Judge rules Oklahoma Turnpike Authority 'willfully' violated open meetings law

The future of the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority’s $5 billion ACCESS Oklahoma plan is in question following a ruling the agency "willfully" violated the Oklahoma Open Meeting Act.

Transportation Secretary Tim Gatz first announced a $5 billion, 15-year bond issue to expand and improve the toll road network at the turnpike authority's December 2021 meeting. The Oklahoman requested details of the plan but did not get them until they were presented at the turnpike authority's board meeting on Feb. 22.

District Judge Timothy Olsen granted summary judgment on all counts in the case in which attorneys representing homeowners in the path of a new turnpike alleged the turnpike authority changed agendas to prevent the public from getting details of the ACCESS Oklahoma plan in advance of it being presented to the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority board.

The Oklahoma Open Meeting Act requires that subjects to be discussed be provided to the public as part of agendas posted in advance of meetings.

Olsen declared the open meetings act violation was "willful."

“The agendas for the meetings in question clearly do not comply with the (Open Meeting Act),” Olsen said. “The OTA knew the general routes of the turnpike plan for ACCESS Oklahoma before the Feb. 22, 2022, meeting. The agenda items were void of any description of the routes for which the business being transacted were necessary.” 

The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority has spent $132.8 million, spread among 12 engineering firms, and funded such work from money allocated for other capital improvement projects, including a new midway toll plaza on the Turner Turnpike. The turnpike authority also purchased several homes in the path of the proposed Norman area turnpikes.

More:Emails show Oklahoma Turnpike Authority bought domain names opposing $5 billion expansion plan

Stan Ward, attorney for the opposition group PIKE OFF, said the ruling will force the turnpike authority to start the process from scratch and that all decisions since Feb. 22, including the engineering contracts, are invalid. Evidence presented of the meetings act violation included depositions of board members, including turnpike board chairman Gene Love, that said they did not know details of ACCESS Oklahoma or the new turnpikes until the Feb. 22 meeting.

Ward said those involved in the meetings act violations could, if prosecuted by the district attorney, face a year in county jail or a fine of up to $500.

"Hopefully he will look at this very seriously," Ward said. "It seems as if we prosecute some crimes more vigorously than we prosecute others."

Ward and other attorneys allege the turnpike authority has sought to keep residents in the dark as it sought to get construction started before any legislative action could be taken during the 2023 session. An open records request also revealed the turnpike authority paid a public relations firm to acquire a list of potential turnpike opposition web domain addresses.

Transportation spokeswoman Brenda Perry-Clark said the judge's decision was being evaluated after the ruling came out about 4:30 p.m. Thursday. The turnpike authority was still going through the order late Thursday and could not answer whether it means work will be put on hold or whether the order will be appealed.

"The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority has always endeavored to conduct its statutory mission to construct, operate, repair and maintain turnpike projects in an open and transparent manner," Perry-Clark said. "We respect the court’s decision and will go about bringing new items of business, to correct what the court found to be deficient, for the Authority Board’s consideration."

The turnpike authority first suggested it was about to pursue a $5 billion turnpike expansion and improvement plan at a Dec. 7, 2021, meeting but did not detail the improvements or new turnpikes.

"The OTA first announced the $5 billion long-range turnpike expansion and improvement plan at the Dec. 7, 2021, board meeting, and thereafter made OTA representatives available to the media in order to publicize the announcement as much as possible," Perry-Clark said. "The announcement was made at an early stage of development so that the public would have meaningful information about the OTA’s long-range plans and the timing of future projects."