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Unfinished Museum May Remain Unfinished

The exterior of the unfinished American Indian Cultural Center and Museum in Oklahoma City.
American Indian Cultural Center And Museum

Gov. Mary Fallin's chief budget negotiator says a plan to spend $40 million to complete an unfinished Indian museum near downtown Oklahoma City is apparently dead for this session.

Secretary of Finance Preston Doerflinger said Friday the proposal "is dead for now."

The Senate passed a bill to take $40 million from the state's Unclaimed Property Fund to match another $40 million in pledges to complete the American Indian Cultural Center and Museum. But many Republican members in the House bitterly opposed the project, and new House Speaker Jeff Hickman said he wouldn't present the bill on the floor until at least 51 of the House's 72 Republicans supported it.

Lawmakers must adjourn by May 30.

More than $95 million already has been spent on the unfinished project.

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