Lawmaker proposes new agency to oversee economic development
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) -- An Oklahoma lawmaker wants to create an entirely new agency to help bring new business to the state. Senate Bill 1447 would introduce the Oklahoma Office of Economic Development, Growth, and Expansion also called OkEDGE.
The agency would pull from the current Department of Commerce and make one point of contact for all economic development in Oklahoma.
"I realized fairly quickly once I got into this role that there's not a true owner or point person for economic development in our state," said Sen. Kristen Thompson, R-Edmond.
As the deal with Panasonic fell through and Michelin packed up to leave the state, lawmakers are worried about the state's economic future.
"I know from my experience as a business person that you have to have an owner, a director, someone who really takes charge of that so we can stay organized and be very effective and efficient," said Thompson.
Thompson said right now that all goes through the Department of Commerce.
That's where OkEDGE comes in to play.
"This is where all of the economic development functions for the state of Oklahoma on all different levels will start," said Thompson.
The agency will have a board of commissioners consisting of nine members and a new CEO overseeing everything.
Three will be appointed by the Senate Pro Tem, three by the Speaker of the House, and three by the Governor. All of them will be pulled from the current Department of Commerce.
"Each of those will have to have at least one person, one appointee from a community of 100,000 people or less," said Thompson.
Lawmakers on the opposite side of the aisle have concerns about her plans and want to know where the information came from.
"One question that I have is whose research is indicating that there wasn't one point person and you know, who paid for that research? Who benefits from that," said Sen. Mary Boren, D-Norman.
Senator Boren wants to know more when the bill hits the upcoming session.
"I think it's very wise to have a point person for economic development," said Boren.
Thompson said creating the board and new CEO won't cost a lot of money as the members are being pulled from the current department of commerce.
In a press release, Thompson explained that the bill proposes a one-time investment of $698 million.
That money would be what's available for the agency to use for business deals in the state.
The full quote from the press release reads:
To facilitate this monumental initiative, Thompson’s bill proposes a one-time investment of $698 million. Projections indicate an 8% return on investment, translating to an annual allocation of $55.84 million specifically designated for economic development, business retention and expansion efforts in Oklahoma.
Sen. Kristen Thomspon, R-Edmond
The bill will be discussed in the upcoming session that starts in February.