Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-34.1 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-34.1
Implementation and administration of Public Utility
Status: in_force

Regulatory Policies Act and Residential Energy Conservation Program.

The Oklahoma Corporation Commission shall have the power to

implement and administer the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act

(P.L. 95-617) and the Residential Energy Conservation Program, 42

U.S.C., Sections 8211 through 8235i. The Public Utility Division of

the Corporation Commission shall be responsible for assisting the

Commission in the performance of these duties.

The Corporation Commission shall adopt such rules and

regulations as are necessary to implement the purpose of all federal

laws which are administered or enforced by the Corporation

Commission.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-44 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-44
Powers and authority of Corporation Commission - Rates -
Status: in_force

Department of Cotton Gin Utilities - Fiscal year and reports of

cotton gins.

The Corporation Commission shall have the same power and

authority and be charged with the duty of regulating and controlling

such cotton gins in all matters relating to the performance of

public duties and the charges therefor and correcting abuses and

preventing unjust discrimination and extortion, as is exercised by

said Commission as to transportation and transmission companies and

shall have the same power to fix rates, rules, charges and

regulations to be observed by such person or persons or corporation

operating gins and the affording of all reasonable conveniences,

facilities and services as it may impose as to transportation or

transmission companies. For the purpose of carrying into effect the

provisions of this act, there is hereby created a Department of

Cotton Gin Utilities under the Corporation Commission. The

Commission shall appoint inspectors of cotton gins, whose functions,

duties and term of office shall be regulated by the Commission. It

shall be the duty of each and every corporation, company, firm or

individual owning or operating a cotton gin to file a final report

for the preceding year not later than ninety (90) days following the

expiration of the fiscal year of the cotton gin utility. Failure to

file said report shall constitute a forfeiture of license and is

hereby declared to be a misdemeanor and may be prosecuted as such,

said report to be in accordance with rules and regulations

promulgated by the Commission from time to time.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-346.3 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-346.3
Noncompliance – Tampering with sign, lock or seal -
Status: in_force

Penalties.

Any person, firm or corporation who sells, offers for sale, uses

or consumes any regulated substance within the State of Oklahoma

which does not comply with the rules and specifications of the

Corporation Commission and the laws of the State of Oklahoma, or any

person who tampers with, alters, defaces or destroys any sign, lock

or seal mentioned in this chapter, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor

and upon conviction or upon a finding of contempt be punished by an

administrative fine of not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00).

Each day on which any person, firm or corporation violates any of

such orders and rules shall be deemed a separate and distinct

offense.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-348.7 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-348.7
Advertising of antifreeze – Restricted statements
Status: in_force

No advertising literature relating to any antifreeze sold or to

be sold in this state shall contain any statement that the

antifreeze advertised for sale has been approved by the Oklahoma

Corporation Commission unless the antifreeze has been permitted by

the Corporation Commission and found to meet the standards of the

Corporation Commission and not to be in violation of Sections 348

through 348.9 of this title, in which event such statement together

with the permit number of the wholesaler or distributor may be

contained in any labeling and advertising literature where such

brand or trademark or antifreeze is being advertised for sale.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-348.2 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-348.2
Misbranded antifreeze
Status: in_force

An antifreeze shall be deemed to be misbranded:

1. If its labeling is false or misleading in any particular; or

2. If in package form it does not bear a label containing the

name and place of business of the manufacturer, packer, seller or

distributor and an accurate statement of the quantity of contents in

terms of weight or measure, and these facts are not stated plainly

and correctly on the outside of the package; or

3. If the product is to be diluted with another substance for

use and does not bear on the label, or in an accompanying

instruction sheet, folder or booklet, a statement or chart showing

appropriate amounts of each substance to be used to provide

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 268

protection from freezing at various degrees of temperature down to

at least thirty degrees below zero Fahrenheit (-30F).
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-191.11 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-191.11
Violations - Penalties
Status: in_force

A. Any person who willfully and knowingly does or causes to be

done any act, matter or thing prohibited or declared to be unlawful

by this act, or who willfully and knowingly omits or fails to do any

act, matter or thing required by this act to be done, or willfully

and knowingly causes such omission or failure, shall, upon

conviction thereof, be guilty of a Class D3 felony offense

punishable by a fine of not more than Five Thousand Dollars

($5,000.00), or by imprisonment as provided for in subsections B

through F of Section 20P of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes, or

both. In addition, such violation shall be punished upon conviction

thereof by a fine not exceeding Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) for

each day during which such offense occurs.

B. Any person who willfully and knowingly violates any rule,

regulation, restriction, condition or order made or imposed by the

Corporation Commission under authority of this act, shall, in

addition to any other penalties provided by law, be punished upon

conviction thereof by a fine not exceeding Five Hundred Dollars

($500.00) for each day during which such offense occurs.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-158.44 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-158.44
Furnishing of retail electricity continued
Status: in_force

Subject to the provisions of the Retail Electric Consumer Cost

Reduction, Safety and Service Efficiency Act, any retail electric

supplier shall be entitled to continue and extend the furnishing of

electricity, including the right to construct, maintain and operate

electric transmission and distribution lines and related facilities

along, upon, under and across all existing and future public

thoroughfares in an area that has been or shall be included, as a

result of incorporation or annexation, within the boundaries of a

municipality if the retail electric supplier was furnishing

electricity or was constructing or operating electric facilities in

the area prior to its incorporation or annexation without obtaining

the consent, franchise, license, permit or other authority of the

municipality, subject, however, to compliance with the lawful safety

requirements of the municipality as to the matter of constructing

and maintaining facilities along, upon, under and across

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 105

thoroughfares. Provided that, if any such retail electric supplier

is or has been operating under a franchise granted by the voters of

the municipality, upon expiration of such franchise, this section

shall not be construed as a grant of a right to continue and extend

the furnishing of electricity within the boundaries of the

municipality other than as granted with regard to the annexed area

referred to in this section.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-124 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-124
Appeal regarding refunds
Status: in_force

Any party in interest shall have a right to appeal from any

action of the Commission to determine the amount of refund due, or

to whom such refund shall be made, or from any order or judgment

rendered by the Commission pertaining to the subject matter set

forth in any of the above sections of this act, in the same manner

as appeals are now taken from the Corporation Commission to the

Supreme Court.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-291 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-291
Definitions
Status: in_force

As used in this act:

1. "Commission" means the Corporation Commission;

2. "Incumbent electric transmission owner" means any Oklahoma

electric public utility, as recognized by the Commission, or its

affiliates, or subsidiaries or any electric cooperative, any

municipal power agency or any municipal utility that owns, operates

and maintains an electric transmission facility in this state or any

public utility, as recognized by the Commission, that is engaged in

the development of an electric transmission facility in the state as

of the effective date of this act;

3. "Local electric transmission facility" means a high-voltage

transmission line or high-voltage associated transmission facilities

with a rating of greater than sixty-nine (69) kilovolts and less

than three hundred (300) kilovolts; and

4. "Southwest Power Pool" means the Southwest Power Pool or any

federally recognized successor entity.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-40 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-40
Transportation Division
Status: in_force

There is hereby created within the Oklahoma Corporation

Commission a division to be known as the Transportation Division.

The Division shall be comprised of a Director and shall include

special motor carrier enforcement officers created by Section 171.1

of Title 47 of the Oklahoma Statutes, motor carrier enforcement

officers created by Section 172 of Title 47 of the Oklahoma

Statutes, and such other persons as the Commission may find

necessary to carry out the responsibilities prescribed by law and to

enforce the orders, rules, regulations and judgments of the

Commission.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-710.7 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-710.7
Aggregate customer usage information
Status: in_force

A. Electric utilities may use aggregate usage data for their

internal business purposes. The use of aggregate usage data by

electric utilities shall not require customer consent.

B. 1. Subject to the restrictions in paragraph 2 of this

subsection and without customer consent, electric utilities may

disclose aggregate usage data to third parties and may make

aggregate usage data generally available to the public for purposes

such as promoting energy assistance, conservation, environmental

advocacy, research, or measuring company performance.

2. Any aggregate usage data disclosed as authorized in

paragraph 1 of this subsection shall contain a sufficient number of

similarly situated customers within a particular geographic area so

that the daily usage routines or habits of an individual customer

could not reasonably be deduced from the data.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-324 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-324
Petroleum Storage Tank Indemnity Fund – Expenditures –
Status: in_force

Administrator – Composition of fund.

A. Monies in the Petroleum Storage Tank Indemnity Fund shall

only be expended for:

1. Reimbursements to eligible persons, unless duly assigned to

another, for eligible expenses including the costs to identify and

confirm the existence of a suspected release when so instructed by

the Petroleum Storage Tank Division or when such expenses as

determined by the Petroleum Storage Tank Division as necessary and

appropriate to protect the health, safety and welfare of the public

and the environment;

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 238

2. Reimbursement of actual costs incurred by the Division for

the administration of the Indemnity Fund;

3. Purchase real property, personal property and easements in

conjunction with corrective action efforts and/or the establishment

of an alternative water supply as provided for in Section 306 of

this title;

4. Reimbursement of actual costs incurred by the Petroleum

Storage Tank Division for the administration of the Indemnity Fund

and costs incurred for the purpose of evaluating claims and

determining whether specific claims qualify for payment or

reimbursement from the Indemnity Fund. Any costs incurred by and

reimbursed to the Commission pursuant to the provisions of the

Indemnity Fund shall not exceed the actual expenditures made by the

Commission to implement the provisions of the Indemnity Fund; and

5. Payment of claims from the Indemnity Fund shall not become

or be construed to be an obligation of this state. No claims

submitted for reimbursement from the Indemnity Fund shall be paid

with state monies.

B. The Director of the Petroleum Storage Tank Division shall

hire an Administrator who shall administer the Indemnity Fund for

the benefit of those persons determined to be eligible by the

Administrator to receive total or partial reimbursement for:

1. The costs determined to be eligible by the Administrator in

preparing a corrective action plan;

2. The cost of corrective action taken in response to an

eligible release;

3. Payment of claims for property damage or personal injury

resulting from an eligible release; and

4. Necessary costs incidental to the cost of a site assessment

or the corrective action taken and for filing and obtaining

reimbursement from the Indemnity Fund.

C. Reimbursements made to or for the benefit of eligible

persons shall be exempt from The Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act.

D. 1. Costs incurred as a result of a release from a storage

tank system owned or operated by this state are reimbursable

pursuant to the provisions of the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank

Consolidation Act. State-owned facilities shall take the proper

corrective action as may be necessary to protect the environment

from a leaking storage tank system. An agency of the state may also

access said fund for reimbursement when it purchases property

containing storage tanks from an owner or operator qualified to

access the Indemnity Fund and upon which an eligible release has

occurred prior to the agency acquiring the property.

2. Costs incurred as a result of a release from a storage tank

system owned or operated by a Class I railroad or the federal

government are not reimbursable pursuant to the provisions of the

Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank Consolidation Act.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 239

E. The Indemnity Fund shall consist of:

1. All monies received by the Commission as proceeds from the

assessment imposed pursuant to Section 327.1 of this title;

2. Interest attributable to investment of money in the

Indemnity Fund; and

3. Money received by the Commission in the form of gifts,

grants, reimbursements or from any other source intended to be used

for the purposes specified by or collected pursuant to the

provisions of the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank Consolidation Act.

F. 1. Except as provided in this section, the monies deposited

in the Indemnity Fund shall at no time become monies of the state

and shall not become part of the general budget of the Commission or

any other state agency. Except as otherwise authorized by the

Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank Consolidation Act, no monies from

the Indemnity Fund shall be transferred for any purpose to any other

state agency or any account of the Commission or be used for the

purpose of contracting with any other state agency or reimbursing

any other state agency for any expense.

2. Monies from the Indemnity Fund may be used to pay or

reimburse the Commission for the salary and indirect expense of any

employee of the Petroleum Storage Tank Division while such employee

is performing work involved in the regulation of storage tanks

pursuant to the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank Consolidation Act or

the administration of programs pursuant to said act, including the

development, review and approval of corrective action plans as

required by the regulatory programs. The Indemnity Fund shall pay

for all costs associated with administering the Compliance and

Inspection Department including, but not limited to, automobile and

travel costs, computer software and equipment, and other costs

incurred in administering the Compliance and Inspection Department.

The Commission shall cross-train the field staff of the Petroleum

Storage Tank Division to perform inspections and related field

activities for all programs within the Division and the Indemnity

Fund may reimburse the Division the actual costs of inspection

services performed on behalf of the Indemnity Fund.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-139.203 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-139.203
Renumbered as § 9210 of Title 74 by Laws 2022, c. 229,
Status: in_force

§ 14, emerg. eff. May 6, 2022.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-327 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-327
Approval requirements for certain bills to change the
Status: in_force

Petroleum Storage Tank Indemnity Fund.

A. Any Petroleum Storage Tank Indemnity Fund bill which would

change the distribution of the assessment imposed pursuant to the

provisions of Section 327.1 of this title and decrease the amount

required to be deposited in the Petroleum Storage Tank Indemnity

Fund shall require approval of not less than two-thirds (2/3) of the

membership of each House of the Legislature to become law.

B. The provisions of subsection A of this section shall not

apply to any Petroleum Storage Tank Indemnity Fund bill that

appropriates monies from the Petroleum Storage Tank Indemnity Fund

for purposes of increasing the costs of administering the Indemnity

Fund or related administrative functions of the Corporation

Commission.

C. For purposes of this section, a "Petroleum Storage Tank

Indemnity Fund bill" shall mean any bill which amends any or all of

Section 328 of this title or any bill that impacts the distribution

of the assessment set forth in Section 328 of this title.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-250 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-250
Terms defined
Status: in_force

As used in this act:

1. "Affiliated person, subsidiary, firm or corporation" means

any person, subsidiary, firm or corporation which:

a. controls or is controlled by a public utility,

b. is controlled by an entity that also controls the

utility, or

c. the utility or an entity controlling the utility has

directly or indirectly the power to control;

2. "Commission" means any state regulatory body which has

jurisdiction to regulate public utilities or electric cooperatives;

3. "Emergency sales of gas" mean sales of natural gas made by a

public utility or subsidiary thereof to one or more interstate

pipelines or other out-of-state customer pursuant to federal law

which exempts such transactions from the jurisdiction of the Federal

Power Commission;

4. "Fair field price" means the value attributed to gas

produced from wells owned by a public utility, or a subsidiary or

affiliate of a public utility, which shall be the going price paid

by the utility, subsidiary or affiliate to others in the field where

such production is located. If the utility, subsidiary or affiliate

is not purchasing gas in such field, then such value shall be the

price paid by the utility, subsidiary or affiliate in the nearest

field where conditions are similar. The value to be attributed to

residue gas owned by a public utility, or a subsidiary or affiliate

of a public utility, from gas processing plants shall be the going

price paid by the utility, subsidiary or affiliate to others from

the same plant. If the utility, subsidiary or affiliate is not

purchasing gas from said plant, then the value shall be the price

paid by the utility, subsidiary or affiliate at the nearest plant

where conditions are similar. However, the Commission may require

an adjustment of the fair field price when it deems it proper to do

so based on information before it. The fair field price shall not

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 184

be applicable to gas purchased by a public utility from a subsidiary

or affiliate of a public utility pursuant to a competitive bid

process;

5. "Fuel adjustment clause" means any mechanism which allows a

public utility or electric generating cooperative to automatically

adjust its charges above or below the base amount included in its

rates, based upon changes in costs of fuel for generation of

electricity, purchased power or purchased gas;

6. "Heat rate" means a measure of the efficiency of an electric

generating station, computed by dividing the total British Thermal

Unit content of the fuel burned by the resulting net kilowatt-hours

generated;

7. "Line loss" means the kilowatt-hours of electricity lost in

the operation of an electric transmission or distribution system;

8. "Public utility" or "utility" means any individual, firm,

association, partnership, corporation, or any combination thereof,

other than a municipal corporation or their lessees, trustees and

receivers, owning or operating for compensation in this state

equipment or facilities for:

a. producing, generating, transmitting, distributing,

selling or furnishing electricity, or

b. transmitting, directly or indirectly, or distributing

combustible hydrocarbon natural or synthetic natural

gas for sale to the public or for wholesale, unless

its wholesale rates are regulated by a federal agency,

provided that such term shall not include entities as

described by the provisions of paragraph 2 of

subsection B of Section 151 of this title; and

9. "Purchased power adjustment clause" means any mechanism

which allows an electric public utility or electric distribution

cooperative to adjust its charges above or below the base amount

included in its rates based upon changes in costs of wholesale power

purchased from others.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-190.4 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-190.4
Study of and development of framework for electric
Status: in_force

utility industry restructuring.

A. To ensure an orderly and equitable restructuring of the

electric utility industry in this state and achieve the goals

outlined in Section 190.2 of this title, the Legislature hereby

directs the Joint Electric Utility Task Force to undertake a study

of all relevant issues relating to restructuring the electric

utility industry in this state including, but not limited to, those

issues set forth in this section, and develop a proposed electric

utility industry restructuring framework for the State of Oklahoma.

The Joint Electric Utility Task Force shall address appropriate

steps to achieve an orderly transition to a competitive market and

may include in addition to the directives in this act other

provisions as the task force shall deem necessary and appropriate to

expedite the transition to full consumer choice. The Corporation

Commission shall assist the task force in achieving the goals

outlined in the Electric Restructuring Act of 1997; provided,

however, during the transition period to full consumer choice, the

Corporation Commission is expressly prohibited from promulgating any

rules or issuing any orders relating to the restructuring of

Oklahoma's electric utility industry without prior express

authorization by the Oklahoma State Legislature.

