From right, Rep. Trey Caldwell, R-Faxon; House Speaker Pro Tem Anthony Moore, R-Clinton; and House Speaker Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow, attend a news conference announcing details of the Fiscal Year 2027 state budget on April 1 at the state Capitol in Oklahoma City. (Photo by Emma Murphy/Oklahoma Voice)

OKLAHOMA CITY — A $12.82 billion state budget is on its way to Gov. Kevin Stitt after passing a House vote Thursday, despite facing questions about whether it properly meets public needs.

House legislators approved the general appropriations bill by a vote of 76-18. Stitt and legislative leaders unveiled the uncommonly early budget agreement last week, and it narrowly passed the Senate on Tuesday.

The budget — a 1.35% increase over last year’s spend — would increase public education funding by $232 million, including a $2,000 raise to teachers’ minimum salaries, and would add $250 million for rising Medicaid costs.

Oklahoma’s Medicaid agency, the state Healthcare Authority, had asked for double that amount to account for cash flow issues and increasing utilization rates.

House Democrats said the budget should do more to fund Medicaid, child care and requests from state agencies. Across state government, agencies asked for $800 million more in funding than what the proposed budget offers.

The House’s budget leader, Rep. Trey Caldwell, R-Faxon, said state agencies “ask for the moon” every year, but lawmakers have to strike a fiscally responsible balance.

Caldwell said the budget sets a new record high for public education funding in Oklahoma, raises pay for all state employees, increases retirees’ pension payments and saves $200 million in a sovereign wealth fund, an investment account, which he said will help future legislatures withstand economic ups and downs.

“We do as a state have a responsibility to provide core functionalities of government and services, and we do need a level of savings to be able to handle the cyclical nature that is the Oklahoma economy,” he said.

Far-right Republicans complained the extra savings should be returned to taxpayers.

Democrats questioned why Republican leaders chose to store away $200 million and put $12.5 million into “Trump accounts” for babies born in Oklahoma rather than spending more on social services.

“I would disagree that our agencies are asking for the moon,” Rep. Trish Ranson, D-Stillwater, said. “I believe they are asking for what they need.”

Quickly passing a budget would enable the state Legislature to bring its 2026 session to an exceptionally early end.

The Senate’s top leader, President Pro Tem Lonnie Paxton, R-Tuttle, reaffirmed Thursday that session could end early but lawmakers are “not in a hurry.”

The budget includes a $25 million increase to the Parental Choice Tax Credit program, which helps offset families’ costs to send their children to private schools. The House voted 70-19 Thursday to pass legislation to raise the tax credit program’s available funds to $275 million.

The current cap is $250 million. The Oklahoma Tax Commission reported the program didn’t hit the $250 million threshold this school year.

The chances of passing more funding for public schools, including the $2,000 teacher pay raise, hinged on increasing the tax credit funding, Caldwell said.

“There’s not a single person in this body that had everything they wanted in this budget,” he said. “It’s part of a grand bargain to get a record amount of money into education and trying to move the needle when it comes to giving our young children opportunities in this world.”

Oklahoma Voice is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oklahoma Voice maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Janelle Stecklein for questions: info@oklahomavoice.com.

This article, “Oklahoma House sends $12.82 billion budget to governor’s desk,” has been republished from the Oklahoma Voice under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.