OKLAHOMA CITY – Governor Kevin Stitt filed a lawsuit against state Attorney General Genter Drummond after two cabinet members resigned following a legal opinion.
Drummond issued an opinion Feb. 28 on the state's dual officeholding and determined Transportation Secretary Tim Gatz cannot also serve as director of both the Oklahoma Department of Transportation and the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority. Gatz resigned his cabinet and OTA position and Lieutenant Governor Matt Pinnell also stepped down as secretary of workforce development last week.
Gov. Stitt filed the lawsuit Thursday against Drummond, and as reported by The Oklahoman, on the same day, the state Senate passed Senate Bill 1196 to exempt other cabinet members. The bill was first introduced in 2023, the legislative history shows. It won approval by the House of Representatives and will be sent to the governor’s desk for his signature.
Secretary of Agriculture Blayne Arthur, Secretary of Human Services Deb Shropshire, and Secretary of Tourism, Wildlife and Heritage Shelley Zumwalt are also named plaintiffs in the lawsuit.
If adopted, the new law would rescue Arthur and Susan Winchester from the dual officeholding law as exempted positions.
Winchester is Secretary of Licensing and regulation while also president of the Regent of Regional Universities System. Arthur is also head of Agriculture, Food and Forestry.
In a prepared statement, Stitt said Drummond’s opinion is “flawed” and created a “mess.”
“Since I took office, I’ve worked to find ways to run government efficiently and save the taxpayers money. I have the best people in Oklahoma running my state agencies, and it only makes sense to have them be my advisers,” Stitt’s statement reads. “The most recent AG Opinion concerning Tim Gatz is flat wrong, and in order to continue working to make Oklahoma a top 10 state, a court will need to fix the mess the Opinion created.”
Drummond said in a statement he stands by his opinion and “welcomes the opportunity to respond to the lawsuit in a future filing.”