Law & Principles
Jonathan Small | April 14, 2017
Questionable borrowing
Jonathan Small
Not only is Oklahoma facing the reality of less state revenue, the governor and her staff have drained the entire balance from the Rainy Day Fund – which appears to be in violation of Oklahoma’s Constitution.
To best understand this, it helps to remember a rule from basic civics: The constitution always supersedes a statute passed by the Legislature or an action taken by the executive. Article 10 of the Oklahoma Constitution provides specific rules under which money from the Rainy Day Fund can be appropriated by the Legislature and withdrawn.
Jonathan Small
President
Jonathan Small, C.P.A., serves as President and joined the staff in December of 2010. Previously, Jonathan served as a budget analyst for the Oklahoma Office of State Finance, as a fiscal policy analyst and research analyst for the Oklahoma House of Representatives, and as director of government affairs for the Oklahoma Insurance Department. Small’s work includes co-authoring “Economics 101” with Dr. Arthur Laffer and Dr. Wayne Winegarden, and his policy expertise has been referenced by The Oklahoman, the Tulsa World, National Review, the L.A. Times, The Hill, the Wall Street Journal and the Huffington Post. His weekly column “Free Market Friday” is published by the Journal Record and syndicated in 27 markets. A recipient of the American Legislative Exchange Council’s prestigious Private Sector Member of the Year award, Small is nationally recognized for his work to promote free markets, limited government and innovative public policy reforms. Jonathan holds a B.A. in Accounting from the University of Central Oklahoma and is a Certified Public Accountant.