Fallin wanted to use the $140.8 million as a starting point for negotiations on a teacher pay hike as an alternative to a state question in November that calls for a 1 percent sales tax increase for public education, including a $5,000 pay raise for teachers. Fallin also wanted lawmakers to consider distributing the surplus revenue to targeted agencies facing the most severe budget problems, including the Department of Public Safety and the Department of Human Services.

"With so many legislators terming out and a large number of new legislators who will be elected and sworn into office in mid-November, it was decided to continue to develop a teacher pay raise plan with reform that will be introduced at the beginning of the next legislative session," Fallin spokesman Michael McNutt said in a statement released late Thursday. 

About OrionNet Systems

OrionNet is an Oklahoma small business founded in 2001. OrionNet has designed, developed and supported applications created both for the client-server and web environments, as well as developing, marketing and supporting a commercial application for the counseling centers industry.

Visit the OrionNet Systems’ website, www.iorion.com, or their social media pages, https://twitter.com/ThinkHealth & https://www.facebook.com/pages/OrionNet-Systems/139352156150090 for more information.

About the Oklahoma Health Care Authority

The Oklahoma Health Care Authority is the primary entity in the state of Oklahoma charged with controlling costs of state-purchased health care. https://www.okhca.org/PolicyBlog.aspx

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