The Oklahoma House has passed and sent to the governor a $6.8 billion budget for the upcoming year, the last major piece of legislation in the 2016 Oklahoma Legislature.
The House voted 52-45 Friday for a general appropriations bill for the fiscal year that begins July 1. Failure to pass the measure would have forced a special legislative session to complete work on next year's budget. The Senate approved the bill on Wednesday.
The budget proposal authorizes a $200 million bond issue to pay for road and bridge construction, freeing up $200 million to fund general state operations instead of earmarking it specifically for transportation. The Senate approved final passage of the bond proposal Friday.
The budget raises about $969.3 million in revenue to cover most of a $1.3 billion projected budget shortfall next year.