’s 20 Under 40 Leadership Award the same year.
In 2019, he was awarded the Rising Star Award by the International Leadership Foundation for his professional achievements and dedication to the improvement of the Asian Pacific American community. He began his political career in 2018 after being elected to serve as a state representative for House District 62.
Pae is chair of the House Rural Development Committee and vice chair of the House Appropriations & Budget Subcommittee on General Government. In 2020, he served as co-vice chair of the House State and Federal Redistricting Committee following the decennial U.S. Census.
Before serving as a state representative, he worked in Lawton’s municipal government. He graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 2017 and holds a master’s degree in public administration. His undergraduate degrees are in economics and political science. He graduated from Lawton High School and in 2018 became the youngest member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives at 23 years of age.