Senate committee approves Performance Informed Budget measure

The Senate Appropriations Committee gave unanimous approval to the Performance Informed Budget and Transparency Act of 2015 Wednesday. Senate Bill 189, by Sen. Ron Sharp and Rep. Dennis Casey, is a new budgeting process that will allow for budget dollars to be aligned to state priorities and measurable outcomes.

The legislature appropriated the funds in 2012 to purchase the software to lay the groundwork for the new budgeting process and SB 189 will implement the new system. This budgeting process will replace the outdated zero-based budgeting process formerly used by the state and require all state agencies to align their budgets to statewide programs beginning this year. The statewide programs will in turn be aligned to performance-informed measures. By aligning budget to performance, dollars spent and progress made can be seen in the same place at the same time.

“This budgeting process will for the first time allow the legislature to appropriate money to state priorities and programs that have shown positive outcomes,” said Sharp, R-Shawnee. “Facing another tough budget year and a shrinking revenue fund, state agencies must be as efficient as possible with their appropriations and held accountable for their performance. We must ensure that funded programs are actually accomplishing their goals and benefitting the people of Oklahoma; if not, we need to get rid of them.”

Governor Fallin and her Cabinet have worked with the Office of Management and Enterprise Services the last few years on creating the Performance Informed Budgeting system. As part of the process, they created the website OKStateStat.ok.gov, which features 160 key, measurable objectives for state government. Once fully implemented, Oklahoma will become the first state in the nation to develop a comprehensive budgeting system that ties spending to measurable goals and outcomes.

“Performance informed budgeting ties government spending to measurable goals and outcomes so government can be more effective in how it deploys taxpayer resources during the budgeting process. This legislation is one of many steps the state must take to improve how budgets are built and results are tracked,” said Secretary of Finance, Administration and Information Technology Preston Doerflinger. “Oklahoma’s budget process needs change, and I commend Senator Sharp and other legislators for pursuing improvements like this that represent smarter, better approaches for taxpayers and the services government provides them.”

SB 189 will now go before the full Senate.