Planes and other aircraft that are owned, leased, chartered, or
rented by the State or its agencies (hereinafter, "aircraft") can be an
important tool of government. Such vehicles allow for the quick transportation
of public officers between far-flung regions of Oklahoma when time is of the
essence; permit officials to aerially assess storm, wildfire, or flood damage
and better coordinate an effective response to these types of disasters;
critically assist search and rescue operations; and, of course, aid in law
enforcement's drug interdiction efforts and in the location and capture of
criminals, more generally. However, the inherently high cost of acquiring,
maintaining, and operating aircraft means that the State of Oklahoma has a
responsibility to oversee their acquisition and use with an eye towards
coordinating utilization and eliminating inefficiencies.
As a result, I, Mary Fallin, Governor of the State of Oklahoma,
by the authority vested in me pursuant to Sections
1 and
2 of Article VI of the Oklahoma
Constitution, hereby direct and order as follows:
1. All air assets of State law enforcement
agencies, including the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs
Control, the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety (DPS), and the Oklahoma State
Bureau of Investigation, shall be transferred to the custody and control of the
Commissioner of DPS (here in after, "Commissioner") within thirty (30) days of
issuance of this Order. During this time frame, State law enforcement agencies
and DPS shall also meet to begin negotiation of such interagency
agreements-including, but not limited to, agreements under the State Personnel
Interchange Program-as may be necessary to ensure that personnel,
aviation-related financial assets, and other resources associated with the
maintenance and continued operation of the aircraft are likewise transferred to
the custody and control of DPS.
2.
The administrative head of every "state agency," as that term is defined in 61
O.S. §
327(A),
shall provide advance written notice to the Director of the Office of
Management and Enterprise Services (OMES) every time the agency intends to
purchase, lease, charter, or rent aircraft. This notice must include the cost
of, source of funding for, and projected duration of aircraft use. Any aircraft
that is purchased or otherwise permanently acquired by the State or an agency
is subject to the reporting requirements of 74 O.S. §
110.1.
3. The Director of OMES, in conjunction with
the Commissioner, shall develop a comprehensive management plan for aircraft,
which shall be consistent with Oklahoma law-including, but not limited to, 63
O.S. §
2-109
and
74 O.S.
§§ 85.12b, 150.16, 500.6, 500.6A, and 500.18-and shall include
guidelines for:
a. The consolidation of
storage and maintenance operations of aircraft owned by the State or any of its
agencies;
b. The shared use of
aircraft owned by the State or any of its agencies that prioritizes
availability for law enforcement and other public safety initiatives;
c. The sale and disposal of aircraft that are
not adequately being used or that could be more economically replaced by
temporary use alternatives like rentals or charters; and
d. Evaluating the cost-effectiveness of and
securing approval for specific temporary use alternatives like rentals or
charters.
4. The
Director of OMES and the Commissioner shall submit the finalized comprehensive
management plan to me for review and approval within one hundred and twenty
(120) days of issuance of this Order. After approval has been secured, the
comprehensive management plan shall be distributed to every Cabinet Secretary,
who shall further distribute it to the administrative head of all State
agencies within his or her respective Cabinet area. The comprehensive
management plan shall also be posted electronically on the websites of OMES,
DPS, and the Office of the Governor.
5. OMES shall take all necessary steps to
convert the approved comprehensive management plan into permanent
administrative rules in accordance with the Oklahoma Administrative Procedures
Act (75 O.S. §§ 250-308.3).
6. Nothing in this Order shall effect or
apply to law enforcement use or ownership of unmanned aircraft systems.
This Executive Order shall be forwarded to the Director of OMES
and the Commissioner, who shall cause the provisions of this Order to be
implemented. Copies of this Executive Order shall be supplied to each Cabinet
Secretary.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have set my hand and caused the Great Seal
of the State of Oklahoma to be affixed at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, this 8th day
of November, 2017.
BY THE GOVERNOR OF THE
STATE OF OKLAHOMA
Mary Fallin
ATTEST:
Dave Lopez
Secretary of State