B. It is the intent of the Legislature that the following

principles and directives be adhered to in developing a framework

for a restructured industry:

1. Reliability and safety. Appropriate rules shall be

promulgated, in accordance with the provisions of this act, ensuring

that reliable and safe electric service is maintained;

2. Competition. Competitive markets are to be encouraged to

the greatest extent possible. Regulation should serve as a

substitute only in those circumstances where competition cannot

provide results that serve the best interests of all consumers;

3. Consumer choice. Consumers shall be allowed to choose among

retail electric energy suppliers to help ensure fully competitive

and innovative markets. A process should be established whereby all

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 164

retail consumers are permitted to choose their retail electric

energy suppliers by July 1, 2002. Consumer choice means that retail

electric consumers shall be allowed to purchase different levels and

quality of electric supply from a variety of retail electric energy

suppliers and that every seller of electric generation in the retail

market shall have nondiscriminatory open access to the electric

distribution system of every retail electric service distributor,

subject to this act. The Corporation Commission should ensure that

consumer confusion will be minimized and consumers will be well

informed about changes resulting from restructuring and increased

choice;

4. Regulation and unbundling of services. Entities which own

both transmission and distribution, as well as generation

facilities, shall not be allowed to use any monopoly position in

these services as a barrier to competition. Generation services may

be subject to minimal regulation and shall be functionally separated

from transmission and distribution services, which services shall

remain regulated. All retail electric energy suppliers shall be

required to meet certain minimum standards designed to ensure

reliability and financial integrity, and be registered with the

Corporation Commission;

5. Unbundling of rates. When consumer choice is introduced,

rates shall be unbundled to provide clear price information on the

components of generation, transmission and distribution and any

other ancillary charges. Electric bills for all classes shall be

unbundled, utilizing line itemization to reveal the various

component cost of providing electrical services. Charges for public

benefit programs currently authorized by statute or the Commission,

or both, shall be unbundled and appear in line item format on

electric bills for all classes of consumers;

6. Open access to transmission and distribution facilities.

Consumer access to alternative suppliers of electricity requires

open access to the transmission grid and the distribution system.

Comparability shall be assured for retail electric energy suppliers

competing with affiliates of entities supplying transmission and

distribution services. The Corporation Commission shall monitor

companies providing transmission and distribution services and take

necessary measures to ensure that no supplier of such services has

an unfair advantage in offering and pricing such services;

7. Obligation to connect and establishment of firm service

territories. An entity providing distribution services shall be

relieved of its traditional obligation to provide electric supply

but shall have a continuing obligation to provide distribution

service for all consumers in its service territory. As part of the

restructuring process firm service territories shall be fixed by a

date certain, if not currently established by law in order to avoid

wasteful duplication of distribution facilities;

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 165

8. Independent system planning committee. The benefits

associated with implementing an independent system planning

committee composed of owners of electric distribution systems to

develop and maintain planning and reliability criteria for

distribution facilities shall be evaluated;

9. Consumer safeguards. Minimum residential consumer service

safeguards and protections shall be ensured including programs and

mechanisms that enable residential consumers with limited incomes to

obtain affordable essential electric service, and the establishment

of a default provider or providers for any distribution customer who

has not chosen an alternative retail electric energy supplier;

10. Establishment of a transition period. A defined period for

the transition to a restructured electric utility industry shall be

established. The transition period shall reflect a suitable time

frame for full compliance with the requirements of a restructured

utility industry;

11. Rates for service. Electric rates for all consumer classes

shall not rise above current levels throughout the transition

period. If possible, electric rates for all consumers shall be

lowered when feasible as markets become more efficient in a

restructured industry;

12. Establishment of a distribution access fee. The task force

shall consider the establishment of a distribution access fee to be

assessed to all consumers in the State of Oklahoma connected to

electric distribution systems regulated by the Corporation

Commission. This fee shall be charged to cover social costs,

capital costs, operating costs, and other appropriate costs

associated with the operation of electric distribution systems and

the provision of electric service to the retail consumer;

13. Recovery of stranded costs. Electric utilities have

traditionally had an obligation to provide service to consumers

within their established service territories and have entered into

contracts, long-term investments and federally mandated co-

generation contracts to meet the needs of consumers. These

investments and contracts have resulted in costs which may not be

recoverable in a competitive restructured market and thus may be

"stranded". Procedures shall be established for identifying and

quantifying stranded investments and for allocating costs and

mechanisms shall be proposed for recovery of an appropriate amount

of prudently incurred, unmitigable and verifiable stranded costs and

investments. As part of this process, each entity shall be required

to propose a recovery plan which establishes its unmitigable and

verifiable stranded costs and investments and a limited recovery

period designed to recover such costs expeditiously, provided that

the recovery period and the amount of qualified transition costs

shall yield a transition charge which shall not cause the total

price for electric power, including transmission and distribution

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 166

services, for any consumer to exceed the cost per kilowatt-hour paid

on April 25, 1997, during the transition period. The transition

charge shall be applied to all consumers including direct access

consumers, and shall not disadvantage one class of consumer or

supplier over another, nor impede competition and shall be allocated

over a period of not less than three (3) years nor more than seven

(7) years; and

14. Transition costs. All transition costs shall be recovered

by virtue of the savings generated by the increased efficiency in

markets brought about by restructuring of the electric utility

industry. All classes of consumers shall share in the transition

costs.

C. The study of all relevant issues related to electric

industry restructuring shall be divided into four parts, as follows:

independent system operator issues, technical issues, financial

issues and consumer issues. All studies created pursuant to this

section shall be conducted under the direction of the Joint Electric

Utility Task Force. The task force shall direct the Corporation

Commission, the Oklahoma Tax Commission, any other state agency or

consultant as necessary to assist the task force in the completion

of such studies.

1. The Commission shall commence the study of independent

system operator issues no later than July 1, 1997, and provide a

final report to the Joint Electric Utility Task Force no later than

February 1, 1998. Such report shall be in writing and shall make

recommendations as the Commission deems necessary and appropriate

regarding the establishment of an independent system operator in the

State of Oklahoma or the appropriate region.

2. No later than July 1, 1998, the Joint Electric Utility Task

Force shall commence the study of technical issues related to the

restructuring of the electric utility industry. Such study shall

include, but is not limited to, the examination of:

a. reliability and safety,

b. unbundling of generation, transmission and

distribution services,

c. market power,

d. open access to transmission and distribution,

e. transition issues, and

f. any other technical issues the task force deems

appropriate.

A final report shall be completed by the Joint Electric Utility

Task Force no later than October 1, 1999.

3. No later than July 1, 1998, the Joint Electric Utility Task

Force shall commence the study of financial issues related to

restructuring of the electric utility industry. Such study shall

include, but is not limited to, the examination of:

a. rates and charges,

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 167

b. access and transition costs and fees,

c. stranded costs and their recovery,

d. stranded benefits and their funding,

e. municipal financing,

f. cooperative financing,

g. investor-owned utility financing, and

h. any other financial issues the task force deems

appropriate.

A final report shall be completed by the Joint Electric Utility

Task Force no later than October 1, 1999.

4. No later than September 1, 1998, the Joint Electric Utility

Task Force shall commence the study of consumer issues related to

restructuring of the electric utility industry. Such study shall

include, but is not limited to, the examination of:

a. service territories,

b. the obligation to serve,

c. the obligation to connect,

d. consumer safeguards,

e. rates for regulated services,

f. consumer choices,

g. competition,

h. licensing of retail electric energy suppliers, and

i. any other consumer issues the task force finds

appropriate.

A final report shall be completed by the Joint Electric Utility

Task Force no later than October 1, 1999.

D. The Joint Electric Utility Task Force may, if it deems

necessary, by a majority vote of the members combine or modify any

of the studies required by this act. Provided, however, the task

force shall not eliminate any of the issues required to be studied

herein.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-340 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-340
Storage Tank Advisory Council - Members - Quorum -
Status: in_force

Authority - Rules - Expenses.

A. 1. There is hereby created within the Corporation

Commission the Storage Tank Advisory Council. The Council shall

consist of eleven (11) members.

2. Three members shall be appointed by the Governor, four

members shall be appointed by the Speaker of the House of

Representatives and four members shall be appointed by the President

Pro Tempore of the Senate.

3. The initial appointments for each gubernatorial and

legislative member shall be for progressive terms of one (1) through

three (3) years so that only one term expires each calendar year;

subsequent appointments shall be for three-year terms.

4. Members shall continue to serve until their successors are

appointed.

5. If a member resigns or fails to attend three meetings with

unexcused absences as determined by the chair of the Council in a

twelve-month period of the Council, their appointment shall be

deemed vacant and the chair of the Council shall notify the original

appointing authority.

6. Any vacancy shall be filled in the same manner as the

original appointments.

7. Six members shall constitute a quorum.

B. The Council shall be composed as follows:

1. The Governor shall appoint three members as follows:

a. one member shall be a petroleum storage tank owner,

operator, or agent, and

b. two members may include:

(1) a petroleum storage tank owner, operator or

agent, or

(2) an engineer who holds an environmental

consultant's license issued by the Petroleum

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 259

Storage Tank Division or works for a company that

performs petroleum storage tank services, or

(3) a licensed environmental consultant, or

(4) an owner-operator of an environmental company;

2. The President Pro Tempore of the Senate shall appoint four

members as follows:

a. one member shall be a petroleum storage tank owner,

operator or agent,

b. one member shall be a petroleum storage tank operator

or agent for an agricultural cooperative, and

c. two members may include:

(1) a petroleum storage tank owner, operator or

agent, or

(2) an engineer who holds an environmental

consultant's license issued by the Petroleum

Storage Tank Division or works for a company that

performs petroleum storage tank services, or

(3) a licensed environmental consultant, or

(4) an owner-operator of an environmental company;

and

3. The Speaker of the House of Representatives shall appoint

four members as follows:

a. one member shall be a petroleum storage tank owner,

operator or agent,

b. one member shall be a county commissioner or a

petroleum storage tank operator or agent for a county

commissioner, and

c. two members may include:

(1) a petroleum storage tank owner, operator or

agent, or

(2) an engineer who holds an environmental

consultant's license issued by the Petroleum

Storage Tank Division or works for a company that

performs petroleum storage tank services, or

(3) a licensed environmental consultant, or

(4) an owner-operator of an environmental company.

C. The Council shall elect a chair and a vice-chair from among

its members. The Council shall meet as required for rule

development, review and recommendation and for such other purposes

specified by law. Special meetings may be called by the chair or by

the concurrence of any five members.

D. The Storage Tank Advisory Council shall:

1. Have authority to recommend to the Commission rules to

implement the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank Consolidation Act and

the Petroleum Storage Tank Indemnity Fund. The staff of the storage

tank regulatory program and the Petroleum Storage Tank Indemnity

Fund shall not have standing to recommend to the Commission proposed

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 260

permanent rules or changes to such rules which have not previously

been submitted to the Council for action prior to the hearing for

adoption of the rules by the Commission;

2. Before recommending any permanent rules to the Commission,

give public notice, offer opportunity for public comment and conduct

a public rulemaking hearing when required by the Administrative

Procedures Act and rules of the Commission;

3. Have authority to make written recommendations to the

Commission which have been concurred upon by at least a majority of

the membership of the Council; and

4. Have the authority to provide a public forum for the

discussion of issues it considers relevant to its area of

jurisdiction, and to:

a. pass nonbinding resolutions expressing the sense of

the Council, and

b. make recommendations to the Commission and its

regulatory programs and the Petroleum Storage Tank

Indemnity Fund concerning the need and the

desirability of conducting public meetings, workshops

and seminars.

E. The Council shall not recommend rules for promulgation by

the Commission unless all applicable requirements of the

Administrative Procedures Act and rules of the Commission have been

followed, including but not limited to notice, rule impact statement

and rule-making hearings. All actions of the Council with regard to

rule-making shall be deemed actions of the Commission for the

purposes of complying with the Administrative Procedures Act and

rules of the Commission. The Council shall advise the Commission on

initiating and conducting rule-making proceedings pursuant to the

Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank Consolidation Act.

F. Members of the Council shall serve without compensation but

may be reimbursed expenses incurred in the performance of their

duties, as provided in the State Travel Reimbursement Act. The

Council is authorized to utilize the conference rooms of the

Commission and obtain administrative assistance from the Commission,

as required.

G. 1. The Commission is specifically charged with the duty of

promulgating rules which will implement the duties and

responsibilities of the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank

Consolidation Act.

2. Except as provided in this subsection, rules within the

jurisdiction of the Council provided for by this section shall be

promulgated with the advice of such Council.

3. The Commission may promulgate emergency rules without the

advice of the Council when the time constraints of the emergency, as

determined by the Commission, do not permit timely development of

recommendations by the Council.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 261

4. If the Commission adopts any proposed permanent rules

without the advice of the Council or not in accord with the advice

of the Council, the Commission shall detail the reasons on the rule

report submitted to the Governor and the Legislature pursuant to

Article I of the Administrative Procedures Act.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-137.3 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-137.3
Universal service fee
Status: in_force

The Corporation Commission may, after notice and hearing, assess

a universal service fee upon all contributing providers as defined

in Section 139.102 of this title to support state and federal

universal service objectives.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-115 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-115
Rules and regulations relating to safety, sanitation and
Status: in_force

shelter.

The Oklahoma State Corporation Commission is hereby authorized

to promulgate and enforce reasonable rules and regulations relating

to safety, sanitation and adequate shelter as affecting the welfare

and health of railroad trainmen, enginemen, yardmen, signal men,

maintenance of way employees, highway crossing watchmen, and

clerical employees of railroads.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-160.21v2 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-160.21v2
Notification of intent to build a facility
Status: in_force

A. The owner of a wind energy facility shall submit

notification of intent to build a facility to the Corporation

Commission within six (6) months of the initial filing with the

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of a FAA 7460-1 form. The

Corporation Commission shall prescribe the form and submittal

requirements of the notification; provided, the information required

on the notification form shall include at least the same information

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 134

required on the FAA form and a map of the project boundary. The

owner of a wind energy facility shall submit to the Oklahoma

Department of Aerospace and Aeronautics copies of all initial FAA

7460-1 forms for all individual wind turbines or any other

individual structure that requires a FAA Form 7460-1 that is part of

a wind energy facility within thirty (30) days of the initial filing

with the FAA. The Oklahoma Department of Aerospace and Aeronautics

shall prescribe the submittal requirements for the 7460-1 form. The

owner of the wind energy facility shall send copies of the

notification to the board of county commissioners of every county in

which all or a portion of the wind energy facility is to be located

within twenty-four (24) hours of filing with the Corporation

Commission. If all or a portion of the wind energy facility is to

be located within the incorporated area of a municipality, copies of

the notification shall also be sent to the governing body of the

municipality within twenty-four (24) hours of filing with the

Corporation Commission. If the owner of a wind energy facility is

required to file subsequent 7460-1 forms with the FAA due to

changing locations or heights of individual structures from the

locations or heights originally proposed in the initial 7460-1 forms

submitted to the Oklahoma Department of Aerospace and Aeronautics,

the owner shall, within ten (10) days of filing with the FAA, submit

such subsequent 7460-1 forms to the Corporation Commission and

Oklahoma Department of Aerospace and Aeronautics. A wind energy

facility owner shall not be required to start the notification

processes over unless the subsequent 7460-1 forms expand the project

beyond its original boundaries submitted to the Corporation

Commission.

B. Within ten (10) days of receiving a FAA 7460-1 form, as

provided for in subsection A of this section, the Oklahoma

Department of Aerospace and Aeronautics shall notify the Oklahoma

Strategic Military Planning Commission. The Oklahoma Strategic

Military Planning Commission shall notify local base commanders upon

receipt of this notification. The Oklahoma Strategic Military

Planning Commission shall submit a letter to the Military Aviation

and Installation Assurance Siting Clearinghouse outlining potential

areas of impact, as provided in Section 160.20 of this title, within

thirty (30) days of receipt of the notification. The letter from

the Oklahoma Strategic Military Planning Commission shall be

submitted to the Corporation Commission, the Oklahoma Department of

Aerospace and Aeronautics and the wind energy facility owner at the

same time the letter is submitted to the Clearinghouse.

C. Within six (6) months of submitting the notification with

the Corporation Commission as provided for in subsection A of this

section, the owner of the wind energy facility shall cause a copy of

the notification to be published in a newspaper of general

circulation in the county or counties in which all or a portion of

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 135

the wind energy facility is to be located. Proof of publication

shall be submitted to the Corporation Commission.

D. Within six (6) months of submitting the notification with

the Corporation Commission as provided in subsection A of this

section, the owner of the wind energy facility shall cause a copy of

the notification to be sent, by certified mail, to:

1. 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 wind energy developer

intends the construction of the wind energy facility;

2. 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 wind

energy developer intends the construction of the wind energy

facility; and

3. As to tracts of land not described in paragraphs 1 and 2 of

this subsection on which the wind energy developer intends to

construct a wind energy facility, all lessees of oil and gas leases

covering the mineral estate underlying any part of the tracts of

land that are filed of record with county clerk in the county where

the tracts are located and whose primary term has not expired.

If the wind energy developer makes a search with reasonable

diligence, and the whereabouts of a 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 placed in the records of the county

clerk where the surface estate is actually located.

E. Within sixty (60) days of publishing the notification in a

newspaper as provided for in subsection C of this section, the owner

of the wind energy facility shall hold a public meeting. 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 wind energy

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. The public

meeting shall be held in one of the counties in which all or a

portion of the wind energy facility is to be located.

F. With regard to the surface estate upon which the owner of a

wind energy facility intends to construct a wind energy facility, at

least sixty (60) days before entering upon the surface estate for

the purposes of commencement of construction of the wind energy

facility, the owner shall provide written notice, by certified mail,

of its intent to construct the wind energy facility to:

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 136

1. 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 wind energy developer

intends the construction of the wind energy facility;

2. 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 wind

energy developer intends the construction of the wind energy

facility; and

3. As to tracts of land not described in paragraphs 1 and 2 of

this subsection on which the wind energy developer intends to

construct a wind energy facility, all lessees of oil and gas leases

covering the mineral estate underlying any part of the tracts of

land that are filed of record with county clerk in the county where

the tracts are located and whose primary term has not expired.

