OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – One Oklahoma lawmaker is calling for the state to eliminate all federal education money in Oklahoma.

Sen. David Bullard, R-Durant, authored Senate Bill 863.

Under the measure, the state would come up with a 10-year plan to phase out all federal money in Oklahoma schools.

The plan would require education officials to figure out how much money the state would need to cover the loss of millions in federal funding.

If passed, the Oklahoma State Department of Education would have up to a year to come up with a timeline for the move.

It’s a similar proposal to what Oklahoma State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters mentioned during his campaign.

Walters argued that rejecting federal dollars would limit federal oversight in Oklahoma schools.

However, that plan received some pushback from lawmakers in 2022.

Rep. Logan Phillips told KFOR that losing federal funding would be devastating for several programs, especially free and reduced lunch programs.

“If we remove the federal funding coming into Oklahoma, which we are already a donor state, meaning we receive more federal funding than we send out, the Oklahoma taxpayer will still be required to send the feds the money,” said Phillips. “We are going to pay twice to get a lesser service for our students if we get rid of this funding.”