OKLAHOMA CITY, OK — A resolution aimed at challenging newly adopted social studies standards in Oklahoma has stalled in the Senate, allowing the controversial guidelines to move forward without legislative intervention.
Senate Pro Tem Lonnie Paxton (R-Tuttle) confirmed Tuesday that Senate Joint Resolution 20, which he co-authored with Senate Education Committee Chair Sen. Adam Pugh (R-Edmond), would not be heard ahead of the May 1st deadline. The decision followed a closed-door meeting of the Senate Republican Caucus on Monday, where lawmakers failed to reach consensus on rejecting the standards.
“In order to move legislation forward, there has to be caucus support,” Paxton said in a statement to KFOR. “After lengthy conversation, the caucus was not on board with rejecting the standards based on the process by which they were presented to the board of education.”
The resolution questioned the $33 million price tag associated with new textbooks aligned with the updated standards and cited concerns over a lack of transparency during the approval process by the Oklahoma State Board of Education.
Those concerns were echoed by three members of the State Board who last week said they were unaware of last-minute changes to the standards. They referred to the approval process as a “bait and switch” — an allegation that State Superintendent Ryan Walters vehemently denied during a heated board meeting.
“That’s simply not true,” Walters said. “That is a lie.”
Walters was reportedly present during Monday’s Republican caucus meeting where the resolution’s fate was ultimately sealed. His presence has raised questions among Democrats about undue influence on the legislative process.
Democratic lawmakers expressed outrage over the Senate’s refusal to take up the resolution. Senate Minority Leader Julia Kirt (D-Oklahoma City) criticized the Republican majority for what she called a failure to fulfill their oversight responsibilities.
“If we’re not concerned enough to put that on the agenda and take a vote on it, that deeply disturbs me about the business of the Senate,” Kirt said.
Opponents of the new standards have raised alarm over factual inaccuracies in the curriculum — particularly in its treatment of the 2020 presidential election and the COVID-19 pandemic. Others have argued that certain materials are not age-appropriate for the grade levels targeted.
Democrats made several procedural moves on Tuesday in an effort to delay other business and pressure Republican leadership to reconsider the resolution, but those efforts ultimately fell short.
“We’re seeing Republicans unwilling to stand up to Superintendent Walters,” said Kirt. “Even when the evidence is there, even when people across the state are asking us to take another look and make sure these are correct for what we teach kids across the state.”
SJR 20 was one of three resolutions filed this session in response to the updated social studies curriculum — two in the Senate and one in the House. All would have needed to pass both chambers by Thursday to halt implementation.
With the deadline now missed, the standards as approved by the Board of Education will remain in place.
