Stitt looks for `quick wins'

Digital driver's licenses and debit card payments at state parks are some of the “quick wins” Gov. Kevin Stitt would like to see in the coming months.

Stitt held his third cabinet meeting Thursday and discussed goals he wants to achieve in the next few months at the agencies overseen by his cabinet secretaries.

“I'm really challenging my cabinet to determine what does success look like in all of these different agencies, and also what are some quick wins we can achieve,” Stitt said following the two-hour meeting. “I think it's starting to come together.”

Thursday's cabinet meeting included conversations about cybersecurity assessments for all state agencies, establishing a process for state employees to share concerns that are kept confidential and getting a digital driver's license program in the testing phase within a few months, according to the governor's staff.

Lt. Gov. Matt Pinnell, who is also the secretary of tourism and branding, said “quick wins” for the Tourism and Recreation Department include offering card payment systems at the more than 30 state parks across Oklahoma.

“We really took a look at: What do our customers want? This is one of the most common requests,” Pinnell said.

Pinnell expects state parks to be able to accept card payments later this year and said it is part of the governor's agenda to modernize state agencies.

“We are discovering things that we would have assumed would have already been in the process,” Pinnell said.

On Thursday, Stitt also announced Charles Prater as the next commissioner to the Oklahoma Tax Commission, which oversees the administration and enforcement of state tax laws.

Prater, 67, who lost last year's Republican runoff race to become state auditor and inspector, is a certified public accountant who currently serves as the president and CEO at Assurance Resource Company.

Each of the three members of the Oklahoma Tax Commission are appointed to a six-year term by the governor and confirmed by the state Senate. Prater would replacing outgoing Commissioner Thomas E. Kemp, Jr.