Oklahoma Department of Human Services
Department of Human Services logo
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| Agency overview | |
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| Formed | 1936 |
| Preceding agency |
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| Headquarters | Sequoyah Building 2400 N Lincoln Boulevard Oklahoma City, Oklahoma |
| Employees | 7,300 (FY11) |
| Annual budget | $2.3 billion (FY13) |
| Minister responsible | |
| Agency executive |
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| Website | Oklahoma Department of Human Services |
The Oklahoma Department of Human Services (OKDHS) is an agency of the government of Oklahoma. Under the supervision of the Oklahoma Secretary of Health and Human Services, OKDHS is responsible for providing help to individuals and families in need through public assistance programs and managing services for seniors and people with disabilities.
The Department is led by the Director of Human Services, who is appointed by the Governor of Oklahoma, with the consent of the Oklahoma Senate, to serve at the pleasure of the Governor. The current Director is Ed Lake, who was appointed by Governor Mary Fallin on November 1, 2012.
The Department was established in 1936 during the term of Governor of Oklahoma E. W. Marland.
The state agency was established in 1936 by the voters of Oklahoma by an amendment to the Oklahoma Constitution. By a two-to-one margin, voters approved Article XXV, a state constitutional amendment, “to provide … for the relief and care of needy aged … and other needy persons.“ The Department was established under the name of the Department of Public Welfare. The agency began with the four divisions of finance, statistical, child welfare, and public assistance.
In 1951, Lloyd E. Rader was appointed director of the agency, and he turned the then poorly functioning agency into a model for other states. During the 1950s, the agency's responsibilities were expanded as other agencies were transferred under Rader's leadership. Rader would serve as the agency's director until his resignation in 1982.
Lawmakers changed the agency's name to the Department of Institutions, Social and Rehabilitative Services in 1968 legislation. In 1980, the Oklahoma Legislature changed the name to the Department of Human Services. Under Rader's leadership, the agency gained a large budget with the addition of federal funding. By 1966, the agency budget was $235 million. By 1970, it paid out more in welfare than any of its neighboring states.
In November 2012, Oklahoma voters amended the Oklahoma Constitution by passing State Question 756, which reorganized the agency. Prior to the amendment, the Department of Human Services was governed by a nine-member Commission on Human Services, whose members were appointed by the Governor of Oklahoma to serve fixed terms. The commission would then appoint a director under the commission's oversight. The 2012 amendment abolished the commission and provided for the appointment of the director by the governor directly.
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