We officially concluded the 2020 legislative session last month, which was unlike any other historically. Like many of you, we were forced to adapt to the changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic and spent part of the session working remotely and through video and teleconferencing. Although the capitol was closed during part of the session, we were still able to get many priority measures across the finish line.

After 12 years, both the Senate and House came together to pass a costof-living adjustment, also known as a COLA, for our retired state employees including teachers and law enforcement officers. State employees who’ve been retired more than five years as of July 1 will receive a 4 percent adjustment, and those retired two to five years as of July 1 will receive a 2 percent adjustment. No adjustment will be given to those who’ve been retired less than two years. Before approving this measure, we were very careful to analyze the solvency of these pension systems to ensure their stability if an increase was passed. The much-needed adjustment will have little impact on the systems—for example, the COLA will only have a one and a half percent impact on the Oklahoma Teacher’s Retirement System.

We also authorized the sale of $17.5 million in bonds, which will be used to finance repairs for several high-hazard upstream flood control dams all across the state, including an Upper Elk Creek site at Elk City. The state investment of a $17.5 million bond provides access to a three to one federal match, allowing $50 million total to repair the dams, extending the life of these critical structures.

The Senate and House passed a pair of bills creating a Rural Broadband Expansion Council to study rural internet access across the state. If COVID-19 has shown us anything, it’s that there’s a severe divide between internet access in rural and urban Oklahoma. Children in our small towns across the state should have the same learning opportunities and abilities to access the internet as those in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and other large towns. I’m hopeful the Rural Broadband Expansion Council will bring positive change to the internet landscape across the state.

We also passed a fiscal year 2021 budget, as mandated by our state’s constitution. I’m thankful that Oklahoma is a balanced budget state, meaning we cannot spend more money than the state has available. Because of the low oil and gas prices and lack of commerce due to COVID-19 shutting down most of the state, the actual funds available were much smaller than what was originally estimated by the Board of Equalization earlier this year.

While the governor floated around the possibilities of across the board seven percent cuts, the legislature quickly worked to mitigate these cuts by reducing onetime spending and using reserve funds from state savings. I’m thankful Governor Stitt and the legislature came together last year in what was a good budget year to set aside extra money in our state’s savings accounts, allowing us to pull from reserve funds and minimize agency cuts. In the end, agencies received about four percent cuts. Education remained a priority, and we did all we could to hold their budget as flat as possible. They did receive a two and a half percent cut, but after federal CARES Act funding is distributed to schools across the state, education will actually see a budget increase for the fiscal year. Considering the circumstances we were handed, I’m proud of the budget we created to keep our core services funded and running throughout this crisis.

Thank you for allowing me to be your voice at the State Capitol. I welcome your comments and concerns, and if there is anything I can do to help you, please reach out. You can contact me by email at Darcy.Jech@oksenate.gov or by phone at 405-521-5545.