The notice shall contain a map or plat of the proposed location,

with sufficient specificity of all of the various elements of the

wind energy facility to be located on the governmental section which

includes all or any part of the tracts of land described in

paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of this subsection and the approximate date

that the owner of the wind energy facility proposes to commence

construction. If the wind energy developer makes a search with

reasonable diligence, and the whereabouts of a 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 placed in the records of

the county clerk where the surface estate is actually located.

Within thirty (30) days of receiving such notice, any operator, as

described in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of this subsection shall

reciprocate, in writing by certified mail, certain site, operational

and infrastructure information, with sufficient specificity, to be

shared with the owner of the wind energy facility to assist both

with the safe construction and operation pertaining to the surface

estate. This information should include American Land Title

Association (ALTA) surveys of existing subsurface and surface

improvements on the property, if any, as well as other technical

specifications for existing improvements such as pipe size,

material, capacity and depth.

G. The owner of a wind energy facility shall not commence

construction on the facility until the notification and public

meeting requirements of this section have been met. If an owner of

a wind energy facility fails to submit the information as required

in this section, the owner shall be subject to an administrative

penalty from the Corporation Commission not to exceed One Thousand

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 137

Five Hundred Dollars ($1,500.00) per day, per violation as provided

by law.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-35 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-35
Data Processing Division - Responsibilities - Support
Status: in_force

services - Director.

There is hereby created within the Corporation Commission a Data

Processing Division. The Division shall be responsible for all data

processing requirements of the Commission and shall be funded from

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 19

any monies available to the Commission. The Director of the Data

Processing Division shall be in the unclassified service.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-139.106 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-139.106
Oklahoma Universal Service Fund
Status: in_force

A. There is hereby created within the Corporation Commission

the "Oklahoma Universal Service Fund" (OUSF). Not later than

January 31, 1998, the Corporation Commission shall promulgate rules

implementing the OUSF so that, consistent with the provisions of

this section, funds can be made available to eligible local exchange

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 63

telecommunications service providers and, consistent with Section 6

of this act, funds can be made available to eligible providers.

B. The OUSF shall be funded and administered to promote and

ensure the availability of primary universal services, at rates that

are reasonable and affordable and Special Universal Services, and to

provide for reasonably comparable services at affordable rates in

rural areas as in urban areas. The OUSF shall provide funding to

local exchange telecommunications service providers that meet the

eligibility criteria established in this section and to eligible

providers that meet the eligibility criteria established in Section

6 of this act for the provision of Special Universal Services.

C. The OUSF shall be funded by a charge paid by all

contributing providers as provided for in Section 139.107 of this

title, at a level sufficient to maintain universal service.

D. 1. The procedure for eligible local exchange

telecommunications service providers and eligible providers to seek

and obtain OUSF and Oklahoma Lifeline Fund (OLF) funding shall be as

set forth in this subsection.

2. Within ninety (90) days after receipt of a request for funds

from an eligible local exchange telecommunications service provider

or an eligible provider, the Administrator as defined pursuant to

Section 139.102 of this title shall independently review and

determine the accuracy of the request and advise the eligible local

exchange telecommunications service provider or eligible provider

requesting the funds of the determination of eligibility made by the

Administrator. The determination shall detail the amount of funding

recoverable from the OUSF and OLF. Failure by the Administrator to

issue a determination within the ninety-day period means the request

for OUSF or OLF reimbursement is deemed approved on a permanent

basis, and funding shall be paid within forty-five (45) days without

an order of the Commission. If a request for reconsideration of the

determination of the Administrator is not filed as provided for in

paragraph 5 of this subsection, the determination shall be deemed

final on the sixteenth day following the date of the determination.

The OUSF funding as provided in the determination of the

Administrator shall be paid to the eligible local exchange

telecommunications service provider or eligible provider within

forty-five (45) days without an order of the Commission.

3. For requests seeking OUSF funds pursuant to Section 6 of

this act, provided that an OUSF approval funding letter has been

issued as otherwise provided for in the Oklahoma Telecommunications

Act of 1997, the eligible provider shall, within sixty (60) days of

the start of service, submit to the Administrator a request for

reimbursement from the OUSF. The Administrator shall have sixty

(60) days to issue a determination to the Oklahoma Universal Service

Fund Beneficiary and eligible provider detailing the amount of

funding recoverable from the OUSF. Failure by the Administrator to

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 64

issue a determination within the sixty-day period means the request

for OUSF reimbursement is approved as submitted. The determination

shall detail the amount of funding recoverable from the OUSF.

Failure by the Administrator to issue a determination shall mean the

request for OUSF reimbursement is deemed approved on a permanent

basis, and funding shall be paid within forty-five (45) days without

an order of the Commission. If a request for reconsideration of the

determination of the Administrator is not filed as provided for in

paragraph 5 of this subsection, the determination shall be deemed

final on the sixteenth day following the date of the determination.

The OUSF funding as provided in the determination of the

Administrator shall be paid to the eligible provider within forty-

five (45) days without an order of the Commission.

4. A request for reimbursement as provided for in paragraph 3

of this subsection shall be in the form as determined by the

Administrator. The form shall be posted by the Administrator no

later than one hundred twenty (120) days prior to the start of the

funding year to become effective July 1 for reimbursement requests

submitted for eligible services provided during the funding year.

Any party may file an objection to a posted form with the Commission

within fifteen (15) days of the posting. The Commission shall have

thirty (30) days to issue a final order on the objection to the

form. If the Commission does not issue a final order on the

objection within thirty (30) days, the objection shall be deemed

approved.

5. Any affected party, meaning the eligible local exchange

telecommunications service provider, the eligible provider, any

service provider that pays into the OUSF, the Oklahoma Universal

Service Fund Beneficiary or the Attorney General, shall have fifteen

(15) days to file a request for reconsideration by the Commission of

the determination made by the Administrator. If the Commission does

not issue a final order within thirty (30) days from the date the

request for reconsideration is filed, the request shall be deemed

approved on an interim basis subject to refund with interest. The

interest rate on a refund shall be at a rate of not more than the

interest rate established by the Commission on customer deposits and

shall accrue for a period not to exceed ninety (90) days from the

date the funds were received by the requesting eligible local

exchange telecommunications service provider or eligible provider.

If the Commission does not issue a final order within one hundred

twenty (120) days of the filing of the request for reconsideration,

then the request for OUSF or OLF funding as filed shall be deemed

approved on a permanent basis without order of the Commission, and

the OUSF and OLF funding shall be paid without an order of the

Commission within forty-five (45) days.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 65

6. The term "final order" as used in this subsection shall mean

an order which resolves all issues associated with the request for

OUSF or OLF funding.

E. Contributing providers may, at their option, recover from

their retail customers the OUSF charges paid by the contributing

provider. The OUSF charges shall not be subject to state or local

taxes or franchise fees.

F. The Commission shall not, prior to implementation and the

availability of funds from the OUSF, require local exchange

telecommunications service providers to reduce rates for intrastate

access services.

G. Any eligible local exchange telecommunications service

provider may request funding from the OUSF as necessary to maintain

rates for primary universal services that are reasonable and

affordable. OUSF funding shall be provided to eligible local

exchange telecommunications service providers for the following:

1. To reimburse eligible local exchange telecommunications

service providers for the reasonable investments and expenses not

recovered from the federal universal service fund or any other state

or federal government fund incurred in providing universal services;

2. Infrastructure expenditures or costs incurred in response to

facility or service requirements established by a legislative,

regulatory, or judicial authority or other governmental entity

mandate;

3. For reimbursement of the Lifeline Service Program credits as

set forth in Section 139.105 of this title;

4. To reimburse eligible local exchange telecommunications

service providers for providing the Special Universal Services as

set forth in Section 6 of this act;

5. To defray the costs of administering the OUSF, including the

costs of administration, processing, and an annual independent

audit. The annual audit shall not be performed by the Commission

staff; and

6. For other purposes deemed necessary by the Commission to

preserve and advance universal service.

H. In identifying and measuring the costs of providing primary

universal services, exclusively for the purpose of determining OUSF

funding levels under this section, the eligible local exchange

telecommunications service provider serving less than seventy-five

thousand access lines shall, at its option:

1. Calculate such costs by including all embedded investments

and expenses incurred by the eligible local exchange

telecommunications service provider in the provision of primary

universal service, and may identify high-cost areas within the local

exchange area it serves and perform a fully distributed allocation

of embedded costs and identification of associated primary universal

service revenue. Such calculation may be made using fully

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 66

distributed Federal Communications Commission parts 32, 36 and 64

costs, if such parts are applicable. The high-cost area shall be no

smaller than a single exchange, wire center, or census block group,

chosen at the option of the eligible local exchange

telecommunications service provider;

2. Adopt the cost studies approved by the Commission for a

local exchange telecommunications service provider that serves

seventy-five thousand or more access lines; or

3. Adopt such other costing or measurement methodology as may

be established for such purpose by the Federal Communications

Commission pursuant to Section 254 of the federal Telecommunications

Act of 1996.

I. In identifying and measuring the cost of providing primary

universal services, and exclusively for the purpose of determining

OUSF funding levels pursuant to this section, each ILEC which serves

seventy-five thousand or more access lines and each CLEC shall

identify high-cost areas within the local exchange and perform a

cost study using a Commission-approved methodology from those

identified in subsection H of this section. The high-cost area

shall be no smaller than a single exchange, wire center or census

block group chosen at the option of the eligible ILEC or CLEC. If

the Commission fails to approve the selected methodology within one

hundred twenty (120) days of the filing of the selection, the

selected methodology shall be deemed approved.

J. The Commission may by rule expand primary universal services

to be supported by the OUSF, after notice and hearing. The

Administrator, upon approval of the Commission, shall determine the

level of additional OUSF funding to be made available to an eligible

local exchange telecommunications service provider which is required

to recover the cost of any expansion of universal services.

K. 1. Each request for OUSF funding by an eligible ILEC

serving less than seventy-five thousand access lines shall be

premised upon the occurrence of one or more of the following:

a. in the event of a Federal Communications Commission

order, rule or policy, the effect of which is to

decrease the federal universal service fund revenues

of an eligible local exchange telecommunications

service provider, the eligible local exchange

telecommunications service provider shall recover the

decreases in revenues from the OUSF,

b. if, as a result of changes required by existing or

future federal or state regulatory rules, orders, or

policies or by federal or state law, an eligible local

exchange telecommunications service provider

experiences a reduction in revenues or an increase in

costs, it shall recover the revenue reductions or cost

increases from the OUSF, the recovered amounts being

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 67

limited to the net reduction in revenues or cost

increases, or

c. if, as a result of changes made as required by

existing or future federal or state regulatory rules,

orders, or policies or by federal or state law, an

eligible local exchange telecommunications service

provider experiences a reduction in costs, upon

approval by the Commission, the provider shall reduce

the level of OUSF funding it receives to a level

sufficient to account for the reduction in costs.

2. The receipt of OUSF funds for any of the changes referred to

in this subsection shall not be conditioned upon any rate case or

earnings investigation by the Commission. The Commission shall,

pursuant to subsection D of this section, approve the request for

payment or adjustment of payment from the OUSF based on a comparison

of the total annual revenues received from the sources affected by

the changes described in paragraph 1 of this subsection by the

requesting eligible local exchange telecommunications service

provider during the most recent twelve (12) months preceding the

request, and the reasonable calculation of total annual revenues or

cost increases which will be experienced after the changes are

implemented by the requesting eligible local exchange

telecommunications service provider.

L. Upon request for OUSF funding by an ILEC serving seventy-

five thousand or more access lines or a CLEC, the Commission shall

after notice and hearing make a determination of the level of OUSF

funds, if any, that the provider is eligible to receive for the

purposes contained in subsection K of this section. If the

Commission fails to make a determination within one hundred twenty

(120) days of the filing of the request, the request for funding

shall be deemed approved.

M. The incumbent local exchange telecommunications service

provider, its successors and assigns, which owned, maintained and

provided facilities for universal service within a local exchange

area on January 1, 1996, shall be the local exchange

telecommunications service provider eligible for OUSF funding within

the local exchange area, except as otherwise provided for in this

act.

N. 1. Where the incumbent local exchange telecommunications

service provider receives or is eligible to receive monies from the

OUSF, except as otherwise provided in this section, the Commission,

after notice and hearing, may designate other local exchange

telecommunications service providers to be eligible for the funding,

provided:

a. the other local exchange telecommunications service

provider is certificated by the Commission to provide

and offers the primary universal services supported by

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 68

the OUSF to all customers in the universal service

area designated by the Commission, using its own

facilities, or a combination of its own facilities and

the resale of the services or facilities of another.

Universal service support under this subsection shall

not begin until the other local exchange

telecommunications service provider has facilities in

place,

b. the other local exchange telecommunications service

provider may only receive funding for the portion of

the facilities that it owns, maintains, and uses for

regulated services,

c. the other local exchange telecommunications service

provider shall not receive OUSF funding at a level

higher than the level of funding the incumbent local

exchange telecommunications service provider is

eligible to receive for the same area if the incumbent

local exchange telecommunications service provider is

also providing service in the same area; provided, the

cost of any cost studies required to be performed

shall be borne by the party requesting such studies,

unless the party performing the study utilizes the

study for its own benefit,

d. the other local exchange telecommunications service

provider advertises the availability and charges for

services it provides through a medium of general

distribution, and

e. it is determined by the Commission that the

designation is in the public interest and the other

local exchange telecommunications service provider is

in compliance with all Commission rules for which a

waiver has not been granted.

2. Notwithstanding the criteria set forth in this section for

designation as an eligible local exchange telecommunications service

provider, a commercial mobile radio service provider may, after

notice and hearing, seek reimbursement from the OUSF for the

provision of services supported by the OUSF, and any

telecommunications carrier may seek reimbursement from the OUSF for

the provision of Lifeline Service consistent with Section 139.105 of

this title and for the provision of Special Universal Services

consistent with Section 6 of this act.

O. In exchanges or wire centers where the Commission has

designated more than one local exchange telecommunications service

provider as eligible for OUSF funding, the Commission shall permit

one or more of the local exchange telecommunications service

providers in the area to relinquish the designation as a local

exchange telecommunications service provider eligible for OUSF

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 69

funding in a manner consistent with Section 214(e)(4) of the federal

Telecommunications Act of 1996, upon a finding that at least one

eligible local exchange telecommunications service provider shall

continue to assume the carrier-of-last-resort obligations throughout

the area.

P. For any area served by an incumbent local exchange

telecommunications service provider which serves less than seventy-

five thousand access lines within the state, only the incumbent

local exchange telecommunications service provider shall be eligible

for OUSF funding except:

1. Other eligible telecommunications carriers which provide

Special Universal Services or Lifeline Service shall be eligible to

request and receive OUSF funds in the same manner as the incumbent

local exchange telecommunications service provider in the same area

pursuant to the Oklahoma Telecommunications Act of 1997;

2. The incumbent local exchange telecommunications service

provider may elect to waive the right to be the only eligible local

exchange telecommunications service provider within the local

exchange area by filing notice with the Commission; or

3. When the Commission, after notice and hearing, makes a

determination that it is in the public interest that another local

exchange telecommunications service provider should also be deemed a

carrier of last resort and be eligible to receive OUSF funding in

addition to the incumbent local exchange telecommunications service

provider. It shall not be in the public interest to designate

another local exchange telecommunications service provider as being

a carrier of last resort and eligible to receive OUSF funding if

such designation would cause a significant adverse economic impact

on users of telecommunications services generally or if the other

carrier refuses to seek and accept carrier-of-last-resort

obligations throughout the universal service area as designated by

the Commission. The other local exchange telecommunications service

provider shall not receive OUSF funding at a level higher than the

level of funding the incumbent local exchange telecommunications

service provider is eligible to receive for the same area if the

incumbent local exchange telecommunications service provider is also

providing service in the same area and the other local exchange

telecommunications service provider meets the requirements of

subparagraphs a, b, d and e of paragraph 1 of subsection N of this

section.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-159.19 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-159.19
Rates
Status: in_force

In any proceeding to issue a certificate and in any other

proceeding to regulate the rates of a water transportation line

subject to the jurisdiction of the Corporation Commission, said

Commission shall prescribe and enforce rates to provide a fair

return on the fair value of the property of the water transportation

line.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-347.1 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-347.1
Retail facilities not required to post information on
Status: in_force

fuel activities – Label required for aircraft fuel with alcohol.

Except as otherwise provided in this section, retail facilities

that sell motor fuel shall not be required to post information

regarding fuel additives on the motor fuel dispenser or anywhere

else on the premises of the facilities. Motor fuel sold at regional

or smaller airports in the state for fueling aircraft shall be

labeled with the percent of alcohol, if any, in the fuel. The

Corporation Commission shall promulgate rules consistent with the

provisions of this section.Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 8
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-191.5 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-191.5
Conditions for disapproval of acquisition of control or
Status: in_force

merger - Hearing.

A. The Corporation Commission shall approve any merger or other

acquisition of control referred to in Section 191.2 of this title

upon such terms and conditions as it deems necessary or appropriate

in the public interest unless, after a public hearing thereon, it

finds that one or more of the following conditions exist or will

exist if such merger or other acquisition of control is consummated,

in which event it shall disapprove such merger or acquisition of

control and the same shall not be consummated:

1. The acquisition of control would adversely affect the

contractual obligations of the domestic public utility or of any

person controlling such domestic public utility, or its ability or

commitment to continue to render the same level of service to its

customers that the domestic public utility is currently rendering;

2. The effect of the merger or other acquisition of control

would be substantially to lessen competition in the furnishing of

public utility service in this state;

3. The financial condition of any acquiring party is such as

might jeopardize the financial stability of the domestic public

utility or any person controlling such domestic public utility or

otherwise prejudice the interest of the domestic public utility's

customers;

4. The plans or proposals which an acquiring party has to

liquidate the public utility or any such controlling person, sell

its assets, or a substantial part thereof, or consolidate or merge

it with any person, or to make any other material change in its

investment policy, business or corporate structure or management,

would be detrimental to the customers of the domestic public utility

and not in the public interest;

5. The competence, experience and integrity of those persons

who would control the operation of the domestic public utility are

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 178

such that it would not be in the interest of its customers and the

public to permit the merger or other acquisition of control;

6. After giving effect to the merger or other acquisition of

control of a domestic public utility whose utility service includes

the furnishing of electric current, such domestic public utility

would not be operated, in the judgment of the Commission, on an

integrated basis with the domestic public utilities and foreign

public utilities affiliated with the acquiring party and, if the

acquiring party is a domestic public utility or foreign public

utility, with the acquiring party; or

7. Prior to giving effect to the merger or other acquisition of

control of a domestic public utility whose utility service includes

the furnishing of electric current, the acquiring party is not

substantially engaged in the business of providing utility service.

