edited by: Justin Tyme,
Oklahoma Editor
Oklahoma's not alone in facing a financial crisis in state government.
Across the country, state leaders cope with huge deficits. California's massive financial problem is well known.
In a budget proposal which would enact a major government reorganization, Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour has proposed merging eight of [...] 
The governor and legislative leaders disagree on how much of the state’s savings account should be used to deal with this fiscal year’s budget, which is now on track to come in about $1 billion short of estimates. Read more: [www.newsok.com]. [...] 
Republican Rep. Ken Miller of Edmond today amended Ethics Commission paperwork to allow him to accept contributions as a candidate for treasurer. Miller, chairman of the House Appropriations and Budget Committee, amended his current campaign committee paperwork to reflect his intent to seek the treasurer's' [...] 
The federal health care bill being pushed through Congress by U. S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Obama Administration would create $128 million per year in additional unfunded federal mandates for the state of Oklahoma as the state copes with budget shortfalls, an Oklahoma [...] 
Two Democratic state senators spent Tuesday night outside the Capitol to show their solidarity with older Oklahomans who have been left out in the cold because of budget cuts, prompting Republican Senator Mike Johnson to ask where they were six years ago when their own leaders [...] 
A new state law that took effect Nov. 1 will prevent the waste of taxpayer dollars on Spanish-language drivers’ tests, the bill’s author said today.
A $7.4 million cut in senior nutrition programs by the Oklahoma Department of Human Services is reason enough for legislators to meet in a special session as soon as possible to look at the effect of recent budget cuts and to tap into the [...]
After meeting with officials of both state-run and privately run prisons in Oklahoma, Rep. Randy Terrill said today it appears budget cuts are being administered “in a way designed to maintain public safety.”
“It is clear that corrections officials are being proactive and paring back expenses [...] 
State Senator Anthony Sykes will tour the Davis Correctional Center today as part of an ongoing review of the state’s prison needs and the potential role of private prisons. 
