House Votes to Increase Governor’s Control of State Agencies

OKLAHOMA CITY – The House of Representatives took a further step toward centralizing power today, voting to cede control of three more state agencies to the governor’s office.

As part of the claimed ‘accountability’ package, the three bills, H.B.2479, H.B.2480 and H.B.2483, will allow the governor near-total control over the state’s Department of Corrections, Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, and the Office of Juvenile Affairs.

The agencies’ day-to-day activities, along with those of the state’s Health Care Authority and the Department of Transportation, will now rest with the governor’s political appointments who will comprise an automatic majority on each agency board. The governor now also owns the right to hire and fire the agencies’ directors at will.

Gov. Stitt and House and Senate leadership announced agreement on the five-bill centralization project yesterday.

The plan gives the governor five appointments on each board against the Legislature’s four appointments. A vote to remove any of the governor’s appointments would require a two-thirds' vote override in both chambers.

The three bills passed today were authored by House Speaker Charles McCall (R-22, Atoka). The other two bills that form the five-bill package started life in the Senate.

“This has been a shared goal between the House, the Senate and the Governor’s Office, and it is a significant restructuring of how our government operates,” said Speaker McCall. “We all recognize that Oklahomans expect much more accountability in their government, and this plan will ensure that agency directors and agency board appointees are held accountable to those who have been elected to hold them accountable. Under our current system, these directors and board appointments are not really accountable to anyone.”

Democrats were swift to denounce the moves.

In a released statement House Minority Leader Emily Virgin (D-44, Norman) said, “We have reached a point where the term ‘government accountability has lost all meaning. By taking away the decision making power of our boards we are moving decisions from a venue that falls under the Open Meetings Act and is in view of the public to a venue that is literally behind closed doors and lacking transparency.”

Rep. Forest Bennett (D-92, Oklahoma City) tweeted, “I voted against bills giving the governor hiring and firing power because I view it as giving a massive system of political patronage to one person. Money and connections shouldn’t rule our agencies; experience and merit should.”

Minority Leader Virgin concurred, “By removing the oversight ability of the boards we are creating an environment that will not only allow political patronage but will demand it.

“This plan isn’t about providing transparency,” she added, “It is about acquiring power.”

The three House bills passing today were H.B. 2479, re the Office of Juvenile Affairs, which passed by a vote of 76-22, H.B. 2480, re the Department of Corrections, which passed by a vote of 76-20, and H.B. 2483, re the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, which passed by a vote of 76-20.

The two Senate bills S.B. 456 and 457, passed on votes of 37-9 and 36-9 respectively. The five bills now switch chambers to continue their journey to law.