Stitt: domestic violence bill needed fixing; new audit was politically motivated

Republican Governor Kevin Stitt defended his veto of a bill to address domestic violence, said he was still reviewing controversial legislation about immigration and downplayed the conflict between himself and Senate Pro Tempore Greg Treat during a press briefing Friday.

The governor also defended Shelly Zumwalt, his nominee for Cabinet Secretary for Tourism, and said the recently-released audit of how federal pandemic funds were spent here was politically motivated, adding that the attorney general's office and the auditor's office even coordinated their media statements.

The audit, released by State Auditor and Inspector Cindy Byrd, raised numerous questions about how the state spent millions in federal COVID-19 funds and said new purchasing rules established by the Office of Management and Enterprise Solutions were not in the best interest of Oklahoma.

The audit also harshly criticized the management of Oklahoma Employment Security Commission and the agency's then-Executive Director Shelly Zumwalt, questioning how Zumwalt approved $8.5 million in contract payments to Phase 2, a firm where her husband is employed.

Phil Bacharach, spokesman for the attorney general's office said that governor's statement about coordination was incorrect. Bacharach said there was no coordination between the attorney general and the auditor's offices. “Attorney General Drummond stands by his statement about the audit findings and will continue to work for accountability on behalf of Oklahoma taxpayers," Bacharach said.

Byrd pushed back against the governor's claim, too. In a statement to The Oklahoman, she said the audit covered federal expenditures for 2022, not 2020 as referenced by the Governor.

"The findings were very similar to those reported last year, but the numbers in question are now larger. Two agencies have previously reported these deficiencies so these findings are no surprise to anyone," Byrd said. "The audit report is accurate and the concerns are real. I am hopeful the Governor will take time to read the report and take measures to correct these deficiencies that have resulted in the abuse of Oklahomans’ tax dollars."

Gov. Stitt explains why he vetoed Oklahoma Survivors' Act

Speaking to reporters in the Capitol Blue Room, Stitt said he vetoed Senate Bill 1470, known as the Oklahoma Survivors’ Act. The measure was written to help survivors of domestic violence, its author Senate Pro Tempore Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City, said.

Under the bill, a defendant must provide to the court evidence corroborating that the defendant was, at the time of the offense, a victim of domestic violence and at least one piece of documentary evidence that is a court record, presentence report, social services record, hospital record, sworn statement from a witness to the domestic violence, law enforcement record, domestic incident report or protective order.

About 24 hours after the governor’s veto, the measure was overridden in the Senate by a vote of 46-1.

Friday, Stitt said he would challenge anyone to explain House Bill 1470. "You know, people are really confused they think that's just a victim's protection, domestic violence and we are absolutely for protecting domestic violence victims but that's not what this bill said."

More: Gov. Stitt praises Hispanic community, says he's 'still reviewing' new immigration bill

The measure, Stitt said, was an anti-law enforcement bill that drew opposition from the state's district attorneys and the sheriff's assocation.

"Basically (the bill) would have said that any crime, somebody that's in prison for bad stuff: rape, murder whatever, could go back and say that there was some type of psychological issue that happened 20 years ago in their past and so they should have a different sentence today," he said. "It wasn't limited to domestic violence, it had everybody. So that was the reason I've vetoed that."

Stitt said he was working with House Majority Leader, Rep. Jon Echols, to amend companion legislation to the measure to address his concerns.

Fate of immigration bill on Gov. Kevin Stitt's desk remains unclear

Stitt said his office was still deciding whether or not to sign or veto House Bill 4156, a controversial immigration measure, supported by legislative leaders and requested by the attorney general's office. The measure would allow state law enforcement officials to arrest those they determine are in the country without proper legal authority.

Drummond said the legislation allows "state law enforcement officers to arrest and incarcerate illegal immigrants as a means of helping combat Oklahoma's numerous illegal marijuana grow operations."

Stitt stopped short of saying whether or not he would sign the bill. "We are still reviewing that," Stitt said. "I think we have until next Tuesday."

Asked about his on-going feud with Senate Pro Tempore Greg Treat, Stitt said he had no personal animosity toward the Senate leader. "There may be a philosophical difference between myself and Senator Treat but I hope it's not personal. It's certainly not personal with me and I'm going to keep advocating for all four million Oklahomans."

On Thursday, Treat told reporters he was concerned that the difficult relationship between the governor's office and the Senate had become personal. "I think it's (the difficult relationship) is a personal hatred of me," Treat said. "I think the governor and I are more philosophically aligned that the speaker and I are. It all kind of devolved last April or May."

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt on immigration, Shelly Zumwalt audit