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ENGROSSED SENATE
BILL NO. 279 By: Green and Gollihare of the
Senate
and
Boles of the House
An Act relating to electric transmission; defining
terms; establishing requirements for submission of
certificate of authority; requiring transmission
developer to submit certain application for
certificate of authority prior to certain
transmission development; stating contents of
application; requiring approval of certificate prior
to certain transfer; providing for approval of
applications under certain circumstances; providing
for fee assessment; authorizing rule promulgation;
providing for codification; and declaring an
emergency.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 295 of Title 17, unless there is
created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
As used in this act:
1. “Certificate of authority” means authorization for a
transmission developer by an order of the Corporation Commission
through filing of a case with an application, notice, and hearing.
The Corporation Commission shall establish a specific electric
transmission facility docket for the filing of such cases;
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2. “Electric transmission facility” means a high-voltage
transmission line or high-voltage associated transmission facility
with a rating of greater than three hundred (300) kilovolts;
3. “FERC” means the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission;
4. “Transfer” means any sale, assignment, or change in
ownership of the electric transmission facility by a transmission
developer; and
5. “Transmission developer” means any person, firm,
corporation, or entity that develops, owns, operates, controls,
manages, or maintains an electric transmission facility within this
state and is licensed to do business in this state.
SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 296 of Title 17, unless there is
created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
A. This section shall not be construed to require any Oklahoma
retail electric supplier or rural electric cooperative to secure a
certificate of authority for any extension, rebuild, or upgrade of
an existing electric transmission facility within or through any
territory already served by it or to facilities owned by it.
B. A transmission developer shall file an application to obtain
a certificate of authority from the Corporation Commission for each
electric transmission facility. No electric transmission facility
shall be commenced without obtaining a certificate of authority.
The application shall include, but is not limited to, the following:
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1. The name, address, and contact information, including at
least one named representative of the transmission developer and a
telephone number and electronic mail address for each such
representative;
2. A description and a map or plat for any proposed electric
transmission facility route or alternative route, regardless of
whether a transmission developer has made a submission or received
approval from the Southwest Power Pool or any other applicable
regional planning process or other federal authority, or made no
submission or received approval from any such entities;
3. Identification of any and all such counties within any
proposed electric transmission facility route or alternative route;
and
4. Identification of any energy resource to which the electric
transmission facility is to be directly connected or, to the extent
known, resources to which the electric transmission facility could
be connected to integrate existing natural gas or other resource
generation.
C. If the transmission developer is required to file subsequent
forms with FERC or any other agency or organization due to changing
routes or heights of individual structures from the locations or
heights originally proposed, the transmission developer shall,
within ten (10) days of filing with FERC or other agency or
organization, file such subsequent forms with the Corporation
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Commission. A transmission developer shall not be required to start
the notification process over unless the subsequent FERC or other
agency or organization application expands the project beyond the
original boundaries in the application filed with the Corporation
Commission.
D. Prior to or at the time of the hearing on the certificate of
authority, the transmission developer shall provide:
1. Within thirty (30) days after filing an application with the
Corporation Commission as provided for in subsection B of this
section, proof of publication that the transmission developer caused
a copy of the notice of the application to be published in a
newspaper of general circulation in the county or counties in which
all or a portion of the electric transmission facility is to be
located;
2. Within sixty (60) days after filing an application with the
Corporation Commission as provided for in subsection B of this
section, proof of service that the transmission developer caused a
copy of the notice to be sent, by certified mail, to:
a. the board of county commissioners of every county in
which all or a portion of the electric transmission
facility is to be located, and, if all or a portion of
the electric transmission facility is to be located
within the incorporated area of a municipality, the
governing body of the municipality,
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b. all surface landowners, as reflected in the public
land records of the county clerk’s office upon which
all or any part of the surface estate is located
within the electric transmission facility route or
alternative route,
c. any operator, as reflected in the records of the
Corporation Commission, who is conducting oil and gas
operations upon all or any part of the surface estate
as to which the transmission developer intends the
construction of the electric transmission facility,
and
d. any operator, as reflected in the records of the
Corporation Commission, of an unspaced unit or a unit
created by order of the Corporation Commission, who is
conducting oil and gas operations for the unit where
all or any part of the unit area is within the
geographical boundaries of the surface estate as to
which the transmission developer intends the
construction of the electric transmission facility.
If the transmission developer makes a search with reasonable
diligence, and the whereabouts of any party entitled to any notice
described in this subsection cannot be ascertained or such notice
cannot be delivered, then an affidavit attesting to such diligent
search for the parties shall be filed with Corporation Commission;
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3. That a public meeting was held by the transmission developer
in the county or counties in which all or a portion of the electric
transmission facility is to be located. Notice of the public
meeting shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation and
submitted to the board of county commissioners in the county or
counties in which all or a portion of the electric transmission
facility is to be located. The notice shall contain the place,
date, and time of the public meeting. Proof of publication of the
notice shall be submitted to the Corporation Commission;
4. An attestation that the transmission developer has
sufficient insurance coverage to cover any and all aspects of the
electric transmission facility from commencement of the electric
transmission facility through operation and maintenance;
5. That impacts to the environment and public safety will be
addressed by the transmission developer;
6. That a safety plan is in place and will be updated for the
electric transmission facility and provided to the Corporation
Commission upon request;
7. That the electric transmission facility is beneficial and in
the public interest;
8. That a decommission plan is in place that identifies the
methodology used to mitigate potential impacts resulting from the
cessation of operation at the end of the electric transmission
facility’s useful life which includes, but is not limited to:
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a. identification of the specific project components that
will be removed,
b. description of the decommissioning process in the
event of abandonment during construction and
abandonment during operation,
c. a description of the process used for land and road
restoration, and
d. the financial capability, including a financial surety
guarantee, the form and amount to be determined by the
Corporation Commission, which shall remain in effect
until release is authorized by the Corporation
Commission; and
9. Any additional information required by the Corporation
Commission shall be requested from the transmission developer prior
to or during the hearing including, but not limited to, information
related to potential impacts to ad valorem taxes to surface
landowners.
E. Approval through an order of the Corporation Commission is
required prior to the effectiveness of any transfer.
F. Within two hundred (200) days of filing the original
application or any amended application with the Corporation
Commission, if the transmission developer has met the aforementioned
requirements, the Corporation Commission shall issue an order
granting a certificate of authority. Failure to issue an order on a
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completed application by the Corporation Commission shall result in
the certificate of authority being deemed granted.
G. The Corporation Commission may assess a filing fee for any
certificate of authority, not to exceed One Thousand Dollars
($1,000.00). The Corporation Commission may promulgate rules to
effectuate the provisions of this section.
SECTION 3. It being immediately necessary for the preservation
of the public peace, health or safety, an emergency is hereby
declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and
be in full force from and after its passage and approval.
Passed the Senate the 18th day of March, 2025.
Presiding Officer of the Senate
Passed the House of Representatives the ____ day of __________,
2025.
Presiding Officer of the House
of Representatives