State Agencies Must Decide What To Cut Out Of Budget

By Dave Jordan, NEWS 9

OKLAHOMA CITY - With the revenue shortfall, state agencies are facing five percent budget cuts across-the-board.

The state must now figure out how to cut millions out of the budget after a 26 percent drop in state revenue. It could mean more pot holes, fewer patrol cars, job losses and larger class sizes.

Now, it's up to the legislature to decide what steps it will take so that state agencies won't continue to do more with less.

"Everybody gets cut by the same amount: education, health care, corrections, public safety, they all take the same cut," said State Treasurer Scott Meacham.

It came as no surprise to State Treasurer Scott Meacham, although he admits it could have been a lot worse. Cash reserves or money left over from previous budgets cushioned the blow for potentially steeper cuts.

"If we wouldn't have done that, the cuts would have been about 16 percent because we were significantly under what the forecast amount was," Meacham said.

Departments like corrections, education and public safety are all trying to figure out where to cut. It's a decision those agencies could be facing again in the coming weeks.

"We don't see an end in sight very soon on this. We don't have any expectations that next month's going to suddenly be a lot better," the state treasurer said.

NEWS 9 spoke with the education and public safety departments to see what officials there are planning to do. Neither agency has a plan at this time, and the budgets are still being reviewed.

Meacham said the governor and the legislature are also working to decide if the state will tap into the rainy day fund or use some of the stimulus money Oklahoma received.

More on News9.com:
- State Slashes Budgets as Oklahoma's Revenue Declines
- Economic Crisis Takes Its Toll on Oklahoma
- Oklahoma City's Tax Revenue Down
- Oklahoma's Tax Revenue Plunges as Recession Hits State
- Stimulus Watch: Follow the Money