CareerTech board approves FY25 budget, allocates $28.6 million in one-time funds and OKs staff pay boost

The Oklahoma Department of CareerTech State Board on Monday approved its fiscal year 2025 budget, agreed to a formula to distribute $28,590,000 in one‑time legislative funding and authorized a 5% pay increase for employees in pay bands 17–19.

Director Hagan told the board the legislature provided a mixture of base and one‑time funds this year and that the first priority for the one‑time allocation is to reimburse midyear cuts and fully fund the agency’s formula‑based allotments. "The first goal of those dollars is to reimburse the cut that I had to give all schools midyear," Hagan said. She said $3 million is earmarked to fully fund FBA and another $1.5 million would support apprenticeship and workforce initiatives.

Why it matters: Career and technology centers serve as a direct pipeline to local jobs; the board’s choices will affect classroom technology, program capacity and whether waiting lists for full‑time programs can be reduced. The one‑time funds will not automatically become part of the base budget unless later authorized by the legislature.

What the board approved
- One‑time funding formula: The board endorsed staff recommendations to allocate 40% of one‑time dollars based on a local‑needs assessment, 40% on a school’s verified secondary service rate (the share of juniors and seniors served), 10% as a per‑campus allotment and 10% for student‑services costs. Staff presented school‑level examples to illustrate how local need and service rate combine to produce an allotment.

- Specific allocations cited by staff: $3,000,000 to fully fund FBA; $25,640,000 as the portion tied to the performance/local formula for tech centers; $500,000 reserved for agency one‑time operational costs and $450,000 for skill‑center transition coordinators. Staff also reported a $1,000,000 pool for classroom technology grants.

- Pay increase: The board approved a 5% pay increase for positions in pay bands 17–19, to take effect July 1, according to staff. CFO Lisa told the board that carryover and available funds make the increase affordable without requesting additional appropriations this year.

- Lottery scholarships and tech‑center project grants: The board approved the FY24 lottery scholarship report (staff said scholarship disbursements for the covered period totaled $42,887.52 in the packet) and approved a slate of technology and innovation grants for schools and tech centers. Staff said lottery scholarship payments are made in arrears and reported 99 applications covering summer 2023–spring 2024.

Budget details and oversight
CFO Lisa presented the FY25 executive summary showing a general appropriation base of roughly $163 million, a one‑time appropriation of $28,590,000 and a FY25 spending plan that incorporates federal grants (including Carl Perkins and ARPA funds for training initiatives). Lisa said roughly 78% of agency dollars pass through to technology centers and comprehensive schools.

Staff emphasized oversight measures: the director proposed a two‑year expenditure window for one‑time dollars so schools can plan multi‑year projects while requiring reporting back to the legislature on how funds were spent. "We should have expenditures done within 2 years," Hagan said, noting that some schools may need a short extension because budgets were set before the appropriation arrived.

Vote and next steps
Board members moved, seconded and voted to approve the FY25 budget, the one‑time distribution formula and the scholarship/grant slate. Staff will circulate detailed school‑level allocations and the timeline for spending and reporting. The director said she will continue to press the legislature if board members want portions of the one‑time funds converted into base funding in future sessions.

Attribution: Quotes and figures above are taken from presentations and remarks by Director Hagan and CFO Lisa during the board meeting. The board recorded motions and affirmative votes to adopt the budget and the funding recommendations.