OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — An Oklahoma nonprofit watchdog group is suing State Treasurer Todd Russ, claiming he violated the Oklahoma Open Records Act.
Oklahomans for Transparency in Government said they are fed up with waiting for records. 2 News traveled to the State Capitol to see what they are looking for and the changes they say need to be made.
WATCH: Watchdog group sues Oklahoma state treasurer over open records request:
The issue centers on a state contract for the "Way2Go" debit card, which is used to distribute benefits such as tax refunds and unemployment benefits.
Oklahomans for Transparency in Government said it filed an open records request with the treasurer’s office in March 2026, asking for documents and communications related to that contract.
The lawsuit shows the group followed up on:
- March 16
- March 24
- March 25
- April 9
The group never got a response from Russ or his office.
State Representative Jared Deck said the public is being left in the dark.
"A public record belongs to the public," Deck said. "They have not asked for more time or asked to help cover any cost. They have ignored the request."
Richard Labarthe, the group's attorney, said they took the next step by filing a petition in court.
"We reached out to the treasurer… three times and have been ignored three times… so we went to district court," Labarthe said.
The request stems from information the group said raises questions about possible connections between the contract and a private bank, Gateway, which was originally founded by Governor Kevin Stitt.
Attorneys said they are not making accusations but want documents to verify the facts.
"If we’re dead wrong… We’ll happily dismiss and go home. But there’s no way of knowing that right now," Labarthe said.
The State Treasurer’s Office sent a statement regarding the delay:
The Treasurer’s Office responded with two status reports and have provided foundational documents. Under Oklahoma law, open records requests must seek identifiable records rather than broad categories of general information (51 O.S. § 24A.5). Based on the large volume of the request, the office reached out to the Attorney General’s office for guidance, and we are still awaiting a response. My office takes openness and transparency very seriously and provides thousands of public documents annually.
As written, the request is overly broad and encompasses thousands of records. Based on its language, the Office is unable to identify with reasonable specificity the records being sought. The hours required to fulfill the request are likely in the hundreds, as documents must be reviewed for personal identification, information, and other sensitive material requiring redaction under the law.
We regularly deal with out-of-state document collection organizations making impossible requests, knowing we cannot meet them, and use it to damage the image of the office.
The Governor’s Office said they are not familiar with who Gateway makes contracts with.
State law requires a "reasonable" response time for open records requests. Attorneys argue that six weeks with no reply goes too far.
"It shouldn’t take a legislator to get public records; the public deserves that," Deck said.
The case is now set to be heard in Oklahoma County Court on May 27.
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