Sooner State News

Amid a number of scandals, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt vetoed a bill aimed at increasing transparency throughout the state government. As investigations peer into the accusations against Stitt, criticisms of his conduct continue to pile up.

According to Oklahoma Watch, the state Legislature called itself back into a special session to provide increased oversight over COVID-19 pandemic funds. Stitt has been accused of mishandling hundreds of millions of dollars of the relief funds. As the Legislature looks to investigate the matter further, Stitt deemed all funding requests to be secret.

Enid News & Eagle previously reported that the Legislature was feeling some pressure to override Stitt's veto of HB 1695, a bill that would require financial disclosures for many gubernatorial appointments. Stitt vetoed the bill after it passed both the House and Senate unanimously.

The questions of transparency arose following a series of scandals involving Stitt, including those when the state formed a partnership with Swadley's BBQ, allowing the restaurant to operate in several Oklahoma parks. Sooner State News previously reported that the Oklahoma State Auditor Cindy Byrd found that the state paid the company nearly $17 million. Whistleblower reports indicate the restaurant chain inflated reimbursement requests and renovation quotes. A whistleblower alleged that the owner of Swadley's BBQ, Brent Swadley, once bragged about his relationship with Stitt, saying not to worry about the restaurant's expenses because he had "a direct line to the governor."

Additionally, according to KOSU, earlier this year an audit uncovered wasteful and possibly illegal conduct in the state's handling of PPE equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Stitt appointed Gino DeMarco as COVID PPE czar during the pandemic. Under DeMarco, the state paid for more than $5 million for equipment that ended up never arriving. Byrd has concluded that state laws may have been broken in the purchase of the undelivered equipment.

According to Ballotpedia, Joy Hofmeister has held the title of Oklahoma superintendent of public instruction since 2015. Hofmeister is running for governor as a Democrat.

"We’re witnessing the least transparent governor in our state’s history," Hofmeister wrote in a May 19 Twitter post. "Oklahoma belongs to you — it’s time to hold Stitt accountable."