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Doerflinger: 'Not The Time To Freak Out' As Revenue Dips Below Estimate Again

Oklahoma Secretary of Finance Preston Doerflinger speaks during a meeting of the State Board of Equalization in Oklahoma City, Monday, June 20, 2016.
Sue Ogrocki
/
AP
Oklahoma Secretary of Finance Preston Doerflinger speaks during a meeting of the State Board of Equalization in Oklahoma City, Monday, June 20, 2016.

Oklahoma's top budget official says he's not worrying about a revenue failure… yet.

This time last year, lawmakers were wringing their hands over sales tax figures that painted a dim view of state revenue. That’s when revenue was about 3 percent below the estimate used to build their budget.

As of October, revenue is down about 2 percent. Finance Secretary Preston Doerflinger said he’s not too anxious about it and wants to wait until next month’s report, The Journal Record’s Dale Denwalt reports:

“I’m not as concerned this year as I obviously was last year,” Doerflinger said. “This is not the time to freak out or be overly concerned about the possibility of revenue failure.” Deposits into the [General Revenue Fund] have fluctuated wildly this year. In the first quarter alone, revenue has been as high as 31 percent above and as low as 12 percent below the month-by-month estimates.

Doerflinger has been a staunch opponent of one-time spending and wants more recurring revenue put into the budget. That could help prevent another revenue failure like the one declared almost a year ago.

Andy Moore and other supporters of the group Let’s Fix This attended Wednesday’s ceremony. He said he was disappointed to hear the revenue figures.

“I can’t say it’s surprising,” Moore said. “I think we all kind of expected this news to come out; it was just a matter of when and how severe.” The budget gap speaks to the hard decisions lawmakers face, he said. Moore suggested rolling back the most recent income tax cut and preventing another one. He also said it’s time to review the constitutional amendment that makes it nearly impossible for lawmakers to raise taxes. “No one wants to pay any more taxes than we absolutely have to, but when they keep cutting it they obviously can’t cut their way to prosperity,” he said.

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Brian Hardzinski is from Flower Mound, Texas and a graduate of the University of Oklahoma. He began his career at KGOU as a student intern, joining KGOU full time in 2009 as Operations and Public Service Announcement Director. He began regularly hosting Morning Edition in 2014, and became the station's first Digital News Editor in 2015-16. Brian’s work at KGOU has been honored by Public Radio News Directors Incorporated (PRNDI), the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters, the Oklahoma Associated Press Broadcasters, and local and regional chapters of the Society of Professional Journalists. Brian enjoys competing in triathlons, distance running, playing tennis, and entertaining his rambunctious Boston Terrier, Bucky.
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