Gov. Brad Henry and legislative leaders on Wednesday announced a "standstill" budget agreement with no raises for teachers or state employees. The leaders did not tap into the state's more than $500 million rainy day fund and the budget does not call for new taxes.
The agreement calls for the Corrections Department to be fully funded for a full year, Rep. Ken Miller, R-Edmond, chairman of the House Appropriations and Budget Committee, said in a news release.
A recent audit of the DOC found that the state should quit underfunding the agency every year.
"In a very challenging budget year, we did our best to stretch the state's limited resources as far as possible," Henry said in a prepared statement. "Certainly we wanted to do much more for education, health care, roads, public safety and other important priority areas, but we had to live within our budget constraints."
State revenue projections have been falling short, due to an economic downturn nationally. However, state leaders are thankful there is about the same amount of money available as in last year's $7 billion state budget.
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