GOVERNOR KEVIN STITT RELEASES FIRST 100 DAYS IN OFFICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS REPORT
Oklahoma City, Okla. (April 23, 2019) – Governor Kevin Stitt released today his First 100 Days in Office Accomplishments report. The report focuses on the Stitt administration's progress thus far and displays the work being done to improve transparency, accountability, and efficiency in state government. Highlights of the report include:
Agency accountability:
Governor Stitt signed into law legislation that forces five of the 12 largest agencies to answer to the executive branch. Past governors have produced blue ribbon studies showing that responsibility and power are spread so far and thin across state government that essentially no one is able to be held accountable by the voters. Within the first two months of the Stitt administration, the governor and the Legislature worked together to produce historic reform in five of the largest agencies.
This reform now allows the governor to fire poor performing agency directors and recruit the best talent to come serve in these critical leadership positions, answering directly to the executive branch for the first time in state history.
Audits:
Governor Stitt requested performance audits of nine agencies in order to complete performance audits of the 12 largest agencies that consume 90% of the state budget.
The Stitt administration also requested two financial audits that were immediately implemented by the State Auditor and Inspector’s office. The most notable audit underway, at the request of Governor Stitt, is an audit of the Medicaid rolls.
Reducing OMES emergency supplemental request from $23 million to $0:
Governor Stitt's administration reduced the previous administration’s emergency supplemental budget request for Office of Management and Enterprise Services (OMES) from $23 million in October 2018 down to $0.
OMES is an interfacing state agency that provides IT, human resources and other services to state agencies. Prior to the Stitt administration taking office, OMES notified the Legislature that the agency needed an emergency injection of an additional $23 million before the end of the fiscal year. Within the first two months, Governor Stitt’s new Chief Operating Officer John Budd dug in to the finances of the agency and brought the emergency request to $16 million, and by April, COO Budd brought it down to $0 by changing processes within OMES, renegotiating vendor contracts, and leveraging the agency’s revolving funds.
First governor’s budget to highlight total dollars:
Governor Stitt introduced the first governor’s budget that outlines total dollars spent by state government.
Previous governor’s budgets focused solely on roughly 40% of the budget, the portion of tax dollars appropriated by the Legislature. Governor Stitt’s budget also outlines federal dollars being spent to support state government as well as apportionments and fees, directly collected by state agencies. The governor’s budget was provided online the first of February for all Oklahomans to see while the Legislature began budget negotiations.
Digital Transformation:
Governor Stitt appointed a Secretary of Digital Transformation, a brand new position, to help accomplish his vision to bring Oklahoma state government fully into the digital age. Already, Oklahoma has begun to implement digital transformation measures by:
- Modernizing state parks by making it possible for parks to accept credit cards in the field for the first time in state history.
- Launching the beta test for digital driver’s license that would be Real ID Compliant.
- Beginning the process to modernize the administrative rules website to make it more user friendly and transparent.
- Securing a vendor to relaunch Oklahoma’s checkbook online
A copy of the complete report is available by clicking here.
from MuskogeePolitico.com
