Lawmaker Alarmed by Bond Oversight Appointment

The appointment of former state Sen. Ted Fisher to the Council of Bond Oversight "is an alarming development for anyone who believes in government accountability," state Rep. Mike Reynolds warned today.

"To put it mildly, Senator Fisher has an extremely weak record when it comes to ensuring tax dollars are not wasted or funneled to questionable business transactions," said Reynolds, R-Oklahoma City.

"Thanks to former Senator Fisher's actions, Oklahoma taxpayers were fleeced out of millions of dollars through a tax credit scheme."

During his time in the state Senate, Fisher (D-Sapulpa) authored the Small Business Capital Formation Incentive Act and the Rural Venture Capital Formation Incentive Act. Supporters claimed the two programs,
which provided tax credits on money invested in certain projects, would
spur economic development.

In reality, the two programs were massive tax loopholes that drained state coffers without generating new jobs, Reynolds noted.

Under Fisher's legislation, there was no requirement for a person to seek pre-approval of an investment plan to obtain the tax credits. Ultimately, individuals had the ability to borrow money to obtain tax credits whose value actually exceeded the initial loan, allowing recipients to pay off the loan and make a profit solely on the paper transaction. Apparently, some "investors" never spent a dime on any actual projects, yet they still reaped massive financial rewards.

When lawmakers finally closed the Fisher loopholes, it was unclear how much the tax credits would ultimately cost the state, but officials suggested several hundred million dollars in credits had already been issued, according to news reports at the time.

Fisher, who left the state Senate in 2004 due to term limits, has now been appointed to the Council of Bond Oversight.

"I am very concerned that someone with Senator Fisher's track record would now be in charge of a program that involves billions of dollars through the state bond program," Reynolds said. "This makes about as much sense as putting an Enron official in charge of utility regulation."