New Oklahoma governor urges caution amid surplus

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma's new governor says he's glad the state's economy is rebounding, but he cautioned lawmakers and agency leaders that a $612 million surplus is "not a blank check."

Gov.-elect Kevin Stitt made the comments on Wednesday after the state's Board of Equalization certified a record $8.2 billion in revenue available for lawmakers to spend on next year's budget. That represents an increase of about $612 million over the current year's spending levels.

The Republican businessman says transforming the operation of state government will be a top priority, and he intends to ask the Legislature for more power to hire and fire agency directors.

Stitt says he also wants to see an increase in the cap on the state's Rainy Day Fund to $2 billion to help prepare for a downturn.

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