Okla. government gets “F” on accountability

Published 7:40 pm Wednesday, November 11, 2015

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma got lousy marks this week from groups that looked at state policies, government transparency and how much gets done to deter corruption.

For the second time, the Center for Public Integrity, an investigative journalism group, and Global Integrity, which advocates for government accountability, analyzed 50 states for vital signs of good government. Areas examined include rules governing conflicts of interest, relationships between lawmakers and lobbyists, and open records laws.

Though no state made better than a “C,” Oklahoma ranked among the worst. It got an overall grade of “F.” Its numerical score ranked 40th among the states.

Three years ago, for the last survey, Oklahoma received a “D” and ranked 38th, said William Gray, a spokesman for the Center for Public Integrity, which is based in Washington, D.C.

Some in Oklahoma say the rating rings true. Others took umbrage.

“I think it is subjective and in some cases does not actually deal with issues that the public cares about or even thinks are really connected with issues of integrity and issues of good governance,” said Alex Weintz, spokesman for Gov. Mary Fallin.

Weintz said the governor has made “major strides in making government more transparent.” For example, she uses the new OKStateStat website to measure her administration’s goals, and she’s made spending and procurement more transparent.

Still, the executive branch, which includes her office and those of her appointees, scored an “F.”

Gray said the analysis considered about 240 government practices and is meant to give citizens a picture of how their government works. It doesn’t make recommendations, he said, but should guide policymakers on how to develop better practices.

While criteria are meant to be objective, Joey Senat, an Oklahoma State University associate professor who reviewed the Oklahoma portion of the analysis, admits a certain degree of subjectivity in the grading.

Still, Senat, a staunch advocate for open government, said the state’s ranking is accurate, and he’s not surprised.

“Our state does a very poor job of holding public officials accountable,” he said.

Accountability is about giving the public enough information to make informed decisions about government and when it comes to electing or appointing leaders.

“That’s tough to do when the public doesn’t know or doesn’t get to know anything about how their officials act and how they do their jobs,” he said.

Many agencies stall for months in response to requests for public records, he said. Laws forcing access to government records have few teeth.

And, someone denied access to a record typically has little recourse but to sue — at their own expense. (The state received an “F” and ranked 44th in the category “Public Access to Information.”)

Even the Legislature exempts itself from open meetings and open records laws, Senat said. Lawmakers, for example, don’t have to turn over emails and can waive public meeting rules, he said. (Oklahoma legislators received a “D-” and ranked 34th in the study.)

“Too many legislators don’t want the public to know who’s lobbying them, and the lobbyists don’t want people to know that they’re down there trying to make deals,” Senat said.

The state’s procurement and auditing practices rated better, with a “C+” and “B” and rankings of 7th and 10th, respectively.

Weintz disputes the report card’s specifics, especially when it comes to Fallin’s office.

For instance, the executive division was marked down for nepotism, cronyism and patronage — a finding that Weintz called “baffling” given restrictions on whom the governor can appoint.

“The complaint we hear is the that governor doesn’t have the flexibility to appoint people who are reform-minded, who share her agenda, and we mostly have a system where different interest groups select potential appointees off of lists or present the governor with lists of appointees, which she gets to select one off of,” he said.

Weintz said the state was also penalized for Fallin’s decision to withhold records that she believe to be protected.

In one case noted in the analysis — involving about 100 pages of documents related to Fallin’s decisions regarding the Affordable Care Act — the state won a legal appeal that determined the records in question were not public, he said.

Senat, however, contends that Fallin’s office has “seriously damaged” the open records act. It has been sluggish and inefficient in its response to requests, he said.

Earlier this week, the ACLU sued Fallin on behalf of two clients — The Oklahoma Observer and A Perfect Cause — for failing to respond in a timely manner to separate requests for records related to executions in 2012 and 2013, and data related to nursing homes.

The cases claim the state has been dragging its feet for more than a year.

Weintz said the governor’s office is “grappling” with requests for information that are much larger in size and scope than ever before.

Since August 2012, the office has responded to 82 requests dealing with nearly 358,000 pages of records. It’s been sued six times. It currently has 38 pending requests.

Weintz said the state government’s real marks are delivered, not by the groups’ report, but at the ballot box.

“That’s the ultimate act of accountability in our form of government is the ability to be voted out of office,” he said.

Janelle Stecklein covers the Oklahoma Statehouse for CNHI’s newspapers and websites. Reach her at jstecklein@cnhi.com.