Committee works through ARPA proposals

Work at the Capitol continues with another busy interim ahead of us. While the regular session adjourned Friday, May 27, we’ve also had three special sessions, two of which have been adjourned and the other will continue as the Joint Committee on Pandemic Relief Funding works through the hundreds of proposals on how the state should utilize its nearly $1.9 billion of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) pandemic relief funds. The committee’s approved proposals are turned into appropriations bills, which then must be approved by the Legislature and governor before being spent.

Last month, we approved $140 million in ARPA spending, which included $75 million for water projects; $2 million for broadband mapping and $365,000 for broadband workforce development. We also want to use part of this funding to address the critical healthcare needs in our state. We voted to provide $7.5 million for behavioral health projects for children; $50 million for higher education nursing programs; nearly $635,000 for CareerTech nursing programs; and more than $4.5 million for nursing workforce development. 

Last week, the Legislature sent another $69.5 million of ARPA projects to the governor’s desk. The largest share of this included $20 million for additional water projects and another $25 million for a grant program for nonprofits helping Oklahomans with pandemic recovery. Given what a massive project expanding broadband statewide will be, we decided to create the State Broadband Office to handle the coordination and funding of all such projects. We approved $500,000 for the new office. Health care received the remainder of these funds with $15 million going to finish the state-of-the-art Northeastern State University School of Optometry, which is one of only 23 optometric training schools nationwide and will be a tremendous asset for our state and the university. We also voted to invest another $8.8 million for CareerTech nursing programs and $250,000 for healthcare workforce development training. Together, these healthcare investments will help get at least 2,500 new licensed nurses and other crucial health care workers into the workforce in the next five years.  

On June 7, I met with the City of Lawton, the city manager and mayor to discuss their ARPA priorities. Schools, cities, counties, and the tribes all received their own pot of federal money separate from our state government allocation. However, it’s crucial that all levels of government work together to leverage this one-time funding for the greatest good. We don’t want to duplicate spending on the same projects, but instead support each other however necessary to make these dollars stretch as far as possible. Open communication is key as we’re talking about billions of dollars that will be coming into Oklahoma through the various levels of government. I appreciated meeting with Lawton city leaders to get their perspective and insight as we all move forward with this process. 

These funds will change the face of Oklahoma and help address so many critical needs. I’m not a member of the joint committee, but I’m following their work closely and will keep you updated as they make decisions about additional projects. Special session is recessed for the time being until more projects are presented to the Legislature. You can stay up to date on what’s happening in the Senate by signing up on our website at www.oksenate.gov to receive press releases and meeting notices.

In closing, it was an honor to speak at the Memorial Day services on May 30 at the Grady Cemetery and in Ringling. We must never forget that freedom is not free. So many have laid their lives down in service to our great nation so that we can all enjoy our many freedoms, and their great sacrifices will never be forgotten. 

If I can be of any assistance, you can reach me at (405) 521-5563 or Chris.Kidd@oksenate.gov.