Governor Mary Fallin delivered the State of the State address Monday, Feb. 3, first giving credit to the Oklahoma Legislature and that they should be proud of how they made it through the tough financial times the past few years.

She began by saying the cuts the state made were necessary.

“We balanced the budget the old fashioned way: by prioritizing and, when necessary, making tough cuts - just like those being made by Oklahoma families,” Fallin said.

Gov. Fallin announced her support for the constitutional amendment to allow every school the ability to increase bonding capacity for safe room and storm shelter upgrades.

“We are on a tight budget, as we should be, but good education requires appropriate funding,” Fallin said. “That’s why I am proposing a $50 million increase to help students at our K-12 schools.”

She was sure that soon the nay-sayers will speak out against budget cuts to government agencies.

“Those who like bigger government and higher taxes will say the sky is falling,” Fallin said. “Entrenched interest groups and even some agency heads may say the same thing. But guess what? It’s not. The cuts we’ve proposed this year amount to five percent or less of agency budgets and in total amount to about one percent of state spending.”

Mostly she blamed Washington for a majority of budget concerns.

“The dip in general revenue also reflects the uncertainty coming from Washington: sequestration, the government shutdown, and the tax increases and financial chaos created by Obamacare.”

She touched on pension reform but gave no new information and just repeated her position.

“New hires within the Oklahoma Public Employees Retirement System should be moved from an outdated, mid-20th century pension system and to the more portable and flexible 401k-style benefits used in the private sector,” Fallin said.

Finally, she addressed the crumbling State Capitol building and expressed the desire to pass a bond issue to fix and maintain the building.

She closed by commenting that the state is moving in the correct direction and could easily be a model for the nation.

“The Oklahoma Way – not the Washington Way – is the best way to support economic growth and help middle class Americans,” Fallin said.

To read the full text of Gov. Fallin’s speech, go to www.ok.gov.