Cabinet Secretaries Raise Concerns about Attorney General’s Poultry Settlements, Ask Drummond to Present to Court

OKLAHOMA CITY (March 5, 2026) - Today, Governor Stitt received a letter from Secretary of Agriculture Blayne Arthur and Secretary of Energy and Environment Jeff Starling expressing their concerns about the consent decrees entered into by Attorney General Gentner Drummond following his litigation against Oklahoma’s poultry industry. The letter was also sent to Speaker of the House Kyle Hilbert and Senate President Pro Tem Lonnie Paxton.

The letter reads, in part:

After many years of litigation, the federal court recently entered a lengthy judgment imposing decades of oversight and a costly remediation structure affecting poultry operations in eastern Oklahoma. After this judgment was entered, the Attorney General has negotiated a series of proposed settlements with certain poultry companies that are now pending before the court.

While we have long advocated for a reasonable, negotiated settlement to resolve this long-running litigation, the current situation raises concerns that deserve scrutiny...

Our goal in raising these concerns is straightforward: Oklahoma should seek a resolution that treats producers fairly and uniformly, protects taxpayers, and respects the roles of each branch of government.

The letter goes on to discuss their concerns with the agreements’ payment structure, which would be managed by the Attorney General, not the Legislature. They also raised concerns about the two-tiered system these settlement agreements create – issuing a new standard of regulations for the companies that agreed to pay millions and a different system for those that did not.

Read the full letter here.

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