The House is officially under new leadership. Kyle Hilbert, a Republican from Bristow, was sworn in to serve as speaker on Jan. 7 during the Legislature’s Organizational Day.
This day is mostly formality. We’ve known for some time that Hilbert would be the new speaker after two votes by the House majority caucus. But it’s nice to have him officially sworn in, and to have our new House rules voted on, so now we can truly begin the work of the 60th Legislature.
During his acceptance speech, Hilbert detailed several priorities for the upcoming legislative session that starts Feb. 3.
First and foremost will be the work of drafting the state budget. We’ve already discussed that we will have a somewhat flat budget for the next fiscal year with the state Board of Equalization projecting a decline in recurring revenue for the first time in several years. But, we’re in great shape with our state savings accounts, so the work really will center on how much of that we feel is prudent to appropriate. This workwilltakeupthebulkofsession.
We know, however, that education, will continue to receive the largest share of state-appropriated dollars.Becauseofourhistoricfunding in recent years, we have seen some excellent progress in reducing the teacher shortage. Oklahoma colleges of education have seen a 30% improvement in the freshman class of students choosing to major in education. This is fantastic news for our students and our schools, and it will help us address areas of workforce shortage as well.
We’ve also seen great progress on state roads and bridges. In 2004, our state was ranked 49th in the nation for the condition of our state-maintained bridges. We’re now at No. 5. We’ll continue to make transportation a priority as we go forward.
This year, we have an increased focus on government efficiency, with the House launching its new Government Efficiency Portal to mirror President Trump’s DOGE. This portal will allow Oklahomans to directly submit ideas to improve state government by identifying areas of waste, inefficiencies or duplicative services.
We’ll also have a new two-tiered committee process for all policy legislation. This will ensure every measure gets thoroughly vetted before it comes before the full House for a vote. This should result in better laws for Oklahomans.
Hilbert encouraged representatives to embrace the challenge of leaving the state better than when we first got elected. He stressed that while we can’t solve all the state’s problems during our short time in office, we can work to make things better for the state now and for generations to come.
I’m excited about the challenge before us.
Remember, if I can help you with anything, please do not hesitate to reach out: (405) 557-7383 or Josh. Cantrell@OKHouse.gov.
Josh Cantrell serves District 49 in the Oklahoma House of Representatives. His district includes Love County and parts of Carter and Marshall counties.