Provided that, in the discretion of the Commission, the condition

shall not apply to an acquiring party that on the effective date of

this act, directly or indirectly, through one or more of its

affiliates:

a. owns more than fifty percent (50%) of an electric

generating facility in this state, and

b. is selling power from such facility to the domestic

public utility pursuant to a contract approved by the

Commission.

Further provided that this exception to this condition shall

apply only to an acquiring party that on the effective date of this

act, directly or indirectly through one or more of its affiliates,

meets the requirements of subparagraphs a and b of this paragraph

and shall not apply to any third party that after the effective date

of this act acquires directly or indirectly such acquiring party or

all or part of the generating facility described in subparagraphs a

and b of this paragraph.

B. The public hearing referred to in subsection A of this

section shall be commenced within sixty (60) days after the

statement required by Section 191.2 of this title is filed. The

place, date and time for such public hearing shall be set by the

Commission and notice thereof shall be given by the Commission to

the person filing the statement and to the domestic public utility

at least twenty (20) days prior to the date of the public hearing.

Notice of the public hearing shall be given by the person filing the

statement to such other persons and in such manner as may be

directed by the Commission at least fifteen (15) days prior to such

public hearing. The domestic public utility shall give notice to

its customers as provided in Section 191.6 of this title. The

public hearing referred to in subsection A of this section shall be

concluded within sixty (60) days after the commencement of such

hearing unless it is necessary, for good cause shown or in the

judgment of the Commission, to continue such hearing for sixty (60)

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 179

days. The Commission shall make a determination on the factors

specified in subsection A of this section within sixty (60) days

after the conclusion of such hearing, and any merger or other

acquisition of control within the purview of this section shall be

deemed approved as filed unless the Commission has, within sixty

(60) days after the conclusion of such hearing, entered its order

approving the merger or other acquisition upon such terms and

conditions as it deems necessary or appropriate in the public

interest or disapproving the merger or other acquisition of control.

C. In determining whether a domestic public utility whose

utility service includes furnishing electric current would be

operated on an integrated basis under paragraph 6 of subsection A of

this section, the Commission shall consider such factors as physical

interconnection to the acquiring party or its affiliates and the

ability to be economically operated with the acquiring party and its

affiliates as a single coordinated system not so large as to impair

the advantages of localized management, efficient operation and the

effectiveness of regulation.

D. In determining whether an acquiring party is or is not

substantially engaged in providing utility service under paragraph 7

of subsection A of this section, an acquiring party shall be deemed

to not be substantially engaged in the business of providing utility

service if, based on the information included in the schedule filed

pursuant to paragraph 10 of subsection A of Section 191.3 of this

title, the amount of the total nonutility assets of the acquiring

party exceeds the amount of the total utility assets of the

acquiring party.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-511 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-511
Liability of owner or lessee - Liens
Status: in_force

The obligation or liability of the lessee or other owners of

rights in the several separately owned tracts for payment of unit

expense shall at all times be several and not joint. At no time

shall a lessee or other owner of rights in a separately owned tract

be chargeable with, directly or indirectly, more than the amount

apportioned to its interest in such separately owned tract pursuant

to the plan of unitization.

Subject to such reasonable limitations as may be set out in the

plan of unitization, the operator shall have a first and prior lien

upon the leasehold estate in and to each separately owned tract and

the interest of the owners therein in and to the unit production and

equipment in possession of the unit, to secure the payment of unit

expense charged to such separately owned tract.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-303 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-303
Definitions
Status: in_force

As used in the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank Consolidation

Act:

1. "Abandoned system" means a storage tank system which:

a. has been taken permanently out of service as a storage

vessel for any reason or is not intended to be

returned to service,

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 206

b. has been out of service for one (1) year or more prior

to April 21, 1989, or

c. has been rendered permanently unfit for use as

determined by the Commission after notice and hearing;

2. "Administrator" means the person hired by the Director of

the Petroleum Storage Tank Division of the Corporation Commission to

administer the Indemnity Fund;

3. "Administrative application" means an application and notice

of hearing filed by the Director of the Petroleum Storage Tank

Division for a judicial determination of any question regarding the

administration of the regulatory, Indemnity Fund or inspection

program of the Petroleum Storage Tank Division;

4. "Assignment of benefits" means a written directive from the

applicant of record instructing the Commission to pay allowable

costs incurred directly to the named assignee including, but not

limited to, an environmental consultant;

5. "Assignment of rights" or "limited power of attorney" means

a transfer of authority granting the assignee the legal right to act

on grantor's behalf regarding specified matters;

6. "Biodiesel" for the purpose of prescribing specifications

for the quality of biodiesel shall mean a fuel comprised of mono-

alkyl esters of long chain fatty acids derived from vegetable oils

or animal fats, designated as B100, and meeting the requirements of

the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) D6751

standards. A biodiesel blend is a blend of biodiesel fuels meeting

the ASTM D6751 standards with a petroleum-based diesel fuel, which

is designated "Bxx", with "xx" representing the volume percentage of

biodiesel fuel in the blend;

7. "Commission" means the Corporation Commission;

8. "Confirmed release" means a level of concentration of

chemicals of concern that may be sufficient to cause adverse effects

upon human health or the environment or cause a nuisance;

9. "Contaminants" or "contamination" means the presence of

Commission-regulated substances in the environment;

10. "Corrective action" means action taken to monitor,

investigate, minimize, eliminate or perform remediation of a release

from a storage tank system;

11. "Director" means the Director of the Petroleum Storage Tank

Division of the Corporation Commission;

12. "Distributor" means:

a. every person importing or causing to be imported into

this state any motor fuel, diesel fuel or blending

material for use, distribution, or sale and

distribution, or sale and delivery after the same

reaches this state. Distributor does not mean persons

importing motor fuel only in the supply tank of a

vehicle originally provided by the manufacturer of the

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 207

motor vehicle as a container for motor fuel or diesel

fuel to propel such motor vehicle, nor does

distributor mean persons only importing motor fuel,

diesel fuel or blending material into the state under

circumstances requiring that they be licensed as

"Motor Fuel/Diesel Fuel Importers for Use" as defined

in paragraph 7 of Section 601 of Title 68 of the

Oklahoma Statutes and who are actually so licensed,

b. any person producing, refining, preparing, distilling,

blending, manufacturing, or compounding motor fuel or

blending material in this state for use, distribution

or sale and delivery in this state,

c. any person within this state producing or collecting

what is commonly known as drip, casinghead or natural

gasoline,

d. any person who has in his or her possession or buys

for sale or use motor fuel, diesel fuel or blending

material from any person other than a licensed

distributor, retailer or dealer,

e. any person other than a retailer or dealer who sells

motor fuel, diesel fuel or blending material to anyone

except a licensed distributor,

f. any person who makes bulk sales of motor fuel, diesel

fuel or blending material, and

g. any other person, including a retailer or dealer, who

has filed an application for and has procured a

distributor's license in the manner provided by the

Oklahoma Motor Fuel/Diesel Fuel Importers for Use Tax

Code, Section 601 et seq. of Title 68 of the Oklahoma

Statutes;

13. "Division" means the Petroleum Storage Tank Division of the

Corporation Commission;

14. "Eligible person" means:

a. any owner or operator of a storage tank system who has

incurred liability as a result of an eligible release,

and who meets the requirements specified in Section

327.3 of this title,

b. any person who on or after November 8, 1984, purchases

or acquires property by any means on which a storage

tank system is located if:

(1) the storage tank system was located on the

property on November 8, 1984,

(2) such person could not have known that such

storage tank system existed. The burden shall be

upon such purchaser to show that such purchaser

did not know or should not have known of the

existence of such storage tank system,

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 208

(3) the owner or operator of the storage tank system

responsible for the system cannot be determined

by the Corporation Commission or the Indemnity

Fund Administrator, or the owner or operator of

the storage tank system responsible for the

system is incapable, in the judgment of the

Corporation Commission, of properly carrying out

any necessary corrective action taken pursuant to

Section 309 of this title, and

(4) either funds are unavailable from the Oklahoma

Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust (LUST

Trust) Fund or the storage tank system is not

eligible for corrective action taken pursuant to

Section 328 of this title,

c. any person who acquired ownership of a tank system

through inheritance or other means or is responsible

for a release by reason of owning the real property

within which a tank or a release is or was located if:

(1) the storage tank system of the release was

located on the real property on November 8, 1984,

(2) the operator of the storage tank system

responsible for the system or responsible for a

release cannot be determined or found by the

Corporation Commission, or the operator of the

storage tank system responsible for the system or

responsible for the release is incapable, in the

judgment of the Corporation Commission, of

properly carrying out any necessary corrective

action,

(3) either funds are unavailable from the LUST Trust

Fund or the storage tank system or release is not

eligible for corrective action taken pursuant to

Section 328 of this title,

(4) the person did not participate or was not

responsible in any manner, directly or

indirectly, in the management of the storage tank

system or for the release and otherwise is not

engaged in petroleum production, refining or

marketing, and

(5) the person meets the requirements specified in

Section 327.3 of this title, or

(d) any person who is an impacted party, adjacent owner or

town, city or political subdivision as determined by

the Commission and who willingly submits to the

regulations of the Commission governing petroleum

storage tank system owners, operators or agents;

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 209

15. "Eligible release" means a release of regulated substances

for which allowable costs, as determined by the Indemnity Fund

Administrator, are reimbursable to or on behalf of an eligible

person;

16. "Environment" means any water, water vapor, any land

including land surface or subsurface, atmosphere, fish, wildlife,

biota, domestic animals and all other natural resources;

17. "Environmental consultant" means an individual licensed by

the Commission or an environmental consulting company retaining or

employing a Commission-licensed environmental consultant;

18. "Facility" means any location or part thereof containing

one or more storage tanks or systems;

19. "Impacted party" means an owner whose property has been

impacted by a release from an on-site or off-site petroleum storage

tank system which the impacted person did not own or operate and for

which the impacted person has had no responsibility under Commission

rules. An impacted party may apply for an eligibility determination

for reimbursement from the Indemnity Fund. An impacted party is not

subject to the Indemnity Fund co-pay;

20. "Indemnity Fund" means the Petroleum Storage Tank Indemnity

Fund;

21. "Investigation" means activities taken to identify,

confirm, monitor or delineate the physical extent of a release;

22. "Maintenance level" means the minimum balance of the

Indemnity Fund to be maintained and below which the Indemnity Fund

balance will fall when the balance of the Indemnity Fund is below

the dollar amount of disbursements from the Indemnity Fund for the

payment of claims during the preceding six (6) months plus Five

Million Dollars ($5,000,000.00);

23. "Measuring device" shall mean any and all measuring devices

through or by the use of which regulated substances are sold,

dispensed or delivered to the public or to any person buying any

such substance for any purpose other than resale;

24. "Motor fuel" has the same meaning as the term is defined by

Section 500.3 of Title 68 of the Oklahoma Statutes;

25. "New system" means a storage tank system for which the

installation or upgrade of the system began on or after December 22,

1998. Storage tank systems installed after July 1, 2008, must be

secondarily contained and use interstitial monitoring;

26. "Operator" means any person in control of or having

responsibility for the daily operation of the storage tank system,

whether by lease, contract, or other form of agreement. The term

"operator" also includes a past operator at the time of a release,

tank closure, or a violation of the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank

Consolidation Act or of a rule promulgated thereunder;

27. "Owner" means:

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 210

a. in the case of a storage tank system in use on

November 8, 1984, or brought into use after that date,

any person who holds title to real estate, controls,

or possesses an interest in a storage tank system or

property where a storage tank system is located used

for the storage, use, or dispensing of regulated

substances, or

b. in the case of a storage tank system in use before

November 8, 1984, but no longer in service on that

date, any person who held title to, controlled, or

possessed an interest in a storage tank system

immediately before the discontinuation of its use.

The term "owner" does not include a person who holds an interest in

a tank system solely for financial security, unless through

foreclosure or other related actions the holder of a security

interest has taken possession of the tank system;

28. "Pay-for-performance" means a process by which an

environmental consultant guarantees, by executing a contract

pursuant to the provisions of this paragraph, that a release of a

regulated substance will be remediated to levels agreed to by the

Commission, the eligible person and the consultant. Such levels

must be protective of human health, safety and the environment. The

performance-based process encompasses several steps including, but

not limited to, the development of a contract signed by an

officer/owner of the environmental consultant, the eligible person

and the Indemnity Fund Administrator. The contract shall contain

any agreed-upon reasonable price for the work to be performed.

Scheduled payments shall be distributed only as performance-based

goals are attained;

29. "Permit" means any registration, permit, license or other

authorization issued by the Commission to operate a storage tank

system;

30. "Person" means any individual, trust, firm, joint stock

company or corporation, limited liability company, partnership,

association, any representative appointed by order of a court, the

state, any municipality, county, school district or other political

subdivision or agency of the state, or any interstate body. The

term also includes a consortium, a joint venture, a commercial

entity, the United States Government, a federal agency, including a

government corporation, or any other legal entity;

31. "Petroleum" means antifreeze, new or used motor oil,

gasoline, kerosene, diesel, aviation fuel or blended fuel including,

but not limited to, gasoline, diesel, and aviation fuel that is

blended with biodiesel, ethanol, Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether (MTBE)

or other additive for purposes of fueling a combustion engine;

32. "Pollution" means contamination or other alteration of the

physical, chemical or biological properties of any natural waters of

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 211

the state, land surfaces or subsurfaces, or atmosphere when such

contamination or alteration will or is likely to create a nuisance

or render the waters, land or atmosphere harmful or detrimental or

injurious to the public health, safety or welfare or the

environment;

33. "Purchase order" means a performance-based agreement

negotiated between an environmental consultant and the Petroleum

Storage Tank Division stipulating a scope of work to be performed by

a target date, for which the Petroleum Storage Tank Indemnity Fund

will reimburse a specified amount;

34. "Regulated substance" means petroleum which is regulated

pursuant to the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank Consolidation Act;

35. "Reimbursement" means either:

a. repayment of an approved claim to an eligible person

for allowable costs resulting from an eligible

release, or

b. payment of an approved claim submitted on behalf of an

eligible person for incurred allowable costs resulting

from an eligible release;

36. "Release" means any spilling, overfilling, leaching,

emitting, discharging, escaping, unintentional disposing or leaking

from a storage tank system that goes beyond the excavation zone,

tankpit, or secondary containment into the environment. The term

release includes but is not limited to a suspected or confirmed

release of a regulated substance from a storage tank system

identified as a result of sampling, testing or monitoring results,

or identified in any similarly reliable manner;

37. "Remediation" means a process or technique used to reduce

concentration levels of chemicals of concern in the soil and

groundwater, and/or to reduce the presence of free product in the

environment to levels that are protective of human health, safety

and the environment;

38. "Responsible person" means any person that is seeking

corrective action of real property, and submits to the jurisdiction

of the Commission;

39. "Sale" means every gallon of motor fuel, diesel fuel, or

blending materials sold, or stored and distributed, or withdrawn

from storage, within the state, for sale or use. No gallon of motor

fuel, diesel fuel, or blending materials shall be the basis more

than once of the assessment imposed by Section 327.1 of this title;

40. "Storage tank" is a permanent trade fixture and means a

stationary vessel designed to contain an accumulation of regulated

substances. It includes the individual compartments within a

compartmentalized tank, any aboveground or underground connected

piping, and is a trade fixture. A storage tank that has ten percent

(10%) or more of its volume beneath the surface of the ground is

considered an underground storage tank;

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 212

41. "Storage tank system" means a closed-plumbed system

including, but not limited to, the storage tank(s), the individual

storage tank compartments, the lines, the dispenser for a given

product, containment sump, if any, ancillary equipment or a delivery

truck that is connected to the storage tank system;

42. "Synthetic diesel" for the purpose of prescribing

specifications for the quality of synthetic diesel shall mean a

hydrocarbon made up of hydrocarbons that are primarily aliphatic in

character with the number of carbon atoms ranging from C-10 to C-20.

The hydrocarbons are produced from carbon monoxide and hydrogen,

synthesis gas, by passing the synthesis gas over a catalyst under

temperature and pressure, commonly known as the Fischer-Tropsch

process. Synthetic diesel shall meet all ASTM D975 specifications

with or without the use of lubrication additives. A synthetic

diesel blend is a blend of synthetic diesel fuel with a petroleum-

based diesel fuel, which is designated "Sxx", with "xx" representing

the volume percentage of synthetic diesel fuel in the blend;

43. "Tax Commission" means the Oklahoma Tax Commission;

44. "Transporter" means any person who transports, delivers or

distributes any quantity of regulated substance from one point to

another for the purpose of wholesale or retail gain; and

45. "Waters of the state" means all streams, lakes, ponds,

marshes, watercourses, waterways, wells, springs, irrigation

systems, drainage systems and all other bodies or accumulations of

water, surface and underground, natural or artificial, public or

private, which are contained within, flow through, or border upon

the State of Oklahoma or any portion thereof.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-255 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-255
Preexisting clauses to continue
Status: in_force

Any fuel adjustment clause approved and in effect for any public

utility immediately prior to the effective date of this act shall

remain in effect in its present form and method of operation until

procedures conforming to the requirements of this act have been

approved, established and placed into effect by the Commission. The

Commission shall approve, establish and place into effect such

procedures after notice and opportunity for a public hearing no

later than November 1, 1977, but the operation of such preexisting

clauses, unless suspended by order of the Commission after due

notice and hearing shall continue in the case of each company until

a final decision, no longer subject to judicial review, has been

rendered by the Commission with respect to such clauses.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-158.27 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-158.27
General supervision by Commission - Rate investigations
Status: in_force

- Notice of proposed rate increases - Petition by member-consumers -

Exemption of rural electric cooperatives.

