News9.com - Oklahoma City, OK - News, Weather, Video and Sports | Governor Henry Supports Tapping Oklahoma's Rainy Day Fund

Governor Henry Supports Tapping Oklahoma's Rainy Day Fund

NEWS 9

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Governor Brad Henry said he supports tapping the Rainy Day Fund to plug holes in the state budget, but he doesn't think a special session is worth the cost.

State revenues have declined significantly, 25 to 30 percent below projections, forcing leaders to continue 5 percent cuts at all state agencies.

The governor told NEWS 9 he's meeting with state leaders on a regular basis to discuss fixing the shortfalls. His tools include ordering even more cuts, using stimulus dollars or taking from the Rainy Day Fund which holds $600 million.

However, he doesn't plan to call state lawmakers back to the Capitol before the February session.

"That just costs additional dollars to call the legislators back in," Governor Henry said. "I'm hopeful we can manage this issue until we get to regular session, then deal with it."

Governor Henry also hopes to have a clearer picture of the economy when legislators go back to work in February.

Oklahoma's revenue report for October is due Tuesday. State Treasurer Scott Meacham predicts it will show some improvement, but revenues will remain down.