Attorney General Files Lawsuit Against The Funding Of A Religious School With Taxpayer Money

Attorney General Gentner Drummond has filed a lawsuit against the Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board for funding a religious charter school with taxpayer dollars.

The Board voted in June to approve St. Isidore of Seville Virtual Charter School even though religious indoctrination will play a prominent role, according to Drummond.

Drummond’s office had previously told the board members that approving the religious school would violate the constitution. Still, three board members signed the contract.

“The board members who approved this contract have violated the religious liberty of every Oklahoman by forcing us to fund the teachings of a specific religious sect with our tax dollars,” Drummond said.

State leaders within the same party don't agree on what religious liberty entails. 

Drummond argues that the funding of a religious school with taxpayer dollars violated the First Amendment and the state constitution.

“There is no religious freedom in compelling Oklahomans to fund religions that may violate their own deeply held beliefs,” Drummond said. “The framers of the U.S. Constitution and those who drafted Oklahoma’s Constitution clearly understood how best to protect religious freedom: by preventing the State from sponsoring any religion at all.”

Oklahomans voted in 2016 not to amend the state constitution, which would have allowed public money to be used in sectarian organizations.

Drummond’s lawsuit also mentions that over $1 billion in federal education funding could be at risk. The state must be in compliance with applicable laws, which prohibit religious public schools, according to Drummond.

“Not only is this an irreparable violation of our individual religious liberty, but it is an unthinkable waste of our tax dollars,” said Drummond. “At a time when Oklahoma students underperform their peers across the country in every subject, why would we spend one penny of our tax dollars educating them on Catholicism, Sharia law or any other religious teaching? I would prefer we focus on reading proficiency so they can read the Bible at home with their family. That’s where religion is best taught: in homes and in churches, with the loving guidance of parents and pastors."

He said this approval would open the door for any religion to open a virtual religious charter school and all Oklahomans would have to foot the bill.

“Now the next applicant may be an extreme sect of Muslim that teaches only Sharia Law, excludes young women, and teaches young men to subjugate women. Do we really want to fund that?” he said.

The next step will be for the Oklahoma Supreme Court to hear the case.

Governor Kevin Stitt responded to the lawsuit in the following statement:

This lawsuit is a political stunt and runs counter to our Oklahoma values and the law. AG Drummond seems to lack any firm grasp on the constitutional principle of religious freedom and masks his disdain for the Catholics’ pursuit by obsessing over non-existent schools that don’t neatly align with his religious preference. His discriminatory and ignorant comment concerning a potential Muslim charter is a perfect illustration.

The creation of St. Isadore’s is a win for religious and education freedoms in Oklahoma. We want parents to be able to choose the education that is best for their kids, regardless of income. The state shouldn’t stand in the way.

State Superintendent Ryan Walters also released a statement about the lawsuit:

The Constitution is crystal clear on religious liberty, but that fundamental truth is lost on some people. Oklahomans hold their faith and their liberty sacred, and atheism should not be the state-sponsored religion. We should not play politics with the future of our kids through this misguided lawsuit.

Oklahoma parents know what is best for their kids and deserve the most expansive system of school choice in the country so they can make the right decision for their families. The approval of St. Isidore of Seville is a landmark in the battle for educational and religious freedom, and I am proud that Oklahoma is leading the way. We will never back down.