A. The Corporation Commission shall have general supervision

over all associations or cooperative corporations as defined herein

with power to fix and establish rates and to prescribe rules

affecting their services, operation, and the management and conduct

of their business. It shall have full visitorial and inquisitorial

power to examine such associations or cooperative corporations and

keep informed as to their general conditions, their capitalization,

rates, plants, equipments, apparatus, and other property owned,

leased, controlled or operated, the value of same, the management,

conduct, operation, practices and services; not only with respect to

the adequacy, security and accommodation afforded by their service,

but also with respect to their compliance with the provisions of the

Retail Electric Supplier Certified Territory Act, and with the

Constitution and laws of this state, and with the orders of the

Commission. The provisions of this section shall not be applicable

to generation and transmission associations or cooperative

corporations, or transmission associations or cooperative

corporations.

B. 1. An association or cooperative corporation shall be

subject to rate investigations by the Commission pursuant to

subsection A of this section unless a proposed increase in rates and

charges does not exceed three percent (3%) based on the previous

twelve (12) months revenue generated by the existing rates; provided

however, that such association or cooperative corporation shall be

subject to subsection A of this section if:

a. the association or cooperative corporation elects, by

action of its board of trustees, to be subject to rate

investigation by the Commission,

b. the percentage of members, that according to bylaws

constitute a quorum not to exceed five percent (5%) of

the membership for that particular association or

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 94

cooperative have signed a petition requesting rate

investigation pursuant to paragraphs 3 or 4 of this

subsection, or

c. the Commission declares that the association or

cooperative corporation shall be subject to rate

investigations by the Commission pursuant to paragraph

6 of this subsection.

2. Each such association or cooperative corporation not subject

to rate investigation, at least ninety (90) days before the

effective date of any proposed rate increase, shall notify the

Commission and each of its member-consumers of the proposed rate

increase. Notice to the Commission shall include a verified

statement showing the then total number of member-consumers of the

association or cooperative corporation.

Notice by the association or cooperative corporation to its

member-consumers shall:

a. be in a form prescribed by this section,

b. be by regular mail and may be included in regular

member-consumer billings, and

c. include a schedule of the proposed rate schedules, the

effective date of the proposed rate increase and the

procedure necessary for the member-consumers to

petition the Commission to examine and determine the

reasonableness of the proposed rate increase.

3. The member-consumers of an association or a cooperative

corporation may petition the Commission to examine and determine the

reasonableness of the rates and charges proposed by the association

or cooperative corporation pursuant to subparagraph b of paragraph 1

of this subsection. The form of such a petition shall be

substantially in compliance with subsection C of this section. A

petition substantially in compliance with such form shall not be

deemed invalid due to minor errors in its form.

4. If, by the effective date of this proposed increase in rates

and charges, the Commission has received petitions from less than

the number of member-consumers as set out in subparagraph b of

paragraph 1 of this subsection, requesting that the Commission

examine the proposed increase in rates and charges, the Commission

shall immediately certify such fact to the association or

cooperative corporation. If, on or before the effective date of the

proposed increase in rates and charges, the Commission has received

petitions from the number of member-consumers as set out in

subparagraph b of paragraph 1 of this subsection or more, the

Commission shall notify the association or cooperative corporation

that it will examine and determine the reasonableness of the

proposed increase in rates and charges. Rates and charges

established by the Commission or by an association or a cooperative

corporation pursuant to this section shall be in force for not less

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 95

than one (1) year and no further increases in rates and charges

shall be permitted during said one-year period.

5. No cooperative corporation or association shall have the

right to receive more than one rate increase per year for any reason

or under any procedures.

6. In addition to the procedure for petition prior to any

proposed increase in rates and charges pursuant to paragraphs 1

through 4 of this subsection, the member-consumers of an association

or cooperative corporation may at any time petition the Commission

to declare the association or cooperative corporation be subject to

full scale rate investigation. If the Commission determines that a

majority of the member-consumers of an association or a cooperative

corporation have properly petitioned that the association or

cooperative corporation be subject to full scale rate regulations,

the Commission shall certify such fact to the association or

cooperative corporation and thereafter the association or

cooperative corporation shall be subject to full scale rate

investigation by the Commission until at least a majority of the

member-consumers of the association or cooperative corporation

properly petition that the association or cooperative corporation

shall no longer be subject to such full scale rate investigations by

the Commission. The form of such a petition shall substantially

comply with subsection C of this section.

A petition substantially in compliance with the form pursuant to

subsection C of this section shall not be deemed invalid due to

minor errors in its form.

7. Paragraphs 1 through 6 of this subsection apply only to the

rates and charges and shall have no effect on the Commission’s

jurisdiction over the associations or cooperative corporations or

the rules and regulations governing the operations of electric

utilities.

8. Each association or cooperative corporation, when

determining how rates and charges, established under paragraph 2 of

this subsection, are to be allocated to the different rate classes,

shall apportion such rates and charges in a manner which reflects,

as closely as practicable, the costs of providing service to that

class.

9. In no event, and under no circumstances, shall the

procedures herein provided be utilized for the purpose of

establishing special competitive rates in any area in which a

cooperative corporation is in direct competition with another

regulated retail electric supplier.

C. 1. A petition requesting the Commission to examine and

determine the reasonableness of a proposed increase in rates and

charges shall be in substantially the following form:

a. Form:

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 96

The petition shall be headed by a caption, which shall

contain (1) the heading, “Before the Corporation

Commission of the State of Oklahoma”; (2) the name of

the association or cooperative corporation seeking an

increase in rates and charges; (3) the relief sought.

b. Body:

The body of the petition shall consist of four

numbered paragraphs, if applicable, as follows:

(1) Allegations of Facts: The allegations of facts

stated in the form of ultimate facts, without

unnecessary detail, upon which the right to

relief is based. The allegations will be stated

in numbered subparagraphs as necessary for

clarity,

(2) Legal Authority: Retail Electric Supplier

Certified Territory Act,

(3) Relief Sought: A brief statement of the amount

of the increase in rates and charges that is

objected to or other relief sought, and

(4) Petitioners: The name, address, telephone number

and signature of each member-consumer.

2. A petition requesting rate regulation of an association or

cooperative corporation shall be in substantially the following

form:

a. Form:

The petition shall be headed by a caption, which shall

contain (1) the heading, “Before the Corporation

Commission of the State of Oklahoma”; (2) the name of

the association or cooperative corporation seeking an

increase in rates and charges; (3) the relief sought.

b. Body:

The body of the petition shall consist of four

numbered paragraphs, if applicable, as follows:

(1) Allegations of Facts: The allegations of facts

stated in the form of ultimate facts, without

unnecessary detail, upon which the right to

relief is based. The allegations will be stated

in numbered subparagraphs as necessary for

clarity,

(2) Legal Authority: Retail Electric Supplier

Certified Territory Act, Sections 158.21 through

158.32 of Title 17 of the Oklahoma Statutes,

(3) Relief Sought: A brief statement of the reason

the petitioners seek the Commission to regulate

the rates and charges of the association or

cooperative corporation or other relief sought,

and

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 97

(4) Petitioners: The name, address, telephone number

and signature of each member-consumer.

3. Petitions may only be signed by the member-consumer of the

association or cooperative corporation.

D. Upon proceedings brought by an interested person or by

action of the Commission, the Commission shall have the jurisdiction

to enforce compliance with the Retail Electric Supplier Certified

Territory Act, and shall have jurisdiction to prohibit furnishing

retail electric service by any retail electric supplier except in

its certified territory or territories, or where lawfully serving,

and in connection with such enforcement and prohibition to exercise

all powers herein or otherwise granted to the Commission.

E. 1. Rural electric cooperatives, which are owned by the

member-consumers they serve, are regulated by the member-consumers

themselves acting through an elected governing board. It is

declared that the regulation by the Commission under this section

may be duplicative of the self-regulation by the rural electric

cooperative and may be neither necessary nor cost-effective. It is

therefore the purpose of this subsection to determine the necessity

of regulation by the Commission by allowing the member-consumers of

a rural electric cooperative to exempt themselves from regulation by

the Commission except as provided herein.

2. Except as otherwise provided in paragraphs 4, 5, 6 and 7 of

this subsection, regulation by the Commission shall not apply to

rural electric cooperatives which comply with paragraph 3 of this

subsection.

3. To be exempt under paragraph 2 of this subsection from all

Commission regulation, except as provided for in this section, a

cooperative shall poll its members as follows:

a. an election under this subsection may be called by the

Board of Trustees or shall be called not less than one

hundred eighty (180) days after receipt of a valid

petition signed by not less than five percent (5%) of

the members of the cooperative,

b. the proposition for deregulation shall be presented to

a meeting of the members, the notice of which shall

set forth the proposition for deregulation and the

time and place of the meeting. Notice to the members

shall be written and delivered not less than twenty-

one (21) nor more than forty-five (45) days before the

date of the meeting,

c. if the cooperative mails information to its members

regarding the proposition for deregulation other than

notice of the election and the ballot, the cooperative

shall also include in such mailing any information in

opposition to the proposition that is submitted by

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 98

petition signed by not less than one percent (1%) of

the cooperative’s members,

d. if the proposition for deregulation is approved by the

affirmative vote of not less than a majority of the

members voting on the proposition, the cooperative

shall notify the state Corporation Commission in

writing of the results within ten (10) days after the

date of the election, and

e. voting on the proposition for deregulation shall be by

mail ballot, provided, members attending the meeting

provided for in subparagraph b of this paragraph may

execute and deliver their ballot to the cooperative

during or at the conclusion of said meeting.

4. In the event the member-consumers have voted, pursuant to

paragraph 3 of this subsection, to exempt themselves from regulation

by the Commission, any such cooperative may vote no more than once

every twelve (12) months to place said cooperative under the

regulation of the Commission, as provided in this section. Said

question shall be submitted to the member-consumers of the rural

electric cooperative if at least five percent (5%) of the members of

the cooperative sign a petition requesting such an election. Such

petition shall be submitted to the membership in the same manner as

provided for in paragraph 3 of this subsection.

5. Each rural electric cooperative which has voted to exempt

itself from Commission regulation, when determining how rates and

charges established after such exemption are to be allocated to the

different rate classes, shall apportion such rates and charges in a

manner which reflects, as closely as practicable, the costs of

providing service to that class. Each cooperative which has

exempted itself from Commission regulation shall file and maintain a

copy of all current rates and charges with the Oklahoma Corporation

Commission.

6. In no event, and under no circumstances, shall rates and

charges established hereunder be utilized for the purpose of

establishing special competitive rates in any area in which a

cooperative is in direct competition with another regulated retail

utility supplier.

7. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, the

Commission shall retain jurisdiction over all cooperatives who have

voted to exempt themselves from Commission regulation:

a. for all purposes relating to certified territories

established under the Retail Electric Supplier

Certified Territory Act, and

b. for proceedings brought by a regulated utility

relating to alleged discriminatory or anti-competitive

rates established by an exempt cooperative, or

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 99

relating to actions to acquire existing customers of a

regulated utility using such rates.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-322 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-322
Petroleum Storage Tank Division - Jurisdiction - Director
Status: repealed

- Powers and duties.

A. 1. Effective July 1, 1998, there is hereby established the

Petroleum Storage Tank Division within the Corporation Commission,

which shall have separate budget activities and subactivities from

any other division of the Commission.

2. The Petroleum Storage Tank Division shall be funded by

available federal funds, grants, fees, and appropriations.

B. 1. The Petroleum Storage Tank Division shall be the sole

division of the Commission with jurisdiction over releases and

spills from petroleum storage tanks.

2. The acts and programs specified by this paragraph shall

constitute a part of the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank

Consolidation Act and shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the

Division. This jurisdiction shall include, but not be limited to,

the administration of the following previous acts, programs, funds

and inspections:

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 236

a. the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank Regulation Act,

b. the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank Reform Act,

c. the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank Release Indemnity

Fund Program,

d. the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank Release

Environmental Cleanup Indemnity Fund,

e. the Oklahoma Storage Tank Regulation Revolving Fund,

f. the Oklahoma Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust

Fund,

g. the Oklahoma Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust

Revolving Fund,

h. Compliance and Inspection,

i. Petroleum Storage Tank Registration, Licensing, and

j. Antifreeze.

3. All positions in the Petroleum Storage Tank Division shall

be unclassified. Those employees who are classified on the

effective date of this act may elect to remain classified pursuant

to Section 840-4.2 of Title 74 of the Oklahoma Statutes.

4. All rules promulgated and orders entered by the Oklahoma

Corporation Commission prior to the effective date of this act

related to the programs, funds and services of the Petroleum Storage

Tank Division and shall remain in full force and effect until

overturned, amended, modified, revoked or repealed by the

Corporation Commission and shall be enforced by the Petroleum

Storage Tank Division.

C. 1. The Director of the Petroleum Storage Tank Division

shall be appointed by the Director of Administration of the

Corporation Commission. All other employees of the Petroleum

Storage Tank Division shall be hired by the Director of the

Petroleum Storage Tank Division.

2. The Director shall provide for the administration of the

Petroleum Storage Tank Division and shall:

a. develop the organizational framework of the Petroleum

Storage Tank Division,

b. define duties and set salaries of employees, to employ

a sufficient number of employees to accomplish the

duties and responsibilities of the programs, funds and

services of the Petroleum Storage Tank Division,

including but not limited to such assistants,

chemists, geologists, hydrologists, storage tank

professionals, engineers, administrative, clerical and

technical personnel, investigators, aides and such

other personnel, either on a full-time, part-time, fee

or contractual basis, as in the judgment and

discretion of the Director shall be deemed necessary,

expedient, convenient or appropriate to the

performance or carrying out of any of the purposes,

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 237

objectives, responsibilities or statutory provisions

relating to the Petroleum Storage Tank Division,

c. establish internal policies and procedures for the

proper and efficient administration of the Division,

d. clearly delineate the duties and responsibilities of

the various programs as prescribed by law within the

jurisdiction of the Division,

e. create and implement an internal coordinated

management system among the Storage Tank Regulation

Program and the Indemnity Fund,

f. the Indemnity Fund Administrator and all other

employees of the Indemnity Fund shall be hired by the

Director of the Petroleum Storage Tank Division of the

Corporation Commission,

g. Indemnity Fund employees shall be in the unclassified

service and shall be exempt from the agency full-time-

equivalent limit. All employees involved in reviewing

and approving claims and in the approval and issuance

of payments shall be employees of the Indemnity Fund

under the supervision of the Director or Director's

designee,

h. the Director is authorized to employ temporary

workers, contract labor, or to contract with a private

company as may be prudent to properly administer the

Indemnity Fund, and

i. exercise all incidental powers which are necessary and

proper to implement the purposes of the Division

pursuant to the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank

Consolidation Act and to implement all programs within

the Division's jurisdiction.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-39 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-39
Petty cash fund – Maximum amount - Administration
Status: in_force

There is hereby created a petty cash fund for the Corporation

Commission to be used for the purpose of supplying small change.

The Corporation Commission working in conjunction with the Director

of the Office of Management and Enterprise Services shall fix the

maximum amount of the petty cash fund. The Office of Management and

Enterprise Services shall prescribe all forms, systems, and

procedures for administering the petty cash fund.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-5 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-5
Supreme Court to give precedence to such appeals
Status: in_force

All cases appealed to the Supreme Court from the judgment of the

Corporation Commission as herein provided, shall have precedence

therein, except as provided in the Constitution, and it shall be the

duty of the Supreme Court to advance the same on the docket for

immediate consideration and proceed to final judgment without any

unnecessary delay.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-6 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-6
Judgment lien - Execution
Status: in_force

All judgments or fines assessed against any corporation, person

or firm, for the violation of any order or regulation, as herein

provided, shall be a first lien on all property of such corporation,

person or firm within this state, and it shall be the duty of the

Corporation Commission, if such judgment or fine is not paid within

thirty (30) days after the rendition of such judgment or fine, to

issue an execution, directed to the marshal of the Corporation

Commission, commanding him to seize sufficient property of such

corporation, person or firm, to satisfy the fine or judgment. And

it shall be the duty of the Marshal to sell or dispose of properties

levied on by reason of an execution issued by the Commission, in

like manner as now required by sheriffs of this state, for the sale

of property levied on by virtue of an execution issued on a judgment

of a district court.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-180.5 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-180.5
File of applications for motor carrier operating authority - Carriers of commodities -
Status: in_force

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 5authority - Carriers of commodities - Certificates or permits -

Rate-making procedure - Divisions combined.

A. The Oklahoma Corporation Commission shall maintain a

separate file, listing by commodity group all applications for motor

carrier operating authority or transfer thereof, for which proof of

public convenience and necessity is required. The list shall name

the applicant and the protestant(s), if any, and shall indicate the

disposition of each application. Said file shall be maintained on

an annual basis and shall be open to public inspection.

B. It shall not be necessary for any motor carrier in

intrastate commerce of sand, gravel, rock, crushed stone, asphaltic

mix or other similar road building materials when transported in

three-axle or less open-top dump trucks, or an intrastate motor

carrier of livestock or unprocessed agricultural commodities, to

prove public convenience and necessity for the transportation of

said commodities, or to give any notice in order to obtain a

certificate or permit. The Commission shall issue such certificates

or permits to carriers of said commodities in an intrastate commerce

without public hearing.

