Agricultural News
State Treasurer Candidate Clark Jolley says the Economic Engine of Agriculture must Stay Alive, Productive, and Profitable
Wed, 08 Jun 2022 09:36:19 CDT
Lifelong Oklahoman and former Senator, Clark Jolley, has decided to run for Oklahoma State Treasurer. Farm Director, KC Sheperd, had a chance to visit with Jolley about why he has decided to run and what makes him a good candidate for Oklahomans, especially in rural areas.
Jolley said he is excited about the role of State Treasurer.
"It is probably the most important job that nobody is talking about," Jolley said. "Having spent my public service ten-year really focused on that government finance space, it is a dream job to be able to represent Oklahoma's fiscal policy to try to help shape and guide what we do to make sure our fiscal house is in order."
Jolley feels like his background and qualifications uniquely prepare him to be able to be the best person to do the job of State Treasurer.
"I've got to admit, I got a certificate in public treasury management from Pepperdine, and I am the only person in the race that has that," Jolley said. "I think that is not just a testament to my qualifications, but it also is an indictment of how geeky I really am when it comes to fiscal policy."
Jolley said some of the biggest goals he plans to tackle first if he is elected will start with the 529 College Savings Plan and the Unclaimed Property Program.
"Those are two really good programs that need to be made a lot better in Oklahoma, so those are some of the things I would focus on, but I'll tell you right now, I think all of us are called to fight against the intrusions on our personal liberties and freedoms that we are seeing coming out of Washington," Jolley said.
One of the things Jolley said the Treasurer must be at the center of the fight on is the attempt by the Biden Administration to try to regulate financial services industries out of being willing to invest in oil and gas companies.
"Ag is going to be right behind them, next," Jolley said.
Jolley said if elected, he plans to stand against that and join with other State Treasurers across the country who are refusing to invest in financial service firms that do not invest in oil and gas, the economic engines of our states.
"The state treasurer in Oklahoma needs to be a vital part of that fight, and that is one of the things I also believe I would take on day one," Jolley said.
Jolley believes it is important for Oklahomans to know he was raised by rural parents, and he carries their virtues.
"I am actually the son of an agronomist," Jolley said. "My dad got a degree in agronomy, so I grew up learning about land and fertilizer. I grew up in the Oklahoma City metro area, but my dad and my mom both are rural in their roots."
Jolley said he also understands that everyone cannot be expected to know everything about every issue. Developing a network of trusted advisors, he added, has always been helpful when it comes to ag policy, both from the farming side and the Oklahoma State University extension side.
"Knowing that I have resources in that community, and lots of friends in that community that can provide me with their perspective on what the challenges are that they are facing is something that I think I would like to make sure everybody in the ag community knows," Jolley said. "While I may not have grown up on a farm in Oklahoma, I do have those same values that I got from my parents that they learned there in rural Oklahoma and rural Georgia."
Jolly said he is an agricultural ally and has been rated highly by the Farm Bureau numerous times.
"I am prepared to fight on behalf of the ag industry on day one," Jolley said.
Producers are facing many issues right now from high input costs to drought. Jolley also talked about the urgency to get new farmers out on the farm or have generational farmers come back and sustain the family farm.
"First off, having the quality of life that you get in a rural setting is something you must be able to sell and convince people of," Jolley said. "If Oklahoma is going to be able to succeed, we must be able to have all three legs- Oklahoma City, Tulsa, and we have to have rural Oklahoma be strong."
The departure from rural America into urban America, Jolley said, is cyclical and is not going to last.
"I think it is going to turn around and go back, just like we see people leaving the core of the cities going out to the suburbs, then they go back years later into the core," Jolley said.
Jolley said it is critical that we keep our economic engine of agriculture alive, productive, and profitable.
"You can't talk about farming in Oklahoma without making sure we have a conversation about access to water," Jolley said. "The Treasurer helps with bonds and other financing mechanisms that could help provide some of the infrastructure development that we need."
If we are going to be successful, Jolley said we must make sure we have water, in western Oklahoma especially, to be able to irrigate our crops and do a good job, or there is not going to be the opportunity for people to come back and be successful because the land has dried up.
"The treasurer is not immanently involved in ag policy, but they can help provide assistance on that financial side to help make sure that the resources are available and that the bond ratings are good enough where we can actually put the money towards actual project costs and not pay some bank in New York a whole bunch of interest," Jolley said.
Click the LISTEN BAR below to hear more from Clark Jolley on his plans to fight for rural Oklahoma if elected as State Treasurer.
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