Senate Pro Temp Treat and House Speaker McCall applaud Governor Stitt’s State of the State
Published: February 5th, 2019
Oklahoma City – Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City, and Speaker of the House Charles McCall, R-Atoka, issued positive and upbeat statements after Governor Kevin Stitt’s first State of the State address on Monday (February 5).
In a statement sent to CapitolBeatOK and other news organizations, Treat commented: “Governor Stitt gave a great speech where he laid out a clear vision to provide accountability, transparency, and results. Senate Republicans are focusing on these issues too through our agenda that includes budget transparency, government accountability, education investment and reform, and furthering criminal justice reform.
“There is a renewed sense of optimism and excitement at the Capitol and I think the governor’s speech today is reflective of that. I expect much more cooperation this year between the Senate, the House and the governor which is good for Oklahoma. Senate Republicans are excited about the 2019 session and look forward to working with Governor Stitt, and the House to put Oklahoma on the path to top 10.”
Speaker McCall, in his comments provided to CapitolBeatOK, said:
“Governor Stitt outlined a conservative, pro-economic growth plan for Oklahoma that demands accountability and efficiency from our government while also addressing the needs of our core agencies. House Republicans share those goals, and we are ready to work with Gov. Stitt, our Democratic colleagues in the House and Senate leadership to accomplish those priorities.
“We support reforms that give the governor more control over the executive branch and that provide the Legislature more resources to ensure taxpayer dollars are being used as intended and agency programs are meeting the needs of our citizens. We also believe Oklahoma’s teachers should be the highest paid educators in the region, and real reforms that put more money into the classroom and improve student outcomes are necessary. We recognize our current healthcare system is not working for our low income and rural citizens, and we need an affordable Oklahoma solution that gives more people access to care and meets the unique needs of our population.
“We are proud of recent bipartisan efforts to reform our criminal justice system, and we intend to continue that momentum with policies that reduce the number of non-violent offenders in our prison system while ensuring that violent criminals meet justice.
“We believe those ideas are shared by the majority of Oklahomans, and we are ready to work together to move our state forward and make Oklahomans more prosperous.”
Stitt spoke before members of both the House and Senate, statewide elected officials, and a packed gallery.