Riverside October Citizens of the Month, front row, Isaac Benson, Greyson Walker, Sawyer Baker, Emma Royse, Isaac Shropshire, Gabby Maggard and Camrynn Foster; back row, Eden Garza, Kason Ward, Brenlee Beverly, Willow Baker, Sage Tosh, Weston Williams, Leyla Johnson, Jaxon Ward, Paisley Powell and Emma Wilds.

OKLAHOMA CITY – Several western Oklahoma lawmakers have requested state water officials pause the current release of water from Canton Lake to Oklahoma City.

Reps. Mike Dobrinski, R-Okeene, Carl Newton, R-Cherokee, Kenton Patzkowsky, R-Balko, and Sens. Casey Murdock, R-Felt, and Darcy Jech, R-Kingfisher, asked for the action after it was announced the Tulsa District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was making the release to improve the drinking water supply for the Oklahoma City metro area.

Nearly $600 million in federal funding for Oklahoma projects, including $37 million for improvements to Interstate 35 in McClain County and nearly $35 million for Durant’s water distribution line, could be on the line as lawmakers negotiate the fiscal year 2025 budget once they return to session after the Nov. 5 election.

As lawmakers negotiate a budget for the next fiscal year, appropriators will be deciding what to include. With Rep. Tom Cole as chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, most of Oklahoma’s funding requests will have a chance to survive.