Okla. Supreme Court To Decide Authority In Dispute Over Gaming Compacts

The Oklahoma Supreme Court will decide if the Governor or Attorney General has authority regarding a dispute over gaming compacts.

The AG Gentner Drummond said this is a rare action being taken to determine who has control over a case involving gaming compacts.

According to the court filing, Judge Timothy Kelly writes:

"The decision over who has the ultimate authority to represent Oklahoma, in this case, goes to the very core of its sovereignty."

Adding that interest is heightened, given the Governor's and AG's different views.

In 2020, tribes accused Gov. Kevin Stitt of breaking the law by sending revised gaming compacts to the federal government even though those compacts were not approved.

Those tribes include Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, and Citizen Potawatomi.

The Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled the compacts invalid in 2020 and 2021.

The Governor then submitted them to the U.S. Department of Interior.

Last year, Drummond said he would take over the case, but Stitt argued that lawyers had already been hired.

Now, after a D.C. court filing, the state supreme court has to decide who is going to represent the state in this case.

The AG said in a statement:

"Governor Stitt’s position would mean that there is no sphere in which the Attorney General, an independently elected constitutional officer may act to prosecute or defend the interests of the state against the wishes of the Governor."

News 9 has reached out to the governor's office for a statement.