Earlier this year, Fugate filed a lawsuit against the Governor questioning the legality of his Executive Order 2024-29 which required state agency directors to instruct all full-time state employees to return to their offices or field by February 1, 2025.
This week, the Oklahoma Supreme Court affirmed the District Court’s dismissal of the lawsuit, citing that Fugate was not directly impacted by the executive order.
Because the suit was dismissed based on the standing Fugate lacked, Fugate argues that criticism of the executive order is still necessary and that this court ruling does not change that.
“It’s clear from his statement that the Governor did not bother to read the Court’s decision,” said Fugate. “The court did not ‘back’ the Governor. It simply said that a single legislator could not challenge the Governor. The Governor should stop relying on ChatGPT to do his homework. It’s embarrassing for the people of Oklahoma, and they deserve better. Reading is fundamental. I highly recommend it. Until then, Oklahoma families will continue to suffer under this Governor’s ‘top ten aspirations,’ while our state remains at the bottom of nearly every meaningful measure of health and well-being.”
Fugate asserts that if the Governor were truly interested in accountability and productivity in state government, then he would have taken action much sooner.
“If there were reports of employees abusing remote work privileges, any competent leader would have acted immediately by identifying offenders, taking disciplinary action, terminating employment where necessary, and pursuing prosecution when appropriate,” said Fugate. “Instead, this Governor sat idle for a year and a half. As with much of his leadership, this is more theater than substance. Thousands of state employees continue to work remotely. If Governor Stitt is truly concerned about accountability, he should start by investigating the Ryan Walters employee who reportedly showed up for work little more than once a month—while collecting a paycheck larger than the Governor’s own salary.”
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