Attorney general calls federal civil rights inquiry into city’s zoning decision an example of government overreach
OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond is urging the Trump administration to halt a U.S. Department of Justice civil rights investigation into Broken Arrow’s denial of a rezoning request for a proposed mosque and commercial development, calling the federal inquiry an example of government overreach.
The Justice Department notified the city July 17 that it had opened a civil rights investigation under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, known as RLUIPA. Federal investigators said they will examine both Broken Arrow’s zoning requirements for religious land uses and the city’s denial of the Islamic Society of Tulsa’s rezoning request for a proposed mosque and commercial retail center. The department emphasized that the investigation is preliminary and that it has not determined whether federal law was violated.
In a letter sent Thursday to President Donald Trump and U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche, Drummond asked the administration to withdraw or suspend the investigation, arguing the inquiry exceeds the Justice Department’s authority and intrudes on decisions traditionally made by local governments.
“The investigation is federal overreach of the first order,” Drummond said in a statement released by his office. “Land-use decisions such as this belong to state and locally elected officials who are accountable to the people they serve, not unelected bureaucrats in Washington.”
The Broken Arrow City Council denied the rezoning request in January after a public controversy over the proposal, despite a recommendation for approval from the city’s planning commission, according to previous reporting by the Tulsa World. City officials said the application was denied because of infrastructure, traffic and land-use concerns surrounding the property.
The Justice Department’s July 17 letter seeks extensive records from the city, including zoning regulations, rezoning applications involving religious and comparable secular assemblies dating to 2021, records related to the Islamic Society of Tulsa proposal, communications involving city officials, resident comments and testimony, and materials concerning the city’s compliance with RLUIPA. Federal officials also requested communications related to a January community meeting about the proposal.
In his letter, Drummond argued those requests go too far by seeking years of municipal records and communications involving private citizens who participated in the zoning process. He said the demands could discourage Oklahomans from speaking at public meetings or otherwise participating in local government.
Drummond asked the Justice Department to withdraw or suspend its July 17 investigative demand while it is reviewed by Senate-confirmed leadership, require senior-level approval before taking additional investigative steps, withdraw requests involving the speech or associational activities of private citizens, and coordinate with the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office before taking further action against any Oklahoma municipality.
The Islamic Society of Tulsa criticized Drummond’s request in a statement posted Thursday on social media, saying it supports the federal investigation.
“We are disappointed in AG Drummond’s position,” the organization said. “RLUIPA is a federal law, and it is the federal government’s job to enforce it when they have a reasonable suspicion that a local government might have ignored it. We welcome the DOJ’s investigation and urge AG Drummond to let the investigation proceed and let the results of the investigation speak for themselves.”
Broken Arrow officials have said the city is cooperating with the federal investigation and that the rezoning request was denied because of infrastructure needs surrounding the property. The City Council is scheduled to discuss the investigation in executive session Monday, according to previous reporting by the Tulsa World.