C. In order to insure nondiscriminatory rates for all shippers,

the Commission shall establish a collective rate-making procedure

for all commodities for which it has heretofore prescribed rates.

Said procedure shall assure that respective revenues and costs of

carriers engaged in the transportation of the particular commodities

for which rates are prescribed are ascertained. Failure on the part

of any carrier to comply with this paragraph or the rules and

regulations thereof may result in suspension or cancellation of said

carrier's operating authority by the Commission.

D. The Corporation Commission is hereby authorized to combine

the Common Carrier Rate Division and the Motor Carrier Division. All

duties, functions, authority and contractual obligations that relate

to these Divisions are hereby transferred to and vested in the

combined Division.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-348.1 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-348.1
Adulterated antifreeze
Status: in_force

An antifreeze shall be deemed to be adulterated:

1. If it consists in whole or in part of any substance which

will render it injurious to the cooling system of an internal

combustion engine or will make the operation of the engine dangerous

to the user; or

2. If its strength, quality or purity falls below the professed

standard of strength, quality or purity under which it is sold.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-348 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-348
Definitions
Status: in_force

As used in this act, unless the context or subject matter

otherwise requires:

1. "Antifreeze" shall include all substances and preparations

intended for use as the cooling medium, or to be added to the

cooling liquid, in the cooling system of internal combustion engines

to prevent freezing of the cooling liquid or to lower its freezing

point; and

2. "Person" shall include individuals, partnerships,

corporations, companies and associations.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-310 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-310
Inspections and investigations - Violations - Notice -
Status: in_force

Failure to take corrective action - Hearings - Orders.

A. If upon inspection or investigation, or whenever the

Corporation Commission determines that there are reasonable grounds

to believe that a storage tank system owner, operator or responsible

person is in violation of the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank

Consolidation Act or of any rule promulgated pursuant thereto or of

any order of the Commission, the Commission shall give written

notice or issue a Notice of Violation to the alleged violator

specifying the cause of complaint. Such notice shall require that

action or corrective action be immediately initiated. The notice

shall be delivered to the alleged violator in accordance with the

provisions of subsection C of this section.

B. 1. If action or corrective action is not taken in response

to the notice issued pursuant to subsection A of this section, the

Commission shall initiate proceedings and hold a hearing to

determine if:

a. the alleged violator should be found in contempt or in

violation of Commission rules, requirements, enabling

statutes, and/or Commission orders,

b. any permit or license issued to the alleged violator

should be suspended, revoked or not reissued, or

c. whether any other appropriate relief should be

granted.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 227

2. Notice of the hearing shall be delivered to the alleged

violator at least twenty (20) days prior to the time set for

hearing. The notice shall be delivered to the alleged violator in

accordance with the provisions of subsection C of this section.

3. After hearing, the Commission shall make findings of fact

and conclusions of law, and enter its order reflecting its decision

in the matter. The order of the Commission shall become final and

binding on all parties unless appealed to the Supreme Court within

thirty (30) days of the Commission's order.

C. 1. Except as otherwise expressly provided by law, any

notice, order, or other instrument issued by or pursuant to

authority of the Commission may be served on any person affected

thereby personally, by publication, or by mailing a copy of the

notice, order, or other instrument by certified mail directed to the

person affected at the last-known post office address as shown by

the files or records of the Commission. Service shall be considered

complete if certified mail service is returned unclaimed,

undeliverable, unable to forward, vacant or refused. Proof of

service shall be made as in the case of service of a summons or by

publication or may be made by the affidavit of the person who did

the mailing.

2. Such proof of service shall be filed in the court clerk's

office of the Commission.

3. Every certificate or affidavit of service made and filed as

provided in this section shall be prima facie evidence of the facts

therein stated. A certified copy thereof shall have like force and

effect.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-159.18 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-159.18
Assignment of certificate
Status: in_force

Certificates of convenience and necessity issued pursuant to

this act or amendments thereto shall not be assigned, leased or

alienated in any way except with the consent of the Commission upon

the petition of the holder of the certificate, and only then when

the physical assets of the water transportation company or that part

thereof covered by the certificate are assigned, leased or alienated

to the same assignee to assign a certificate of convenience and

necessity, the Commission shall cause the same to be set for hearing

and give due and proper notice in writing at least ten (10) days

prior to the date of the hearing to all persons who are served by

the facilities covered by the certificate which is sought to be

transferred, and by the publication once a week for two (2)

consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in each

county in which the line is located. If at such hearing the

Commission finds from competent evidence that the transfer is in the

best interest of the public convenience and necessity, it shall

permit the certificate to be transferred.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-140.6 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-140.6
Amendments and alterations to constitution - Legislative
Status: in_force

intent.

It is the intention of the Legislature that this act is an

amendment to and alteration of Sections 18 through 34, inclusive, of

Article IX of the Constitution of the State of Oklahoma, as

authorized by Section 35 of Article IX of said Constitution.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-160.21v1 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-160.21v1
Notification of intent to build a facility
Status: in_force

A. The owner of a wind energy facility shall submit

notification of intent to build a facility to the Corporation

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 131

Commission within six (6) months of the initial filing pertaining to

commencement of construction with the Federal Aviation

Administration (FAA) of an FAA Form 7460-1 (Notice of Proposed

Construction or Alteration) or any subsequent form required by the

FAA for evaluating the impact a proposed wind energy facility will

have on air commerce safety and the preservation of navigable

airspace. The Corporation Commission shall prescribe the form and

submittal requirements of the notification; provided, the

information required on the notification form shall include at least

the same information required on the FAA form. The owner of the

wind energy facility shall send copies of the notification with the

board of county commissioners of every county in which all or a

portion of the wind energy facility is to be located within twenty-

four (24) hours of filing with the Corporation Commission. If all

or a portion of the wind energy facility is to be located within the

incorporated area of a municipality, copies of the notification

shall also be sent to the governing body of the municipality within

twenty-four (24) hours of filing with the Commission.

B. Within thirty (30) days of submitting the notification to

the Corporation Commission, as provided for in subsection A of this

section, the owner of the wind energy facility shall cause a copy of

the notification to be submitted to the Oklahoma Strategic Military

Planning Commission. The Oklahoma Strategic Military Planning

Commission shall notify local base commanders upon receipt of the

notification. The Oklahoma Strategic Military Planning Commission

shall submit a letter to the Military Aviation and Installation

Assurance Siting Clearinghouse outlining potential areas of impact,

as provided in Section 160.20 of this title, within thirty (30) days

of receipt of the notification. The letter from the Oklahoma

Strategic Military Planning Commission shall be filed with the

Corporation Commission.

C. Within six (6) months of submitting the notification with

the Commission as provided for in subsection A of this section, the

owner of the wind energy facility shall cause a copy of the

notification to be published in a newspaper of general circulation

in the county or counties in which all or a portion of the wind

energy facility is to be located. Proof of publication shall be

submitted to the Commission.

D. Within six (6) months of submitting the notification with

the Commission as provided in subsection A of this section, the

owner of the wind energy facility shall cause a copy of the

notification to be sent, by certified mail, to:

1. 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 wind energy developer

intends the construction of the wind energy facility;

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 132

2. 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 wind

energy developer intends the construction of the wind energy

facility; and

3. As to tracts of land not described in paragraphs 1 and 2 of

this subsection on which the wind energy developer intends to

construct a wind energy facility, all lessees of oil and gas leases

covering the mineral estate underlying any part of the tracts of

land that are filed of record with county clerk in the county where

the tracts are located and whose primary term has not expired.

If the wind energy developer makes a search with reasonable

diligence, and the whereabouts of a 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 placed in the records of the county

clerk where the surface estate is actually located.

E. Within sixty (60) days of publishing the notification in a

newspaper as provided for in subsection C of this section, the owner

of the wind energy facility shall hold a public meeting. 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 wind energy

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 Commission. The public meeting shall be

held in one of the counties in which all or a portion of the wind

energy facility is to be located.

F. With regard to the surface estate upon which the owner of a

wind energy facility intends to construct a wind energy facility, at

least sixty (60) days before entering upon the surface estate for

the purposes of commencement of construction of the wind energy

facility, the owner shall provide written notice, by certified mail,

of its intent to construct the wind energy facility to:

1. 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 wind energy developer

intends the construction of the wind energy facility;

2. 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 wind

energy developer intends the construction of the wind energy

facility; and

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 133

3. As to tracts of land not described in paragraphs 1 and 2 of

this subsection on which the wind energy developer intends to

construct a wind energy facility, all lessees of oil and gas leases

covering the mineral estate underlying any part of the tracts of

land that are filed of record with county clerk in the county where

the tracts are located and whose primary term has not expired.

The notice shall contain a map or plat of the proposed location,

with sufficient specificity of all of the various elements of the

wind energy facility to be located on the governmental section which

includes all or any part of the tracts of land described in

paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of this subsection and the approximate date

that the owner of the wind energy facility proposes to commence

construction. If the wind energy developer makes a search with

reasonable diligence, and the whereabouts of a 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 placed in the records of

the county clerk where the surface estate is actually located.

Within thirty (30) days of receiving said notice, any operator, as

described in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of this subsection shall

reciprocate, in writing by certified mail, certain site, operational

and infrastructure information, with sufficient specificity, to be

shared with the owner of the wind energy facility to assist both

with the safe construction and operation pertaining to the surface

estate. This information should include ALTA surveys of existing

subsurface and surface improvements on the property, if any, as well

as other technical specifications for existing improvements such as

pipe size, material, capacity and depth.

G. The owner of a wind energy facility shall not commence

construction on the facility until the notification and public

meeting requirements of this section have been met. If an owner of

a wind energy facility fails to submit the information as required

in this section, the owner shall be subject to an administrative

penalty from the Corporation Commission not to exceed One Thousand

Five Hundred Dollars ($1,500.00) per day.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-166.1 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-166.1
Fees - Rules and regulations
Status: in_force

The Oklahoma Corporation Commission may promulgate rules and

regulations prescribing reasonable fees for:

1. The filing and duplication of documents by the Commission,

and such fees shall be deposited in the State Treasury to the credit

of the Corporation Commission Revolving Fund;

2. The filing, cancellation, reinstatement and duplication of

documents processed by the Transportation Division including, but

not limited to, documents for insurance, reinstatement of insurance,

annual reports, rates and tariffs, name changes, "Doing Business As"

(DBA) designations and address changes, and such fees shall be

deposited in the State Treasury to the credit of the Corporation

Commission Revolving Fund.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-802.4 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-802.4
Oklahoma Energy Initiative Revolving Fund
Status: in_force

A. There is hereby created in the State Treasury a revolving

fund for the Oklahoma Energy Initiative to be designated as the

"Oklahoma Energy Initiative Revolving Fund". The fund shall be a

continuing fund, not subject to fiscal year limitations, and shall

consist of all monies received by the Secretary of Energy and

Environment or any other entity authorized to accept or expend funds

on behalf of the Oklahoma Energy Initiative from any authorized

source. All monies accruing to the credit of the fund are hereby

appropriated and may be budgeted and expended by the Oklahoma Energy

Initiative for the purpose of satisfying the objectives of the

Oklahoma Energy Initiative Act.

B. State appropriations for the Initiative shall be made as

otherwise provided by law and shall be directed to the Secretary of

Energy, or to an agency otherwise directed by the Governor, which

shall directly allocate the appropriations to the Initiative.

C. The Initiative is authorized to accept donations, grants,

endowments, or other funding from any person, corporation or entity

to achieve the purpose and satisfy the objectives of the Initiative

as provided by this act.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-251 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-251
Change in price of fuels or power - Approval of fuel
Status: in_force

adjustment clauses - Rules for making determination.

A. No fuel adjustment clause of any kind shall hereafter be

authorized by the Corporation Commission if such clause operates

automatically to permit charges, assessments or amendments to

existing rate schedules to be made which have not been first

approved as provided by Sections 251 through 255 of this title,

except as otherwise provided for purchased power adjustments by

electric distribution cooperatives in Sections 258 through 262 of

this title.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 185

B. If the Commission finds that the changes in the price of

fuels required for the generation of electricity by any electric

public utility, that the changes in the price of purchased

electricity required for distribution by any public utility or

changes in the price of purchased gas required for distribution by

any gas utility, portends a likely and substantial threat to the

ability of the utility to earn a reasonable rate of return, or are

likely to cause the utility to have an excessive rate of return, or

are likely to substantially impair the ability of the utility to

acquire adequate supplies of fuel or gas, the Commission may, after

investigation and public hearing, approve suitable fuel adjustment

clauses to be superimposed upon the existing rate schedules of the

public utility. The Commission shall design the fuel adjustment

clause to allow the electric or gas public utility to increase or

decrease charges to the consumer according to changes in the cost of

fuel, purchased power or purchased gas as compared to the price of

such fuels or power as reflected in the base rates.

C. In the Commission's design of fuel adjustment clauses, the

following rules shall apply:

1. For the purpose of determining fuel or gas costs, the price

paid for the fuel or gas shall be computed at the actual cost of

fuel or gas purchased from nonaffiliated persons, firms and

corporations; and the actual cost of the production of fuel owned by

the public utility or received from affiliated persons, firms and

corporations, and in the case of gas, the fair field price for gas

owned by the public utility or received from affiliated persons,

firms or corporations;

2. The cost of fuel or gas shall be the price paid at the point

of delivery into the utility system. In the event the

transportation is performed by an affiliated person, firm or

corporation as defined in this act which is not subject to the

regulatory jurisdiction of the Commission, a regulatory agency of

another state having jurisdiction, or the Federal Energy Regulatory

Commission or successor agency, the charges made for transportation

shall be, if allowed at all, only such as the Commission finds fair,

just and reasonable, for purposes of this section. Transportation

charges approved by this Commission, a regulatory agency of another

state having jurisdiction, or by the Federal Energy Regulatory

Commission, or successor agency shall be included for purposes of

this section, if allowed by this Commission. The proposed

adjustment charge shall not include the cost of transportation

beyond its point of delivery into that portion of the utility system

regulated by the Corporation Commission unless there is presented to

the Commission and it is persuaded by reliable evidence which

clearly points to the conclusion that failure to do so will

substantially threaten the ability of the utility to earn a

reasonable rate of return;

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 186

3. The amount of electric energy produced by hydroelectric

generating plants and purchased by the public utility proposing the

adjustment charge shall be deducted from the amount of electric

energy to which any fuel cost applies;

4. The actual efficiency or heat rate of electric public

utilities shall be utilized and line losses shall be considered only

if reliable evidence clearly points to the conclusion that failure

to do so will substantially threaten the ability of the utility to

earn a reasonable rate of return;

5. Fuel or gas removed from storage or stockpiles shall be

taken into consideration on the basis of the weighted average cost

method of inventory accounting; and

6. No estimated fuel adjustment shall be allowed.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-159.11 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-159.11
Definitions
Status: in_force

As used in this act:

(a) "Water Transportation Company" means any person carrying

water for compensation through a water transportation line.

(b) "Water Transportation Line" means a pipe or canal or

combination thereof and facilities and appliances thereto used for

the purpose of transporting or carrying water therein. It includes

the plural lines and extensions thereof. It does not include lines

and facilities for retail distribution or sale of water or lines and

facilities of nonprofit rural water corporations.

(c) "Person" means an individual, firm, association, or

corporation.

(d) A water transportation company shall be considered to be a

public utility and all laws, rules and regulations applicable to a

public utility be applicable to a water transportation company and

be subject to continuing supervision.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-820.1 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-820.1
Definitions
Status: in_force

As used in the Commercial Solar Facility Decommissioning Act:

1. "Generation assets" means all assets associated with the

production of electricity, including generation plants, electrical

interconnections of the generation plant to the transmission system,

fuel contracts, fuel transportation contracts, water contracts,

lands, surface or subsurface water rights, emissions-related

allowances, and gas pipeline interconnections;

2. "Grantee" means a person, other than an electric utility

who:

a. leases property from a landowner, and

b. operates a solar power facility on the property;

3. "Solar energy device" means a solar energy collector or

solar energy system that provides for the collection of solar energy

or the subsequent use of that energy as thermal, mechanical, or

electrical energy;

4. "Solar power facility" includes:

a. a solar energy device, and

b. a facility or equipment, other than a facility or

equipment owned by an electric utility, used to

support the operation of a solar energy device,

including an underground or aboveground electrical

transmission or communications line, an electric

transformer, a battery storage facility, an energy

storage facility, telecommunications equipment, a

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 306

road, a meteorological tower, or a maintenance yard;

and

5. "Solar power facility agreement" means a lease agreement

between a grantee and a landowner that authorizes the grantee to

operate a solar power facility on the leased property.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-159.14 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-159.14
Information to be furnished with application
Status: in_force

In addition to any other requirements of the Commission, the

rules of the Commission shall require the applicant to submit with

its application the following:

(a) Plans, specifications, maps, surveys, and field notes in

such detail and form as the Commission shall prescribe to

demonstrate the physical feasibility of the proposed water

transportation line and the ability of the applicant to complete the

same.

(b) Financial statements in such form and detail as the

Commission shall prescribe to demonstrate the estimated cost of the

facilities and present financial ability of the applicant to

construct and operate the same.

(c) A construction schedule showing the proposed starting and

completion dates of the project and its major phases, as well as the

date on which the water transportation line will be available for

service.

(d) Certification by the Oklahoma Water Resourses Board in such

form as the Commission shall prescribe that there are, under the

laws of Oklahoma, water permits or rights presently vested in that

segment of the public sought to be served by the applicant, adequate

to provide the applicant with sufficient traffic to make the

proposed water transportation line financially feasible.

(e) Certification by the Oklahoma Water Resources Board in such

form as the Commission shall prescribe that the water transportation

line to be built, if built in keeping with the proposed plans and

specifications, will be safe and not a menace to life and property

and will not result in waste through excessive loss of water in

transit or storage while in the facilities of the applicant.

