OKLAHOMA CITY — Top Republican leaders were mum Monday about whether they supported a plan by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol to stop providing law enforcement coverage in the state’s urban areas later this year.
Spokespeople for Gov. Kevin Stitt, House Speaker Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow, and Senate President Pro Tem Lonnie Paxton, R-Tuttle, also did not say if they had been made aware of a plan by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol to move its resources out the state’s urban areas. Highway Patrol officials said they planned to refocus those resources on areas with the “greatest need” by Nov. 1.
The Highway Patrol said last week that it will reallocate resources away from Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Edmond, Moore, Norman, Midwest City and Del City and instead focus on areas covered by smaller law enforcement footprints.
Over 1.4 million people — or over a third of the state’s population — reside in those seven cities, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Responsibility for the interstates and highways within city limits will shift to local law enforcement, according to a news release.
“OHP is confident the professional law enforcement agencies within the Oklahoma City and Tulsa metropolitan areas are equipped to provide public safety services on the portions of the instates (sic) traveling through those cities,” the Thursday news release said.
The change is a way for the Highway Patrol to adapt to the “evolving needs of our state,” according to the news release.
A spokesperson for the Oklahoma Highway Patrol did not respond to further questions, including whether it’s equitable to shift the responsibility and pull resources from urban communities. The state agency has been responsible for patrolling state highways since 1937.
Rep. Andy Fugate, D-Oklahoma City, represents parts of Oklahoma City and Del City, both of which will lose Highway Patrol services.
“(Interstate) 35 and I-40 is the crossroads of America,” he said, “If we are truly interested in preventing human and drug trafficking, it’s wrong for Oklahoma Highway Patrol to pull away from those.”
Fugate said he didn’t recall conversations at the Capitol this session about these changes to patrols. He said Del City doesn’t have the resources to police the interstate that crosses through, but can’t speak for other jurisdictions.
“If DPS needed additional resources or funding to do their job correctly, they should have been asking for it at the Capitol,” he said. “It’s beyond bewildering to me to see them pulling away from their chief responsibility of patrolling our highways.”
The state Legislature appropriated over $120 million to the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety this session, according to the House budget transparency portal. There was not a line item for the Oklahoma Highway Patrol, which is part of the department.
The Highway Patrol is tasked with patrolling Oklahoma’s state-maintained roadways and highways statewide. In addition to enforcing laws, they respond to accidents, natural disasters and assist motorists.
Local police departments typically respond to incidents within their municipal jurisdictions.
A spokesperson for the Oklahoma City Police Department said in a statement Monday that this change presents a “new set of circumstances” for the department, and it will need time to determine appropriate protocol.
The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority is not anticipating any changes to patrols on the state’s turnpikes in urban areas, said Lisa Shearer-Salim, a spokesperson for the agency. OTA contracts with Highway Patrol to monitor the Oklahoma turnpike system.
The Oklahoma Association of Chiefs of Police did not comment by deadline.
Republished in partnership with Oklahoma Voice under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Oklahoma Voice is a part of States Newsroom which is a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oklahoma Voice maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Janelle Stecklein for questions: info@oklahomavoice.com. Follow Oklahoma Voice on Facebook and Twitter.
Emma Murphy covers the statehouse for Oklahoma Voice. She graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia and covered Missouri's legislature for three years at the Columbia Missourian.
