Attorney General Gentner Drummond has expressed his lack of confidence in the budget numbers presented by the Stitt Administration. Ahead of a Board of Equalization meeting, Drummond called for more legislative involvement in the budget process.
“I come from the private sector, where you don’t play games with your budget,” said Drummond. “After sitting through several of these meetings, as well as briefings from the Governor’s chosen staff, I can tell you that I have no confidence in the accuracy or completeness of the Governor’s budget numbers.”
Drummond pointed to discrepancies and inaccuracies that have eroded his trust. In December 2023, it was reported that $8,976,523,862 would be available for appropriation in FY25. By February, this figure had increased to $9,037,537,501 shortly after the Governor outlined his budget priorities. This increase supported a proposed income tax cut by the Governor. However, current projections indicate a shortfall of $390 million while expected revenue is anticipated to decrease by $528 million according to the Oklahoma Tax Commission.
“Last December we were told one amount; then in February it was a new number that was magically enough to pay for the Governor’s tax cut,” Drummond remarked. “I’m all for lowering the tax burden on Oklahoma families but let’s not play political games with the budget numbers. Let’s have an open and transparent process where the numbers don’t change just because the Governor wants them to.”
Drummond advocated for greater legislative involvement in creating budget projections. “The people of Oklahoma elected every legislator the same way they elected the Governor,” he stated. “As a Constitutional officer who has a duty to certify these numbers, I would have much more confidence in their accuracy if House and Senate budget leaders and their staff played a more significant role in the process.”
Drummond's announcement follows his solitary "no" vote during a Board of Equalization meeting earlier this year due to doubts about certain revenue estimates provided at that time.
Due to his ongoing concerns about these figures' reliability, Drummond did not attend today's meeting.