Drummond asks court to stay ClassWallet lawsuit, pending ruling by Oklahoma Supreme Court

Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond filed new documents in court this week in the two-year-long battle between his office, Gov. Kevin Stitt and ClassWallet, a self-described purchasing and reimbursement platform for public funds.

Drummond's filing is the latest in an ongoing legal battle against the governor's office and ClassWallet, the company chosen to disburse pandemic-era education funds that now stands accused of breaching its contract.

Four years ago, Oklahoma began using federal Governor’s Emergency Educational Relief (GEER) funds to assist low-income families in purchasing education materials while school buildings were closed due to high COVID-19 cases.

Tuesday, Drummond asked the court to stay proceedings in the ClassWallet case until the Oklahoma Supreme Court rules on the attorney general's ability to assume control of a lawsuit on behalf of the state.

"Waiting for the Oklahoma Supreme Court's decision will also promote the judicial economy and will avoid the possibility of inconsistent results," Drummond wrote. "And OMES (Oklahoma Office of Management and Enterprise Services) and the governor will not be unduly prejudiced or experience undue hardship because of a stay."

Federal audit criticizing Oklahoma's spending on ClassWallet services prompted lawsuit

The fight over ClassWallet began in 2022 when media reports and a federal audit showed that about $1.7 million of GEER funds were spent on noneducational purchases, including smartwatches, doorbells, furniture and air conditioners.

And while the audit criticized how the funds were spent, it also essentially cleared ClassWallet, citing problems with the "blanket approval" of the ClassWallet expenditures issued by state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters — who served as Stitt’s education secretary from September 2020 through April 2023.

A second audit, conducted and released in June 2023 by state Auditor and Inspector Cindy Byrd, criticized Walters, without naming him, over how the money was spent.

After the release of the federal audit, Stitt and then-Attorney General John O'Connor filed suit against ClassWallet, blaming the company for its role in the misuse of taxpayer dollars during the COVID-19 public health emergency. The lawsuit did not name any state officials as defendants.

Drummond countered that 27 other states used ClassWallet, restricting the portals to the Stock Keeping Units (SKUs) associated with educational benefits, and not one of them had problems. Shortly after his election, Drummond said he had concluded the lawsuit filed by O'Connor was almost wholly without merit.

"It is clear that a number of state actors and other individuals are ultimately responsible for millions in misspent federal relief dollars," Drummond said, dismissing the case.

In January, Stitt's office asked Drummond to refile the lawsuit, and Drummond declined. After the attorney general's refusal, the governor's office refiled the lawsuit against ClassWallet, arguing that Drummond had no standing in the case.

Drummond, for a second time, dismissed the lawsuit.

Since then both Drummond and the governor's office have waged a court battle on whether or not the attorney general's office could intercede in the case. Drummond has requested to stay all hearings — including the hearing set for May 14 — until the state's high court ruled.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma AG seeks delay in ClassWallet, pandemic spending lawsuit