A Senate panel has advanced Governor Kevin Stitt’s nominee for Secretary of the Budget.
The process was halted last week after a fiery debate in the Senate Appropriations Committee, but, on Monday, members voted unanimously to support Mike Mazzei for the job.
Part of the contention last week involved worries the new governor was telling agencies not to talk to lawmakers, but Mazzei immediately calmed concerns in his opening statement.
“An e-mail previously sent by an Oklahoma Health Care Authority employee to a state Senator did not represent the wishes of the Stitt administration and was a wrong interpretation of state law.”
The Secretary of the Budget is a new cabinet level position created after the governor split the duties of the position formerly known as the Secretary of Finance.
Mazzei, a Tulsa Certified Financial Planner, spent 12 years as a state Senator including time served as the Chairman of the Finance Committee.
His nomination now heads to the full Senate for consideration.