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Oklahoma Senate
Zero-Based Budgeting Passes Senate
State Capitol, Oklahoma City – Thursday the state Senate adopted HB 1256 requiring zero-based budgeting for state government. Zero-based budgeting is a key Republican reform proposal that was part of the bipartisan budget agreement reached earlier this year.
“Zero-based budgeting will require state agencies to justify every dollar they spend from the first to the last, and will help the Legislature better analyze the effectiveness and performance of state agencies and programs,” said Sen. Scott Pruitt, R-Broken Arrow. Pruitt is a leading Senate advocate for zero-based budgeting.
The bill also creates a joint zero-based budgeting committee to conduct in-depth studies of agency budgets and report findings and recommendations to the House and Senate appropriations committees.
“The joint budget committee will play an important role in the years ahead as Legislature seeks to save taxpayer dollars by improving efficiency at state agencies and right-sizing state government,” Sen. James A. Williamson, R-Tulsa, Senate Republican Floor Leader said.
Other Republican budget reforms included as part of this year’s budget agreement are a requirement that common education be funded by April 1 each year and a public referendum on new protections for the state’s Rainy Day Fund.
