Fees and federal dollars pay for many of Oklahoma’s air and land programs. But the water system is funded by the state. And when it comes to paying for oversight and inspection of its local water systems, Oklahoma is failing, according to member station KOSU. Oklahoma’s Department of Environmental Quality, like many government agencies in the state, has faced years of funding cuts. Legislative appropriations have declined by roughly 30 percent since 2009. That’s left programs designed to regulate local drinking water and wastewater operations in the lurch.
The loss of revenue is due to tax cuts and structural changes to the state’s budget, enacted by Oklahoma’s Republican lawmakers. But the problem has been “pushed to the brink by crashing oil prices.”
At the end of last year, state finance officials predicted a budget shortfall in 2016 of nearly $1 billion. And things could get even worse next year, officials say.