Representatives Lewis Moore and Bobby Cleveland want Republicans to go through the current budget to find places were reductions and efficiencies would be prudent. The duo hopes to find between $50 to $100 million in savings through their “Republican Budget Challenge”.
“We have spent too much time and energy lately finding creative ways to increase revenue,” said Moore. “This Republican Budget Challenge is a way for us to shift our focus back to conservative principles: eliminating waste, streamlining government and finding efficiencies that benefit Oklahomans. It can and has to be done.”
“We understand going line by line through agency budgets is a tedious task,” Moore said. “But, if we spent even half as much time rooting out waste as we have trying to increase revenue through the legislative process, I bet we could find some real savings. For the past few years, the legislature has allocated money to agencies in block grant form, with agencies determining how they would allocate funds within their agencies. The legislature, which represents the citizen’s will, to include how much money to raise and spend, should go through each agency budget, line-by-line, prioritizing needs and dictating spending. I believe each agency and our citizens will be better served with greater scrutiny.”
Moore and Cleveland hope to find results which could help craft a more efficient state budget during the 2018 session.
Cleveland said many Oklahomans would prefer a smaller government budget to increases in taxes and fees.
“We urge all of our members to participate in this challenge,” said Cleveland. “We are hearing from Oklahomans across our state who believe there are inefficiencies in state government. It is our job to ensure a more efficient system, and the Republican Budget Challenge allows us to do just that.
“We are excited to see the great ideas that this challenge produces. At the end of the day, we cannot expect taxpayers to bear the brunt of higher taxes when we all know there’s plenty of waste to be found in our system. Our citizens deserve better,” Cleveland said.
