Editor’s Note: At $16.6 billion, Oklahoma government spending is at an all-time high. At $26 billion, Oklahoma’s debt load is staggering. Oklahoma voters have installed a center-right government to do something about it. As the legislative session winds down and the FY-2012 budget is finalized, policymakers should keep in mind that their constituents are not interested in “revenue enhancements.” By a 4 to 1 margin, they are interested in smaller government.

In February, OCPA released its FY-2012 Budget Recommendation. One of the key principles of the OCPA budget is that state government has core functions, and state spending on intensely local functions is not a core function of state government. If intensely local functions are necessary for that community, the local community will find ways to support them. OCPA has found a total of more than $37 million spent on intensely local functions. These include:

• Teacher Preparation Commission – Approximately $1.6 million (already provided by subsidized college education)
• Space Industry Development Authority - $424,289 (this is akin to the state funding municipal airports)
• Agriculture Department Forestry and Rural Fire Funding – Approximately $9.6 million (intensely local forestry work and state funding of local rural fire departments)
• Commerce Department – Approximately $5.8 million (pass-through state funding and funding for intensely local infrastructure and economic development projects)
• Conservation Commission – Approximately $9.8 million (intensely local conservation district work, including local infrastructure upkeep)
• Tourism Department – Approximately $1.1 million (state funding for local county tourism efforts)
• Tourism Department – Approximately $4.3 million (state funding for “state parks” that only serve intensely local purposes)
• JM Davis Gun Museum - $206,677 (state funding for local museum with predominantly local benefit)
• Will Rogers Memorial Museum - $544,984 (state funding for local museum with predominantly local benefit)
• Physician Manpower Training Commission – Approximately $4.8 million (state funding for local workforce training and recruitment)

Total savings annually: $37 Million