(f) Certification by the Oklahoma State Department of Health in

such form as the Commission shall prescribe that the water

transportation line to be built, if built in keeping with the

proposed plans and specifications, will be adequate to protect the

water from pollution or degradation while in the facilities of the

applicant.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-504 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-504
Utilization of brine rights - Application - Solution gas
Status: in_force

owners as respondents.

A. A party desiring to unitize brine rights shall file with the

Corporation Commission an application setting forth a description of

the proposed unit area with a map or plat thereof attached. The

application shall allege the existence of the facts required to be

found by the Commission as provided in Section 7 of this act. The

application shall set forth the name and address of each brine owner

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 274

within the area affected by the application. Each such person shall

be a respondent to the application. In an application to enlarge

the unit area, brine owners within the existing unit and brine

owners in the area to be added to the unit shall be respondents to

the application.

B. In the event the brine sought to be unitized is found in

association with solution gas, the application shall set forth the

name and address of each solution gas owner within the area affected

by the application. Each such person shall be a respondent to the

application. In an application to enlarge the unit area, solution

gas owners within the existing unit and solution gas owners in the

area to be added to the unit shall be respondents to the

application.

C. Every application to establish a brine unit shall have

attached thereto a recommended plan of unitization applicable to the

proposed unit area.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-283 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-283
Exit conferences
Status: in_force

The Public Utility Division Director shall designate personnel

with at least five (5) years' experience in public utility

ratemaking, and with managerial responsibility for and knowledge of

the issues raised in the audit, to conduct an exit conference on

behalf of the Public Utility Division. The Public Utility Division

representative shall conduct an exit conference with designees of

the utility being audited, within ten (10) days of the audit's

conclusion. At the exit conference, the preliminary draft of the

audit findings should be discussed. An exit conference memorandum,

identifying all matters discussed at the exit conference shall be

approved by the Director of the Public Utility Division. The exit

memorandum shall be maintained with any audit records of the

Corporation Commission and shall be available to any party upon

request.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-330 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-330
Required procedures for hearing of protests
Status: in_force

A. In every case requiring the exercise of its adjudicative

authority pursuant to the Oklahoma Petroleum Storage Tank

Consolidation Act, the Corporation Commission shall:

1. Require that any person protesting a case shall file a

response or notice of protest at least five (5) days prior to the

scheduled hearing date. The Corporation Commission may extend the

time for filing upon a showing of exigent or extraordinary

circumstances;

2. Require that each case shall be heard within one hundred

eighty (180) days of the date of filing unless all parties actively

participating in the case agree otherwise or as otherwise provided

in this section and due to this time constraint, all Petroleum

Storage Tank Division cases, regardless of type of matter, shall be

given priority on that day's docket;

3. Provide for the issuance of subpoenas pursuant to the

provisions of Section 2004.1 of Title 12 of the Oklahoma Statutes;

and

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 258

4. Provide that discovery be conducted pursuant to the

provisions of the Oklahoma Discovery Code, Sections 3224 through

3237 of Title 12 of the Oklahoma Statutes.

B. No more than two continuances shall be granted by the

Corporation Commission in any case unless the continuance is agreed

to by all of the parties actively participating in the case or as

otherwise provided in this section.

C. The Corporation Commission may grant permission to file out

of time or an extension of time or continuance contrary to the

provisions of subsections A and B of this section upon the showing

of exigent or extraordinary circumstances.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-116.3 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-116.3
Rules and regulations establishing minimum standards
Status: in_force

The Commission shall make and enforce reasonable rules and

regulations relating to motor vehicles used to transport workers to

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 40

and from their places of employment or during the course of their

employment. These rules and regulations shall establish minimum

standards:

(1) For the construction and mechanical equipment of a motor

vehicle, including its coupling devices, lighting devices and

reflectors, motor exhaust system, rear-vision mirrors, service and

parking brakes, steering mechanism, tires, warning and signaling

devices and windshield wipers.

(2) For the transportation of gasoline and explosives.

(3) For the safety of passengers in a motor vehicle, including

emergency exits, fire extinguishers, first-aid kits, means of

ingress and egress, side walls and a tailgate or other means of

retaining freight and passengers within the motor vehicle.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-140.1 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-140.1
Definitions
Status: in_force

As used in this act:

1. "Person" means a natural person, corporation, trust,

partnership, incorporated or unincorporated association, or any

other legal entity;

2. "Pay-per-call service" means any passive, interactive,

polling, conference or other similar audiotext service that is

provided for a charge to a caller through an exclusive telephone

number prefix or service access code;

3. "Information provider" means the person who provides the

information, prerecorded message, or interactive program for the

information delivery service. The information provider generally

receives a portion of the revenue from the calls. This service does

not include the medium for advertising information delivery service;

4. "Interactive program" means a pay-per-call program that

allows callers to choose between options or to communicate with

other callers;

5. "Sponsor" means an individual, corporation, association,

partnership or other entity that sells a pay-per-call service and on

whose behalf charges are billed, but shall not include a public

utility regulated by the state or the Federal Communications

Commission or an interexchange carrier which provides transport or

billing and collection services for a pay-per-call service unless

the public utility or interexchange carrier actually produces or

promotes the pay-per-call service;

6. "Subscriber" means a customer of a local or long distance

telephone service from which a pay-per-call service is accessed;

7. "Interexchange carrier" means an interexchange

telecommunications company providing service within the state;

8. "Local exchange company" means a local exchange telephone

company providing service within the state; and

9. "Adult entertainment" means any pay-per-call service that

contains explicit references to conduct of a sexual nature in a

manner designed to arouse an immoderate or unwholesome interest or

desire.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-158.30 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-158.30
Grand River Dam Authority excepted
Status: in_force

The provisions of this act shall not apply to Grand River Dam

Authority.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-609 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-609
Renumbered as § 130.9 of Title 74 by Laws 1991, c. 235, §
Status: in_force

23, eff. July 1, 1991.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-6.1 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-6.1
Penalties - Willfully and knowingly injuring or destroying
Status: in_force

pipeline transportation system.

A. Any person who has been determined by the Commission to have

violated any provision of any rule, regulation or order issued

pursuant to the provisions of the Commission related to pipeline

safety shall be liable for a civil penalty of not more than Two

Hundred Thousand Dollars ($200,000.00) for each day that the

violation continues. The maximum civil penalty shall not exceed Two

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 13

Million Dollars ($2,000,000.00) for any related series of

violations.

B. The amount of the penalty shall be assessed by the

Commission pursuant to the provisions of subsection A of this

section, after notice and hearing. In determining the amount of the

penalty, the Commission shall include but not be limited to

consideration of the nature, circumstances and gravity of the

violation and, with respect to the person found to have committed

the violation, the degree of culpability, the effect on ability of

the person to continue to do business, and any show of good faith in

attempting to achieve compliance with the provisions of the rules

and regulations of the Commission.

All penalties collected pursuant to the provisions of this

section shall be deposited into the Pipeline Enforcement Fund.

C. Any person who willfully and knowingly injures or destroys,

or attempts to injure or destroy, any pipeline transportation

system, upon conviction, shall be guilty of a Class C2 felony

offense and shall be subject for each offense to a fine of not more

than Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00), or imprisonment for

a term not to exceed fifteen (15) years, or both such fine and

imprisonment.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-522 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-522
Appeal from court review or jury verdict of appraiser's
Status: in_force

report - Probate - Authority to execute instruments of conveyance.

Any aggrieved party may appeal from the decision of the court on

exceptions to the report of the appraisers or the verdict rendered

upon jury trial. Such appeal shall not serve to delay the

prosecution of the work on the premises in question if the award of

the appraisers or jury has been deposited with the clerk for the use

and benefit of the surface owner. In case of review or appeal, a

certified copy of the final order or judgment shall be transmitted

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 288

by the clerk to the appropriate county clerk to be filed and

recorded.

When an estate is being probated, or when a minor or incompetent

person has a legal guardian or conservator, the administrator or

executor of the estate or guardian of the minor or incompetent

person or the conservator, shall have the authority to execute all

instruments of conveyance provided for in this act on behalf of the

estate or minor or incompetent person with no other proceedings than

approval by the judge of the court of jurisdiction being endorsed on

the instrument of conveyance.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-12 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-12
Depositions
Status: in_force

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 15

The Commission is authorized to have depositions taken upon the

application of either party to any cause pending before it, or upon

its own motion; and it is further authorized to designate a person

to take depositions under such rules and regulations as may be

prescribed by the Commission: Provided, that any party to a

proceeding before the Commission may take depositions in the same

manner as in actions pending in the courts of the state.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-802.1 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-802.1
Oklahoma Energy Initiative Act
Status: in_force

This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Oklahoma Energy

Initiative Act".
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-801.1 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-801.1
Oklahoma Energy Security Act
Status: in_force

This act shall be known and may be cited as the “Oklahoma Energy

Security Act”.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-139.302 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-139.302
Use of electric service easements for supplying
Status: in_force

broadband services.

A. Any easement owned, held or otherwise used by an Electric

Provider for the purpose of electric services may also be used by

that Electric Provider or its broadband subsidiary,

Telecommunications Provider or other Approved Broadband Provider,

for the purpose of supplying Broadband Services.

B. Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 2023 of Title 12

of the Oklahoma Statutes, a class action lawsuit may not be

maintained against an Electric Provider or its broadband subsidiary

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 79

in a suit for trespass, nuisance or inverse condemnation based on a

claim of expanded use of an easement where the broadband facilities

are located on an easement owned, held or otherwise used by an

Electric Provider. In a suit of trespass, nuisance or inverse

condemnation against an Electric Provider or its broadband

subsidiary, based on a claim of expanded use of an easement, any

trespass, nuisance or condemnation found to exist shall be deemed

permanent and the actual damages awarded shall be the fair market

value which, notwithstanding any other provision of law, shall

always be greater than zero (0), but shall not exceed the difference

between the fair market value of the property owner's entire

property immediately before the taking and the fair market value of

the property owner's property immediately after the taking. In such

a suit, evidence of revenues or profits derived, or the rental value

of use of the attached broadband facilities, shall not be admissible

in determining fair market value. A property owner's actual damages

shall be fixed at the time of the initial broadband installation and

shall not be deemed to continue, accumulate or accrue. Upon payment

of damages, the Electric Provider and/or its broadband subsidiary

and/or the Telecommunications Provider and/or Approved Broadband

Provider shall be granted a permanent easement for the use,

replacement, and maintenance of the facilities installed.

C. An Approved Broadband Provider or a Telecommunications

Provider with a valid pole attachment agreement with the Electric

Provider to which it is attaching may use the Electric Provider's

easement for the purpose of providing Broadband Services.

Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 2023 of Title 12 of the

Oklahoma Statutes, a class action lawsuit may not be maintained

against an Approved Broadband Provider, Electric Provider, its

broadband subsidiary, or Telecommunications Provider in a suit for

trespass, nuisance or inverse condemnation based on a claim of

expanded use of an easement where the broadband facilities are

located on infrastructure owned, held or otherwise used by an

Electric Provider. In a suit for trespass, nuisance or inverse

condemnation against an Approved Broadband Provider, Electric

Provider, its broadband subsidiary, or Telecommunications Provider,

based on a claim of expanded use of an easement by the Electric

Provider or Approved Broadband Provider, any trespass, nuisance or

condemnation found to exist shall be deemed permanent and the actual

damages awarded shall be the fair market value which,

notwithstanding any other provision of law, shall always be greater

than zero (0), but shall not exceed the difference between the fair

market value of the property owner's entire property immediately

before the taking and the fair market value of the property owner's

property immediately after the taking. In such a suit, evidence of

revenues or profits derived, or the rental value of use of the

attached broadband facilities, shall not be admissible in

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 80

determining fair market value. A property owner's actual damages

shall be fixed at the time of the initial broadband installation and

shall not be deemed to continue, accumulate or accrue. Upon payment

of damages, the Approved Broadband Provider, Electric Provider, its

broadband subsidiary, or Telecommunications Provider shall be

granted a permanent easement for the use, replacement and

maintenance of the facilities installed.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-191.7 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-191.7
Certain domestic public utilities to file application for approval of acquisition, control or
Status: in_force

merger with Commission - Factors for approval or disapproval - Review - Exemption from certain

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 6for approval of acquisition, control or merger with Commission -

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 180

Factors for approval or disapproval - Review - Exemption from

certain provisions of act.

If the acquiring party is a domestic public utility, and the

domestic public utility, control of which is sought to be acquired

in a transaction described in Section 2 of this act which would

require the filing of a statement pursuant to Section 2 of this act,

is subject to the jurisdiction of the Commission, an application for

approval, containing such information as the Commission may

prescribe by rule or regulation adopted pursuant to this act, shall

be filed with and heard by the Commission after such notice as the

Commission may prescribe, and the transaction approved or

disapproved based upon the factors enumerated in paragraphs 1

through 5 of subsection A of Section 5 of this act, subject to

judicial review as provided in Section 12 of this act, but the other

provisions of this act shall not apply to such transaction.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-515 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-515
Purchasing priority of solution gas
Status: in_force

If at any time the Commission has designated priorities for the

purchasing of gas from oil and gas wells pursuant to its regulatory

power, the solution gas associated with the production of brine from

any brine well, whether or not within a unit created pursuant to

this act, shall be deemed to have a classification equal to the

highest priority designated by the Commission.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-187 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-187
Appeals
Status: in_force

Any public utility may appeal from any order, finding or

judgment of the Commission in the manner provided in Article IX,

Section 20 and 22 of the Constitution of Oklahoma.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-139.1 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-139.1
Coin-activated and credit card-activated telephones -
Status: in_force

Operating requirements.

The Corporation Commission shall, by rule or order, promulgate

and enforce operating requirements for coin-activated and credit

card-activated telephones available for public use owned or operated

by corporations or persons other than telephone corporations

authorized by the Commission to operate within service areas. These

requirements shall include, but are not limited to a requirement

that every telephone permit a caller to be connected with the

operator personnel of any telephone corporation authorized by the

Commission to operate within a service area through the Commission

authorized access method chosen by the operator service provider

with exception of those coin operated or credit card-activated

telephones made available to inmates at state, federal, local and

county jails and correctional facilities.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-92 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-92
Procedure - Appeals
Status: in_force

In all actions arising before the Corporation Commission, the

same rules as to procedure, notice of hearing and trial, and as to

appeals to the Supreme Court, shall be applicable as are prescribed

for said Commission as to transportation companies generally and the

same rules applicable to the enforcement of other orders of the

Corporation Commission, as to transportation companies shall be

applicable to the enforcement of any order or orders made hereunder.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-163.1 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-163.1
Wage rates, benefits, working conditions or other terms
Status: in_force

or conditions of employment subject to collective bargaining

agreements - Disallowance or change.

In establishing rates, unless there is evidence that wage rates,

benefits, working conditions or other terms or conditions of

employment are not comparable to other collective bargaining

agreements for comparable regulated and nonregulated entities in

comparable economic and geographical environments, the Corporation

Commission shall not disallow or otherwise change any wage rate,

benefit, working condition, or other term or condition of employment

that is the subject of a collective bargaining agreement between the

public utility or public service corporation and a labor

organization. Nothing herein shall affect the authority of the

Commission to make adjustments where necessary to match wages and

benefits with a test year examined by the Commission and to allocate

a benefit to the period during which rates will be expected to

remain in effect.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 144

It is the intention of the Legislature that any provision of

this section is an amendment to, and alteration of Sections 18

through 34 inclusive of Article IX of the Oklahoma Constitution as

authorized by Section 35 of Article IX of the Oklahoma Constitution.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-347 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-347
Ethanol or methanol label requirements
Status: in_force

A. No person shall sell or offer for sale motor fuel from a

motor fuel dispenser supplied by a storage tank into which motor

fuel that contains a mixture of at least one percent (1%) by volume

of ethanol or methanol has been delivered within the sixty-day

period preceding the date of sale or offer of sale unless the person

prominently displays on the dispenser from which the mixture is sold

a label that complies with subsection B of this section.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 266

B. 1. A label as required in subsection A of this section

shall:

a. be displayed on each face of the motor fuel dispenser

on which the price of the motor fuel mixture sold from

the dispenser is displayed,

b. state “Contains Ethanol” or “Contains Methanol”, as

applicable,

c. appear in contrasting colors with block letters at

least one-half (1/2) inch high and one-fourth (1/4)

inch wide, and

d. be displayed in a clear, conspicuous and prominent

manner, visible to customers using either side of the

dispenser.

2. If the motor fuel contains fifteen percent (15%) ethanol, a

pump label as required in subsection A of this section shall meet

federal E15 labeling requirements as ruled by the Environmental

Protection Agency pursuant to 40 CFR Part 1090.1510 as it is written

on February 1, 2023.

C. If a motor fuel dispenser is supplied by a storage tank into

which motor fuel containing at least ten percent (10%) ethanol by

volume or at least five percent (5%) methanol by volume is delivered

in the sixty-day period preceding the date of the sale or offer of

sale, the sign as required in subsection A of this section shall

also state the percentage of ethanol or methanol by volume, to the

nearest whole percent, of the motor fuel having the highest

percentage of ethanol or methanol delivered into that storage tank

during that period.

D. On request by a motor fuel user, a person selling or

offering for sale motor fuel from a motor fuel dispenser shall

reveal:

1. The percentage of ethanol contained in the motor fuel being

sold;

2. The percentage of methanol contained in the motor fuel being

sold; and

3. If the motor fuel contains methanol, the types and

percentages of associated cosolvents contained in the motor fuel

being sold.

E. The provisions of this section shall not prohibit the

posting of any other alcohol or additive information. Other alcohol

or additive information and any relevant posting shall be subject to

regulation by the Corporation Commission.

