There are a lot of people, groups and organizations to blame for the failing state of Oklahoma.
One that deserves a lot of the credit is the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs. A conservative think tank that operates more like a lobbying group, the organization follows an extreme right-wing "every tax is a bad tax" obstructionist ideology, and has used its clout and influence to place its most loyal minions and supporters – like House Speaker Charles McCall – in positions of power.
As result, Oklahoma government finds itself trapped in a perpetual revenue crisis, and Mary Fallin is now having to call a special session of the Oklahoma legislature to try to fix it. (LULZ).
Naturally, the OCPA thinks that is a bad deal. Check out what their leader Jonathan "The Impractical" Small had to say about it:
“There is simply no need for a special session. For the fiscal health of Oklahoma, officials should look into moving funds already available instead of proposing hundreds of millions of dollars in new and damaging tax increases on hard-working Oklahoma families. If the executive branch is creative enough to completely drain our state’s constitutionally protected Rainy Day Fund for $240 million, then they are creative enough to allocate a portion of TSET’s $1 billion endowment. Doing so, along with using surplus revenues, would completely meet the cash flow needs of the agencies affected by the loss of cigarette tax money until February when the Legislature reconvenes.”
“For the long-term fiscal health of Oklahoma, state officials need to focus on state spending. Oklahoma state government is now on track to spend more money next year—more than $17.9 billion—than at any time in state history. The simple truth is we don’t have a revenue problem; we have a spending and a transparency problem. Hard-working Oklahoma families and small businesses are already chafing from the constant demand of tax consumers. It would be destructive and repugnant for the Governor and the Legislature to come into special session—costing taxpayers around $30,000 per day—just so they can pass whichever tax increases Scott Inman deems best.”