Today, legislative leaders in the Oklahoma House of Representatives and Oklahoma Senate, along with the Governor, announced they have reached an agreement on the state budget for Fiscal Year 2027. The agreement marks the earliest a comprehensive budget deal has been reached in recent state history.
The FY27 budget prioritizes fiscal discipline while making strategic investments in critical areas of state government.
The budget makes significant strategic investments in education, including $27.3 million to fund health insurance increases for teachers, almost $80 million dedicated to reading and math initiatives, including support for the Strong Readers Act, and $85 million for teacher pay raises. These investments, along with others reinforce the Legislature’s commitment to improving student outcomes while strengthening Oklahoma’s education workforce.
The budget also increases funding for the Department of Mental Health to support efforts with the ongoing consent decree, the Oklahoma Healthcare Authority for increased Medicaid utilization and the Department of Human Services for Advantage waiver, changes to the SNAP program and child care teacher recruitment and retention.
“Even in a challenging fiscal environment, our priority has been protecting core services for Oklahomans while maintaining a responsible approach to taxpayer dollars,” said House Speaker Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow. “This early agreement is the result of leaders coming to the table prepared to do the work.”
“This budget is the result of a collaborative, good-faith effort between the Senate, House and Governor’s Office to put Oklahomans first,” said Senate Pro Tem Lonnie Paxton. “By holding our state agencies harmless, we are ensuring that the core services our citizens rely on, from public safety to infrastructure, remain fully funded and reliable. At the same time, we are making a historic, targeted investment in our future. This plan provides our teachers with a much-needed pay raise to keep Oklahoma competitive, ensures our students benefit from more instructional days in the classroom and honors our commitment to retirees through a critical cost-of-living adjustment. I want to thank everyone involved for the tireless effort and dedication they have shown in crafting a responsible, forward-looking budget that sets Oklahoma up for long-term success.”
“I am grateful to leaders in the Senate and House for their work on this budget deal and for their commitment to fiscally responsible reforms that will put our state in an even better position,” said Governor Stitt. “This agreement reflects the important priorities for Oklahoma while keeping an eye on the horizon and planning for the future needs of our state.”
House Appropriations and Budget Chairman Trey Caldwell, R-Faxon, and Vice Chairman John Kane, R-Bartlesville and Senate Appropriations and Budget Chairman Chuck Hall, R-Perry, and Vice Chairman John Haste, Broken Arrow, who led budget negotiations, emphasized the disciplined approach taken during the process.
“This budget reflects months of responsible planning,” Caldwell and Kane said in a joint statement. “Even in a year when revenues are tighter, we remained focused on protecting essential services while identifying strategic investments that strengthen our state. By working closely with our Senate counterparts and the Governor’s office, we were able to produce a budget that keeps Oklahoma on stable financial footing.”
“Every dollar in this budget reflects the needs and priorities of Oklahomans,” said Senate Appropriations Chairman Chuck Hall, R-Perry. “This spending plan makes a significant investment in public education and provides pay raises for our hardworking teachers. It supports the dedicated public servants who show up every day to serve our state and gives retirees an overdue cost-of-living adjustment after years of high inflation. By investing in the Oklahomans who are the backbone of this state, we’re building a brighter future for Oklahoma. I’m also proud that this budget is a fiscally responsible proposal that protects core government services and does right by the taxpayers who fund our state government.”
Hilbert also emphasized the Legislature’s responsibility to thoroughly examine agency spending.
“As legislators, our job is not simply to approve budgets but to provide meaningful oversight of the agencies entrusted with taxpayer resources,” Hilbert said. “That means digging into the details, asking hard questions and examining every single line in an agency’s budget. Oklahomans expect us to ensure their tax dollars are spent wisely, and that work requires diligence and accountability.”
More details on the FY27 budget can be found on the Oklahoma House website at https://former.okhouse.gov/fiscal/FiscalPortal.aspx and the Oklahoma Senate website at https://oksenate.gov/appropriations.
“Oklahomans expect us to lead, and that means coming to the table with solutions,” Hilbert said. “Throughout this process, leadership has remained focused on delivering a responsible budget that protects services without unnecessary spending increases.”
Watch the full conference here and see reacts below:
House Democratic Leader Cyndi Munson comments on GOP budget deal:
House Democratic Leader Cyndi Munson, D-Oklahoma City, issued the following statement after the Governor and Republican legislative leaders from the House and Senate announced a budget deal was finalized.
“I don’t see how we can, in good conscience, celebrate finalizing a budget deal this early when many Oklahomans did not get a seat at the table to voice their needs. Republican leaders are touting record savings to protect future core services, but we have present day core services that need investments today. We have Oklahomans who need help today. Our health care outcomes are among the worst in the nation, and yet Republican leaders are advocating for potentially removing 200,000 Oklahomans off of Medicaid.
“This budget continues to put public dollars in private schools without any transparency or oversight. While I am grateful our teachers are getting a much needed pay raise, $2,000 still does not make us competitive in the region and we continue to leave behind support staff. As we discuss literacy and math outcomes, any implementation in our schools should be fully funded, otherwise it is simply an unfunded mandate.
“Only a handful of Members in both the House and Senate have been included in budget negotiations, ignoring the requests and concerns of thousands of Oklahomans who deserve representation in these meetings. We are all learning of this budget deal alongside every Oklahoman—and it’s precisely why we don’t see their needs reflected in this budget, especially as federal cuts are looming and made.
“There is no real effort to provide tax relief to help working Oklahomans. When over 50% of working Oklahomans are working more than one job to be able to afford basic necessities, we shouldn’t be hoarding tax dollars for pet projects, we should be helping these families—including raising the minimum wage.
“We were all elected to do a job now to protect and help our constituents, and we have plenty of time to do it.”
Senate Democratic leaders respond to GOP budget announcement:
Senate Democratic Leader Julia Kirt and Assistant Leader Carri Hicks released the following remarks after Senate Republicans announced their budget agreement at the Capitol on Wednesday.
“What we heard did not address the fundamental challenges Oklahomans face every day. We heard about cutting back services that help people work and support their families. This would mean our co-workers are choosing to spend money on crisis not on prevention, and that is the kind of budget I see so far.”– Senate Democratic Leader Julia Kirt, D-Oklahoma City.
“Asking teachers to do more for students with less is not going to move the needle for kids.”– Senate Democratic Assistant Leader Carri Hicks, D-Oklahoma City.
State Superintendent Reacts to Budget Announcement:
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Lindel Fields issued the following statement in reaction to the Governor and legislative leaders from the House and Senate announcing of a budget agreement. “We are excited about today’s announcement and appreciate the investment in Oklahoma’s public schools. Increasing teacher pay, continued security funding and the focus on literacy align with our priorities at OSDE. “We are grateful to the Governor, Senate and House leadership for their collaborative approach in working with OSDE officials to make education a priority in our state.”