F. The Corporation Commission shall promulgate rules as

necessary to implement the provisions of this section.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-86 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-86
Extra hazardous crossings - Protective devices - Costs
Status: in_force

The Oklahoma Corporation Commission shall have the authority,

after having made proper investigations, to designate those grade

crossings which are extra hazardous. At all such crossings so

designated, the Commission shall have the authority to order the

installation of appropriate protective devices. All such

installations to be performed by the railroad. The Commission shall

have the authority to determine the number, type, and location of

such signs, signals, gates or other protective devices, which,

however, shall conform as near as may be with generally-recognized

national standards, and said Commission shall have authority to

prescribe the division of the cost of the installation of such

signs, signals, gates or other protective devices between the public

utility and the state or its political subdivisions; provided,

however, that the cost to the utility shall be not less than ten

percent (10%) or more than twenty-five percent (25%) of the total

costs. The railroads shall be responsible for all subsequent

maintenance and cost thereof. Provided, however, that the results

of investigation or investigations, findings, determinations, or

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 38

orders of the Corporation Commission shall not be admissible in any

civil action.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-345 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-345
Authority to promulgate tests, standards, specifications
Status: in_force

and rules – Voluntary calibration program.

A. The Corporation Commission is hereby authorized and directed

to promulgate such tests, standards, specifications and rules

necessary to carry out the provisions of this act and to ensure that

all measuring devices shall be of the highest degree of accuracy

reasonably consistent with the nature of the substance measured, and

for such purpose the Commission shall have authority to prescribe

such maximum limits of allowable error for such measuring devices as

the Commission deems necessary to prevent fraud resulting from

inaccurate measurement.

B. The Commission is authorized to promulgate rules as

necessary to establish a voluntary calibration program for tanks and

containers used in this state to transport motor fuel, diesel fuel

or blending material; provided, however, this shall not include the

fuel supply tanks of a motor vehicle. The Commission is further

authorized to establish a fee not to exceed Fifty Dollars ($50.00)

for the calibration of these tanks and containers. The fees are to

cover the costs necessary for the enforcement of this act.

C. Any tank or container calibrated by the manufacturer,

officials of another state, the Tax Commission or the Corporation

Commission shall not be subject to further calibration testing by

the Commission unless the physical shape or size of the tank or

container has been altered by accident or design. A Certificate of

Measurement shall be issued by the Commission for tanks and

containers which are calibrated by the manufacturer, another state

or the Commission. Nothing herein shall prohibit the Commission

from ordering the mandatory calibration testing of any tank,

container or metering device which the Commission has good reason to

believe is inaccurate and is being utilized to defraud any person,

firm or corporation.

D. Fees collected under the provisions of this act shall be

deposited in the State Treasury to the credit of the Corporation

Commission Revolving Fund.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-160.19 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-160.19
Insurance policies
Status: in_force

A. Prior to commencing construction of a wind energy facility,

the owner or operator of a wind turbine or wind energy facility

shall obtain and keep in effect either a:

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 129

1. Commercial general liability insurance policy with a limit

consistent with prevailing industry standards; or

2. Combination of self insurance and an excess liability

insurance policy.

B. The owner or operator shall cause the owner of the land

where the wind turbine or wind energy facility is located to be

named as an additional insured in the policy.

C. The owner or operator shall deliver to the landowner a

certificate of insurance evidencing the policy. The landowner shall

be given at least thirty (30) days prior notice of any material

modification, cancellation or termination of the insurance.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-160.20 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-160.20
Setback requirements
Status: in_force

A. After August 21, 2015, no wind energy facility may be

constructed if the base of any tower is located at a distance of

less than:

1. One and one-half (1 1/2) nautical miles from the center line

of any runway located on:

a. a public-use airport as defined in Section 120.2 of

Title 3 of the Oklahoma Statutes, or

b. an airport owned by a municipality;

2. One and one-half (1 1/2) nautical miles from any public

school which is a part of a public school district; or

3. One and one-half (1 1/2) nautical miles from a hospital.

B. Attestation of compliance with the setback requirements in

this section shall be included in any reports required by the

Corporation Commission. Stakeholder and landowner disputes arising

under subsection A of this section shall fall under the exclusive

jurisdiction of the district courts. The Corporation Commission may

seek enforcement of the submission and attestation requirements of

this subsection and subsection C of this section through its

administrative court system.

C. After April 3, 2018, construction or operation of a proposed

individual wind turbine or any other individual structure requiring

a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Form 7460-1 that is part of

a wind energy facility shall not encroach upon or otherwise have a

significant adverse impact on the mission, training or operations of

any military installation or branch of military as determined by the

Military Aviation and Installation Assurance Siting Clearinghouse

(Clearinghouse) and the FAA. Areas of impact include, but are not

limited to, military training routes, drop zones, approaches to

runways and bombing ranges. No individual wind turbine or any other

individual structure that requires a FAA 7460-1 form that is part of

a wind energy facility may be constructed or expanded unless there

is an active Determination of No Hazard from the FAA and adverse

impacts to the United States Department of Defense, pursuant to

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 130

Title 32 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Section 211.6, have

been resolved as evidenced by documentation from the Clearinghouse

for the individual wind turbine or other individual structure. The

Mission Compatibility Certification Letter or successor form may

serve as such evidence of adverse impacts being resolved with the

Department of Defense or successor agency.

1. The Determination of No Hazard and documentation of the

resolution of adverse impacts to the Department of Defense shall be

filed with the Corporation Commission and the Oklahoma Department of

Aerospace and Aeronautics.

2. The requirements established by this subsection shall not

prohibit the construction of an individual wind turbine or any other

individual structure requiring a FAA 7460-1 form that is part of a

wind energy facility if that individual wind turbine or other

individual structure has received a Determination of No Hazard or

mitigation plan on or before April 3, 2018.

3. The Corporation Commission is authorized to promulgate rules

and regulations for the implementation of the provisions of this

section and Section 160.21 of this title.

D. If an owner of a wind energy facility fails to submit an

active Determination of No Hazard and documentation that adverse

impacts to the Department of Defense have been resolved by the

Clearinghouse for the individual wind turbine or other individual

structure prior to the start of construction, the owner shall be

subject to an administrative penalty not to exceed One Thousand Five

Hundred Dollars ($1,500.00) per day, per violation from the

Corporation Commission as provided by law. In addition,

stakeholders, including, but not limited to, the Corporation

Commission or the Oklahoma Department of Aerospace and Aeronautics

may institute an action in any court of general jurisdiction to

prevent, restrain, correct or abate any violation of subsection C of

this section other than Corporation Commission actions related to

submissions or attestations.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-191.1 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-191.1
Definitions
Status: in_force

As used in this act:

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 171

1. "Acquiring party" means a person and all affiliates thereof

by whom or on whose behalf a merger or other acquisition of control

referred to in Section 191.2 of this title is to be effected;

2. "Affiliate" means a person who directly, or indirectly

through one or more intermediaries, controls, or is controlled by,

or is under common control with, the person specified, including any

corporation created at the direction of the person specified for

purposes of corporate reorganization;

3. "Commission" means the Oklahoma Corporation Commission;

4. "Control" (including the terms "controlling", "controlled

by", and "under common control with") means the possession, direct

or indirect, of the power to direct or cause the direction of the

management and policies of a person, whether through the ownership

of voting securities, by contract, or otherwise, unless such power

is the result of an official position with, or corporate office held

in, such person. Control shall be presumed to exist if any person,

directly or indirectly, owns, controls, holds with the power to

vote, or holds proxies representing ten percent (10%) or more of the

aggregate number of the voting securities of any other person. This

presumption may be rebutted by a showing that control does not exist

in fact. The Commission may determine, after furnishing all persons

in interest notice and opportunity to be heard and making specific

findings of fact to support such determination, that control exists

in fact, notwithstanding the absence of a presumption to that

effect;

5. "Domestic public utility" means a person doing business in

the state, any substantial portion of the revenues of which, either

directly or indirectly, are derived from the business of providing

utility service in this state, except that such term does not

include agencies, authorities or instrumentalities of the United

States or a state or political subdivision of a state;

6. “Foreign public utility” means a person that is not a

domestic public utility that is engaged in the production,

transmission, delivery, or furnishing of heat, light, power, or

natural gas to the public in another state of the United States or

in the District of Columbia, and whose rates for the furnishing of

heat, light, power, or natural gas to the public in another state or

the District of Columbia are subject to the approval of an agency of

such other state or the District of Columbia;

7. “Holding company” means any of the following:

a. any person which, in any chain or successive

ownership, directly or indirectly, as a beneficial

owner, owns, controls or holds ten percent (10%) or

more of the outstanding voting securities of a

domestic public utility, with the unconditional power

to vote such securities, or

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 172

b. any person which the Commission determines, after

investigation and hearing, directly or indirectly,

exercises, alone or under any arrangement or

understanding with one or more persons, such a

controlling interest over the management or policies

of a domestic public utility as to make it necessary

or appropriate in the public interest or for the

protection of the consumers or investors of the

utility that such person be subject to this act;

8. "Issuer" means any person who issues or proposes to issue

any security;

9. “Nonutility company” means a person that is not a holding

company, a domestic public utility, or a foreign public utility;

10. "Person" means an individual, a corporation, a partnership,

an association, a limited liability company, a joint stock company,

a trust, an unincorporated organization, any similar entity or any

combination of the foregoing acting in concert, but shall not

include any securities broker performing no more than the usual and

customary broker's function;

11. "Tender offer" means the acquisition of, or offer to

acquire, pursuant to a tender offer or request or invitation for

tenders, any voting security of a domestic public utility or holding

company, if after acquisition thereof the acquiring party would,

directly or indirectly, be a record or beneficial owner of more than

ten percent (10%) of the aggregate number of the issued and

outstanding voting securities of such domestic public utility or

holding company. "Tender offer" does not mean:

a. bids made by a dealer for his own account in the

ordinary course of his business of buying and selling

such security, or

b. any other offer to acquire a voting security, or the

acquisition of such voting security pursuant to such

offer, for the sole account of the acquiring party,

from not more than fifty persons, in good faith and

not for the purpose of avoiding this act;

12. “Total utility assets of an acquiring party” means the sum

of:

a. the total assets of each domestic public utility that

is an affiliate of the acquiring party,

b. the total assets of each foreign public utility that

is an affiliate of the acquiring party, and

c. the portion, if any, of the total assets of the

acquiring party, without regard to its affiliates or

subsidiaries and without regard to its investments in

its affiliates or subsidiaries, owned directly by the

acquiring party and used in the business of being a

domestic public utility or a foreign public utility;

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 173

13. “Total nonutility assets of the acquiring party” means the

sum of:

a. the total assets of each nonutility company that is an

affiliate of the acquiring party, and

b. the portion, if any, of the total assets of the

acquiring party, without regard to its affiliates or

subsidiaries and without regard to its investments in

its affiliates or subsidiaries, owned directly by the

acquiring party and not used in the business of being

a domestic public utility or a foreign public utility;

14. "Utility service" means the transmission or distribution

of combustible hydrocarbon natural or synthetic natural gas by a

person subject to Section 152 of this title for sale to the public

or the production, transmission, delivery or furnishing of electric

current by a person subject to Section 181 et seq. of this title for

sale to the public for light, heat or power; and

15. "Voting security" means any stock or indenture of any

class presently entitling the owner or holder thereof to vote in the

direction or management of the affairs of a company, or any stock or

indenture of any class issued under or pursuant to any trust,

agreement or arrangement whereby a trustee or trustees or agent or

agents for the owner or holder of such stock or indenture are

presently entitled to vote in the direction or management of the

company.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-205 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-205
Rules and regulations
Status: in_force

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 183

The Corporation Commission is authorized to adopt all reasonable

and necessary rules and regulations to implement any powers and

duties of the Commission pursuant to the provisions of this act.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-182 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-182
Issuance of securities and creation of liens declared a
Status: in_force

privilege - Power of supervision and regulation.

The power of public utilities to issue securities, in case of

public utilities organized under the laws of this state, and to

create liens on property in this state to secure the payment of

evidences of indebtedness in case of public utilities organized

under the laws of any other state or foreign country, is a

privilege, the right of supervision, regulation, restriction and

control of which is, and shall continue to be, vested in the state,

and such power shall be exercised as provided by law and under such

rules and regulations as the Commission may prescribe pursuant to

law.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-607 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-607
Renumbered as § 130.7 of Title 74 by Laws 1991, c. 235, §
Status: in_force

23, eff. July 1, 1991.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-160.14 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-160.14
Decommissioning of wind energy facility
Status: in_force

A. The owner of a wind energy facility shall be responsible, at

its expense, for the proper decommissioning of the facility upon

abandonment or the end of the useful life of the commercial wind

energy equipment in the wind energy facility.

B. Proper decommissioning of a wind energy facility shall

include:

1. Removal of wind turbines, towers, buildings, cabling,

electrical components, foundations and any other associated

facilities, to a depth of thirty (30) inches below grade; and

2. Disturbed earth being graded and reseeded or otherwise

restored to substantially the same physical condition as existed

prior to the construction of the wind energy facility by the owner,

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 125

excluding roads, unless the landowner specifically requests in

writing that the roads or other land surface areas be restored.

C. The decommissioning of the wind energy facility, or

individual pieces of commercial wind energy equipment, shall be

completed as follows:

1. By the owner of the wind energy facility within twelve (12)

months after abandonment or the end of the useful life of the

commercial wind energy equipment in the wind energy facility; and

2. If the owner of the wind energy facility fails to complete

the decommissioning within the period prescribed in paragraph 1 of

this subsection, the Corporation Commission shall take such measures

as are necessary to complete the decommissioning.

D. A lease or other agreement between a landowner and an owner

of a wind energy facility may contain provisions for decommissioning

that are more restrictive than provided for in this section.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-160.21 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-160.21
See the following versions:
Status: in_force

OS 17-160.21v1 (HB 3561, Laws 2018, c. 4, § 2).

OS 17-160.21v2 (SB 782, Laws 2023, c. 126, § 22).
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-160.11 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-160.11
Oklahoma Wind Energy Development Act
Status: in_force

This act shall be known and may be cited as the “Oklahoma Wind

Energy Development Act”.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-286A — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-286A
Deferrals to regulatory assets of depreciation expenses
Status: in_force

and return associated with qualifying electric plants — Review of

regulatory asset balances.

A. 1. On and after the effective date of this act, a public

utility shall defer to a regulatory asset ninety percent (90%) of

all depreciation expenses and return associated with all qualifying

electric plants placed in service, provided the public utility has

provided notice to the Corporation Commission of the public

utility’s election to make such deferrals pursuant to this section.

Deferral under this section shall begin on the effective date of

this act if the public utility notifies the Commission of the

election prior to the effective date, or on the date that the

utility notifies the Commission of the election if such date is

after the effective date of this act.

2. For the purposes of this section, “qualifying electric

plant” means all incremental electric plants placed in service by a

public utility following the utility’s last general rate case,

excluding transmission facilities or new electric generating units.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 199

B. The Commission shall conduct a prudence review of the

associated qualifying electric plant resulting in the regulatory

asset balances prior to moving such balances into the public

utility’s rate base. The regulatory asset balances arising under

this section shall be adjusted to reflect any prudence disallowances

of the associated qualifying electric plant, following notice and

hearing, as ordered by the Commission.

C. Unless otherwise provided by this section, in each general

rate proceeding concluded on or after July 1, 2025, the balance of

the regulatory asset as of the end of the test year shall be

included in the public utility’s rate base without any offset,

reduction, or adjustment based upon consideration of any other

factor with the regulatory asset balances arising from deferrals

associated with the qualifying electric plant placed in service

after the end of the test year.

D. Parts of regulatory asset balances created under this

section that are not included in rate base shall accrue carrying

costs at the public utility’s weighted average cost of capital plus

applicable federal, state, and local income or excise taxes.

Regulatory asset balances arising under this section that are

included in rate base shall be recovered in rates through a twenty-

year amortization beginning on the date new rates reflecting such

amortization take effect.

E. Depreciation expenses deferred under this section shall

account for any qualifying electric plant placed into service.

Return deferred under this section shall be determined using the

weighted average cost of capital approved by the Commission in the

public utility’s last general rate case and applied to the change in

regulatory asset balances caused by the qualifying electric plant,

plus applicable federal, state, and local income or excise taxes.

In determining the return deferred, the public utility shall account

for changes in all plant-related accumulated deferred income taxes

and changes in accumulated depreciation, excluding retirements.

F. This section shall only apply to any public utility that has

elected to make the deferrals for which this section provides and

filed a notice with the Commission of such election.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-319 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-319
Underground Storage Tank Operator Training Program
Status: in_force

A. The Corporation Commission is authorized to implement an

Underground Storage Tank Operator Training Program as required to

comply with the provisions of the federal Energy Policy Act of 2005.

B. The Commission shall develop a training program within their

agency it deems appropriate to fulfill the requirements of federal

law or the provisions of this section.

C. Operators of underground storage tanks shall complete a

training program commensurate with their responsibility for the

operation of underground storage tanks. The training program shall

be approved by the Commission and encompass training for persons

with three levels of responsibility for storage tank operation as

follows:

1. Persons having primary responsibility for on-site operation

and maintenance of underground storage tank systems;

2. Persons having daily on-site responsibility for the

operation and maintenance of underground storage tank systems; and

3. Persons with daily, on-site primary responsibility for

addressing emergencies presented by a spill or release from an

underground storage tank.

D. Storage tank operators shall be required to complete the

training program required by the Commission to obtain certification

for the operation of underground storage tanks.

E. Operators of underground storage tank systems shall repeat

the applicable training if the tank for which they have primary

daily on-site management responsibilities is determined to be out of

compliance with a requirement or order of the Commission.

F. The Commission is authorized to promulgate any rules

necessary to comply with the provisions of this section.
Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-139.101 — OK Code / Title 17 / Section 17-139.101
Short title - Oklahoma Telecommunications Act of 1997
Status: in_force

This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Oklahoma

Telecommunications Act of 1997".