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Oklahoma
State Senate
Communications Division
State Capitol
Oklahoma City, OK 73105
For Immediate Release: April 30, 2014
Sen. Patrick Anderson
Anderson proposes using money from unclaimed
property fund to construct new medical examiner’s office,
save taxpayers $35 million
With a plan to build a new State Medical Examiner’s
Office in Edmond facing uncertainty, Sen. Patrick
Anderson is proposing that the state use one-time money from
the Unclaimed Property Fund to construct the facility.
The State Supreme Court last year issued a ruling that would allow
the state to proceed with the sale of $38.5 million in bonds to
fund the project. However, the bonds have yet to be sold due to
concerns from University of Central Oklahoma officials that the
Legislature will not provide funding for the bond payments.
Anderson noted that if $38.5 million in bonds are sold to build
the medical examiner’s office, they will be paid over a 30-year
period, at a cost of $2.5 million each year. That plan, he said,
would result in Oklahoma taxpayers spending $75 million on the building.
“The Medical Examiner’s Office has operated without
accreditation since 2009, and this is simply unacceptable,”
said Anderson, R-Enid. “This agency lacks the facilities and
resources needed to perform basic functions. Given that the plan
to take $40 million from the Unclaimed Property Fund for the American
Indian Cultural Center and Museum is now dead, I am proposing we
utilize those funds to support a core function of government and
address the medical examiner’s needs.”
The state treasurer has been supportive of legislation that would
divert money from the fund to help complete the American Indian
Cultural Center and Museum.
“By using money from the Unclaimed Property Fund to address
this problem, we could build the facility immediately and save Oklahoma
taxpayers $35 million in the process,” Anderson said. “The
chief medical examiner should be given credit for making progress
with extremely limited resources, but the agency’s unaccredited
status remains a source of shame for our state. The governor has
asked lawmakers to turn their focus to more meaningful issues. I
believe this is a matter of importance to the entire state, and
it deserves our immediate attention.”
For more information, contact:
Sen. Anderson: (405) 521-5630
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