OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - A bill that would create a new state watchdog agency to oversee spending and audit other state agencies has cleared the Oklahoma Senate.
The Senate voted 38-10 on Monday for legislation to create the Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency, a key goal of Senate Republicans this year.
Under the bill, the new agency could issue subpoenas to agencies, compelling them to produce documents or provide witness testimony.
Democrats who opposed the measure suggested it would be more efficient to give the State Auditor and Inspector the funding to conduct more audits.
A fiscal analysis of the bill shows it would cost about $1.7 million to get the agency up and running and another $860,000 annually to operate it.
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