Stitt plans to open D.C. office
Gov. Kevin St itt plans to open the first Oklahoma office in Washington, D.C., since 1 995 and hopes to start interviewing candidates next Stitt month
to be his liaison to the federal government.
“Our hope is to have interviews done and have this completed by the end of the year,'' Donelle Harder, a spokeswoman for Stitt, said Tuesday.
Former Gov. David Walters established a state presence in Washington in 1991. Walters' successor, Frank K eating, shut down the office in early 1995.
St it t' s interest in opening a Washington office was first reported Tuesday by the online news site NonDoc.
Planning for the position has progressed to the point that office space and potential candidates for the position have been identified.
The governor' s office hopes to find an Oklahoman already living in Washington for the job. The state would rent space from an already established state office in the Hall of States, located near Capitol Hill.
Harder said members of the Oklahoma congressional delegation have advocated for a state office.
“I believe why they want this is ultimately there was not a system within state government to have a good look at why federal dollars were being brought in, to make sure they were being accounted for correctly,” Harder said.
“I think they want to feel like what they' re advocating for in D. C. is going to be used at home and used well and matches the priorities of the state.”
Republican members of the congressional delegation opposed the Washington office when Walters, a Democrat, established it.
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Tulsa, said in 1995, “I can remember when Governor Walters made his decision to have an office in Washington, we were opposed to it then, only to find out it was a done deal before we were consulted.”
Inhofe said then that Keating didn't need an “entourage” when he visited Washington and would have Oklahoma's congressional delegation to help him.
Harder said Tuesday that the need for better coordination was highlighted by the problems the state' s two medical schools have had with the federal agency that oversees Medicaid. The agency determined the schools were mis using Medicaid matching funds for physician training and have demanded repayment of several million dollars.
The fact that the governor now has more control over several state agencies emphasizes the need for a cohesive policy in Washington, Harder said.
Funding for the office would initially come from the governor' s budget. Harder said the governor would discuss some “funding models” with the Legislature, including taking a percentage from each state department that receives federal funds. That would include several, including Education, the Department of Human Services and the Oklahoma Health Care Authority.