Gov. Kevin Stitt vetoed a bill relating to the membership of the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority on Monday.
Republican Rep. Danny Sterling’s House Bill 2263 passed in the legislature earlier this month but was vetoed by Gov. Stitt.
The bill would have changed the makeup of the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority from being six members appointed by the Governor to being two members appointed by the Governor, two appointed by the Speaker of the Oklahoma House, and two appointed by the President Pro Temp of the Oklahoma Senate.
In his veto message, Stitt said because the OTA carries out executive functions, having a majority of appointments made by the legislative branch would be unconstitutional and could open the OTA up to legal challenges.
Two years and nearly $2 billion later, the Oklahoma Legislature is set to assign the last of its money from the American Rescue Plan Act.
President Joe Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act into law in early 2021, earmarking money for state, tribal and local governments to help their communities in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Oklahoma’s state government received nearly $2 billion.
To divvy it up, the legislature’s Joint Committee on Pandemic Relief Funding had to select from project applications totaling $18 billion in requested funds.
The committee just recommended projects to receive the last of the funding on Friday. But Rep. Kyle Hilbert, who sits on the committee, says its job isn’t quite done yet.
“Of course, getting the money out the door was the first piece, but the second and probably even more important piece is oversight, making sure that these dollars are going where they're supposed to be going,” Hilbert said.
The full legislature still needs to approve these most recent funding recommendations, and recipient projects will need to spend the money by the end of 2026.
A solar panel manufacturer is planning a $1 billion dollar factory in Inola.
Enel North America will build the two million sq. ft. facility at the Port of Inola, 25 miles east of Tulsa. The Italian manufacturer constructs solar panels.
Gov. Kevin Stitt is praising the deal as a major economic development win.
“It is over $1 billion worth of investments, over 1500 jobs. When you put both of those together, that's the largest in state history,” Stitt said.
The announcement comes in the wake of a more than $200 million package of incentives approved by the legislature and governor last week for the company.
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