(The Center Square) – A bill that would remove power from the governor to appoint an executive director for the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department passed the House Tourism Committee Wednesday.
An eight-member commission composed of individuals from each congressional district would have the authority to appoint the executive director instead.
Senate Bill 4 states that commission members would be appointed by the governor and could be removed with cause by the governor.
The Senate passed the bill in March, and it now goes to the House for final approval.
The bill comes after a year of controversy and scandal surrounding the ORTD after a report from the Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency (LOFT) suggested financial mismanagement of taxpayer dollars.
It led to the resignation of then-executive director Jerry Winchester and the state suing a restaurant vendor that had what LOFT called a “very favorable contract” with the department.
Sen. Roger Thompson, R-Okemah, who is one of the sponsors for SB 4, referenced the controversy in relation to the bill during a Senate session last month.
“We have struggled over the last year,” Thompson said. “A LOFT final report indicated that there’s been poor agency oversight, administration, and a general lack of controls regarding expenditure approval and contract enforcement and record keeping. A vendor was paid over $10 million beyond the terms of then a current contract.”
Thompson signaled as early as June 2022 that he would introduce legislation in light of the findings of the LOFT report, saying proper controls could have caught issues earlier on.
The Oklahoma attorney general is currently working with the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation’s criminal investigation into the department’s dealings with the restaurant vendor Swadley’s Foggy Bottom Kitchen, which provided restaurant services to Oklahoma’s state parks.
Rep. Ryan Martinez, R-Edmond, who chaired a committee tasked with investigating the possible misuse of taxpayer funds, said the contract with the restaurant “reeked from top to bottom.”
At the time when the allegations first came out, the restaurant company released a statement, which said every aspect of its project with the department was led and approved by state officials.
OTRD Executive Director Shelley Zumwalt announced Wednesday that La Ratatouille will begin providing restaurant services at six state parks. The restaurants will open on Memorial Day, according to a news release from OTRD.
La Ratatouille owns Falcone’s Pizzeria, Jonny Cakes Bakery, multiple food trucks and a catering business, the news release said.
The proposal shows that Falcone’s Pizzeria will service the restaurants. Rents range from $14,000 to $7,000. The state will take 13% of the restaurant’s sales, according to the contract.
“Reopening these restaurants has been a top priority of mine since joining the agency,” Zumwalt said. “Our goal from day one was to conduct the process with integrity and transparency, while also giving the citizens of Oklahoma a dining experience they would enjoy and be proud of.”
This article First appeared in the center square