Jonathan Small Named New President of the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs

October 29, 2015

The Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs board of trustees named Jonathan Small as the organization's next president. Small will officially assume the role January 1, 2016.

“The board is confident in our decision to name Jonathan as president,” said Dr. David Brown, Chairman of OCPA. “Jonathan has served OCPA and the state of Oklahoma with humility, integrity and innovation as executive vice president. We know he will continue to do so with even greater impact in the role of president.”

Small’s appointment was part of the succession plan outlined last week at the same time the board accepted the resignation of current President Michael Carnuccio.

“I am grateful for the opportunity to lead our team,” Small said. “We’ll continue to work with our members across the state to advance freedom through providing fact-based research, ideas and policy reforms."

Small joined the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs’ staff in December 2010 and is currently the organization’s executive vice president. Small has also been a budget analyst for the Oklahoma Office of State Finance, a fiscal policy analyst and research analyst for the Oklahoma House of Representatives, and director of government affairs for the Oklahoma Insurance Department.

“Jonathan has been instrumental to OCPA’s recent growth and accomplishments,” said Charles Sublett, OCPA Trustee and Tulsa-based attorney. “He has proven to be a successful and trusted leader and brings to this position a strong reputation for developing people and inspiring teams. Jonathan is Oklahoma's foremost expert on state budgeting and has been a critical part of OCPA since joining our organization. I could not be more pleased with his appointment as president."

Small is nationally recognized for his work to promote free markets, limited government and public policy reforms. His work has been referenced in The Oklahoman, Tulsa World, National Review, L.A. Times, The Hill, The Wall Street Journal and The Huffington Post. He also is a co-author of “Economics 101."

“Since 1993, OCPA has advocated policies that have a proven track record of helping the most vulnerable achieve their full potential,” Small said. “That is the very reason I joined this team. On a daily basis, we work to make Oklahoma the freest state in the nation.”

The Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs (OCPA) was founded in 1993 as a public policy research organization focused primarily on state-level issues. OCPA conducts the research and analysis of public issues in Oklahoma from a perspective of limited government, individual liberty and a free-market economy.