New Oklahoma rules on school library books, transgender students should be void, AG says
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Controversial new rules affecting school library books and transgender students should be null and void under a binding opinion from the state attorney general.
The Oklahoma State Board of Education approved new rules last month without the Legislature giving the board the authority to do so, the attorney general's office said.
State schools Superintendent Ryan Walters said he disagrees with the attorney general's opinion.
"We must keep pornographic material out of schools," Walters said in a statement.
The opinion is the latest twist in a series of controversies surrounding the Oklahoma State Department of Education since Walters took over in January.
Attorney General Gentner Drummond issued the opinion Tuesday, contending no state agency has the authority to create administrative rules without the state Legislature first enacting a related law.
Rather than building upon a specific law the Legislature had passed, Walters developed his own rules to ban sexualized content from school libraries and to require school staff to notify a child's parents if the student expresses interest in changing gender identity. Schools that failed to comply risked a downgrade of their accreditation status.
Any rules a state agency creates without direction from the Legislature are unconstitutional and cannot be enforced, according to the opinion.
“Whether I agree or disagree with any particular rule in question is irrelevant if the Board does not have the proper authority to issue those rules,” Drummond said in a statement. “The Legislature is vested with policymaking authority. I will not allow any state agency, board or commission to usurp the Legislature’s rightful role, even if they have the best of intentions.”
Drummond issued a non-binding version of this opinion before the state Board of Education took a vote on the regulations.
Despite the attorney general appearing to warn such action might be unlawful, Walters said the legality of his rules weren't in question.
"We've had great conversation with the attorney general's office," Walters said after the board approved the rules on March 23. "We haven't seen any issues in the rules we've currently proposed or have been working on."
The rules drew considerable public interest. The state Education Department received hundreds of pages of public comment and hours of in-person remarks.
Some Oklahomans urged the state Board of Education to approve the rules to protect children's innocence and uphold parents' rights. Others cautioned against perceived book banning and warned transgender or nonbinary students could be put at risk if a school reported their gender identity without their consent.
What were the rules passed? Rules impacting school libraries, LGBTQ+ students advance in Oklahoma State Board of Education
Drummond issued the opinion after state Rep. Mark McBride questioned whether the state Board of Education would violate the Oklahoma Constitution by enacting administrative rules without prompting from the Legislature.
McBride, R-Moore, said on Monday he hopes Walters will meet with lawmakers to "answer some legitimate questions" on the attorney general's stance and school library book content.
A spokesperson for Walters said the state superintendent fully intends to meet with legislators about the content found in public school libraries.
On Monday, Walters sent lawmakers a list of four books he deemed "pornographic," four more "books in the marketplace to monitor" and 190 children's books focused on LGBTQ+ themes.
The 190 titles come from the American Library Association's Rainbow Book List. The organization curated the Rainbow Book List to promote stories that represent experiences of LGBTQ+ youths.
He said he compiled the list of "questionable books within the marketplace that I believe have no place in our schools."
More: Transgender, nonbinary Oklahomans worry about direction of state laws on education, health
He alleged one book in question, "Flamer" by Mike Curato, had been found in the Tulsa, Owasso and Bixby school districts, and Tulsa Public Schools also had another sexually graphic book, "Gender Queer: A Memoir" by Maia Kobabe, on library shelves.
These books are not available in Bixby nor Tulsa schools, representatives of both districts said. Owasso Public Schools confirmed it had a committee review "Flamer" and determined the book was appropriate to keep in its upperclassman high school library.
"Transparency is my number one goal, and I want to leave none of you with any doubt that each of us have done all we can to protect our children from demented ideologies," Walters wrote in a letter to lawmakers.
Reporter Nuria Martinez-Keel covers K-12 and higher education throughout the state of Oklahoma. Have a story idea for Nuria? She can be reached at nmartinez-keel@oklahoman.com or on Twitter at @NuriaMKeel. Support Nuria’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma rules on school books, trans students should be void, AG says
