OKLAHOMA CITY – State Representative Jason Murphey has been busy the last few weeks working on a project to modernize specific aspects of state government.

Murphey said the effort, part of an interim study led by House Speaker Lance Cargill and Edmond State Representative Ken Miller, has led to his participation in a series of house hearings and research projects.

Cargill requested that Murphey join the study and assist with research into ways to streamline government and save taxpayer funds.

Cargill said that a first step of the review will be to inventory what the state owns. Cargill believes that just as in any business, the state needs to maintain an accurate inventory of its assets.

Murphey and Cargill recently toured the state's surplus inventory and observed the process for disposing of state assets. Murphey observed that the centralized inventory process is reported in an incomplete and haphazard matter and needs to be standardized so taxpayers can realize what the assets of the state actually are.

Cargill said the tour reminded him of the closing scene from the 1980s classic, Raiders of the Lost Ark. After Indiana Jones is assured by two Army Intelligence officers that “top men” are taking care of the Ark, the movie cuts to a scene of a gigantic warehouse filled with thousands of wooden crates. Workmen box the Ark up and then roll it into the maze of the massive warehouse, presumably never to be seen again.

Murphey believes that in addition to upgrading the inventory control system it is also important for the state to modernize the application of the state's centralized purchasing system. Individuals from IBM Business Consulting Services have testified that as much as $70 million could be saved annually if the system was reformed.

Murphey indicated that the committee's work will likely result in legislation being filed in the next two months in order to begin the modernization process.