Fugate, D-Del City, filed the suit against Stitt in late February, saying the governor had overstepped his authority by issuing an order for state employees to return to office.
Fugate said it is the legislature’s exclusive responsibility to represent taxpayers’ interests by passing laws regarding the duties of state employees. Under normal circumstances, the governor does not have the authority to do so.
The governor issued the order allowing state employees to work remotely in 2020, after the legislature approved emergency powers in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Stitt’s emergency powers ended in 2021.
Fugate says that means he has no authority to reverse the order.
Oklahoma County District Judge Brent Dishman disagrees. He denied Fugate’s request to block the executive order and granted a motion to dismiss the suit on Monday, saying Fugate, as an individual lawmaker, couldn’t sue over an executive order.
On Tuesday, Fugate filed an appeal with the Oklahoma Supreme Court.
“While the District Court expressed concern that permitting an individual legislator to litigate such a matter ‘would create chaos,’ Oklahoma precedent clearly authorizes legislative standing when constitutional prerogatives are at issue,” Fugate’s lawyer said in the appeal.
This report was produced by the Oklahoma Public Media Exchange, a collaboration of public media organizations. Help support collaborative journalism by donating at the link at the top of this webpage.
