Tulsa, OK- Tulsa Public Schools is facing at least an $8 million shortfall this year, causing the district to initiate a hiring freeze, furloughs for support staff and administrators and the elimination of travel and substitute teachers.
"The budget was reduced and now we're faced with a dramatic shortfall and the state doesn't have the dollars," said Dr. Keith Ballard, Superintendent of Tulsa Public Schools.
But, the state does have it's own savings account commonly referred to as the Rainy Day Fund.
Republican legislative leaders want to hold off using most of it and make steeper cuts on state agencies.
House Speaker Chris Benge R-Tulsa says: "I strongly urge all state agencies to look at ways to save every dollar possible while also looking for additional areas to cut so any further reductions are less painful down the road."
But, Oklahoma Governor Brad Henry says right now deeper cuts could jeopardize core services.
State Treasurer Scott Meacham, Henry's chief budget adviser, echoes this stance.
"We have caused a lot of unforseen things that we're going to see like troopers being furloughed, prison guards being furloughed, schools having financial problems, just with what we've seen so far."
He's calling for cuts to specific state agencies, rather than across-the-board cuts.
When it comes to using the Rainy Day Fund, state law currently allows for 37-percent of the $600 million to go towards education, roads, prisons and other state services. It amounts to $225 million.
The Tulsa Classroom Teachers Association estimates even if some of that was used for education, it might not make up for the total loss facing the district of between $8-13 million.
"We have to do things better with less people and that's going to be harder," said Denzel Kesterson, President of TCTA.
This may be an unprecedented budgetary situation for the state, according to Deputy Treasurer Tim Allen, which means a way to get around that 3/8 requirement.
According to Allen, an amendment to the state constitution allows for all of that money to be dispensed at one time if the state can meet a certain set of criteria.
According to Meacham, the state does meet it and would be allowed to divide the entire $600 million up between various state agencies, at the Governor and legislature's discretion.
