Legal and Jurisdictional Siting Considerations for High Voltage Transmission Lines

Please be advised that the OCC does not have authority, nor does the new law (at 17 O.S. §§ 850–851) give the OCC authority, over the siting or routing of proposed High Voltage Transmission lines. Such oversight will be governed by the rules and requirements of the state government, county government, and/or municipal government that exercises jurisdiction over the land involved in any proposed qualifying transmission project.

Accordingly, unless a state agency, county commissioner, or local government official has legal authority over questions involving land use for purposes of such a transmission project, they would not have control over the siting or routing of electric transmission lines. Such legal authority may vary depending on location, issues involved, and specific requirements. Questions regarding such jurisdiction and applicable law does not fall within the scope of OCC jurisdiction or authority. A review of the laws applicable to land involved for a specific qualifying transmission project would need to be undertaken to determine what entities have jurisdiction over questions of siting and routing. The OCC is unable to perform such legal review or otherwise provide legal guidance for such questions.

For further clarification, please be advised that OAC 165:35-43-4 pertains to annual reporting requirements for Transmission Only Utilities and is not applicable to the Certificate of Authority process that governs High Voltage Transmission project approval. Rather, the approval process is governed by the High Voltage Electric Transmission Facility Act (17 O.S. §§ 850–851), which requires a transmission developer to obtain a Certificate of Authority from the OCC before commencing a qualifying electric transmission facility.