Corporation Commissioners Warn Ratepayers of Higher Monthly Bills if SB998 Becomes Law

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC) voted unanimously to oppose SB998 which is pending approval in the Oklahoma House of Representatives. The measure would require ratepayers to foot the bill for new utility plant construction with a four-to-five-year delay before the plant is operational.

“SB998 only benefits the utility company at the expense of the ratepayer, who will be forced to fund these projects prior to receiving the benefits,” Commission Chairman Kim David said. “The Construction Work in Progress (CWIP) issue as imagined in SB998 goes against 100 years of ratemaking principles and usurps the constitutional duty of the statewide-elected Corporation Commissioners to keep rates fair, just, and reasonable.

“Utilities have not sought the ability to recover CWIP before a plant is designated as ‘used and useful’ in over a decade,” David continued. “If a utility believes this is in the ratepayer’s best interest, then it should file a case and present its best arguments instead of asking the Legislature to mandate this approach.”

Commissioner Todd Hiett states the bill shifts the investment risk from the utility to the consumer and extracts dollars from ratepayers to subsidize a single industry in Oklahoma.

“Consumers take the construction cost risk for the investment without realizing any benefit for many years while the utility profits from the investment,” Hiett said. “This radical approach shifts the burden from shareholders to customers to fund capital investment and allows for a utility to profit from this investment before it produces electricity.”

Commissioner Brian Bingman questions the benefit for ratepayers with everyday living costs hurting family budgets and pocketbooks.

“It’s all about the time value of money and the decision to approve a utility’s return on investment is at the Commission for a very good reason,” Bingman said. “People only have a handful of dollars to spend and if they’re paying for service they won’t receive for years, maybe they’d rather use that money to pay off a high-interest credit card instead.”

Commissioners have multiple concerns about the negative impact of SB998 stating the bill:

• Severely limits OCC’s ability to oversee rate cases by shortening its review time
• Undermines the constitutionally established ratemaking process, shifting authority away from OCC
• Replicates harmful legislation passed in Kansas in 2024, which has led to ratepayers facing significant monthly bill increases
• Reduces regulatory oversight, diminishes scrutiny, and weakens transparency over utility monopolies.

The Vote NO on SB 998 memo sent to legislators may be viewed here.