The Oklahoma Transportation Commission recently approved the county improvements for roads and bridges (CIRB) plan for fiscal years 2027 to 2030. The updated five-year plan includes nearly $950 million in scheduled upgrades to 808 miles of roads and 238 bridges that are maintained by the counties rather than by the Oklahoma Department of Transportation.
Oklahoma’s 77 counties shoulder 70 percent of the state’s roads and bridges, roughly 83,000 miles and 14,000 bridges. Yet they receive less than 30 percent of dedicated roads and bridges revenues.
This 1976-era formula, weighted heavily on population vs. land area, continues to reward metro-heavy counties with minimal-maintained infrastructure while rural commissioners slash staff, delay resurfacing and watch bridges deteriorate.
I believe this can be addressed through legislation. I’m looking at a bill that was proposed back in 2016 by former Rep. Jason Murphy. I plan to meet with him and examine some additional areas of state statute to see how we might be better able to address rural transportation needs moving forward.
I was pleased last week to get to tour the Freedom Truck that visited Poteau. The truck was full of information and hands-on displays. I visited with my wife and grandson and had a great one-sided conversation with George Washington.
I saw lots of kids learning about the history of our nation, including some of the battles of the Revolutionary War and civil rights lessons like Rosa Parks. Visitors could take a citizenship test. It was a great experience, really worth the time spent. Not sure how many people ended up visiting, but it looked like a bunch.
Looks like Oklahoma and the nation might be staying on daylight saving time permanently. The Sunshine Protection Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives and has been sent to the U.S. Senate. President Trump is in favor, so if it passes Congress, he’ll sign it. The Oklahoma Legislature passed a law in 2024 that would lock the state into daylight saving time if the federal legislation is approved. I know many farmers and ranchers favor this as it would lead to more daylight in the later part of the day during the winter months. There’s always the argument about it getting light later in the morning, but I think doing away with the twice-yearly clock change would be great.
I also want to remind everyone again that Doug Linehan, the executive director of the Oklahoma Tax Commission, will be in the area at 1 p.m. July 29 at the Poteau Library for anyone who has questions or concerns.
Remember to listen to my Capitol update on the radio at 7:35 a.m. every Thursday on KPRV.
As always, if I can help you with anything, please call my Capitol office at (405) 557-7413 or email me at rick.west@okhouse.gov.
Rick West serves District 3 in the Oklahoma House of Representatives. His district includes part of LeFlore County.
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