Oklahoma House panel advances data center energy surcharge bill

A House budget subcommittee unanimously approved legislation Monday aimed at shielding Oklahoma residential energy customers from potential rate increases tied to growing power demands from data centers.

House Bill 3917, authored by Rep. Mickey Dollens, D-Oklahoma City, passed the House Appropriations and Budget National Resources Subcommittee and now heads to the full House Appropriations and Budget Committee.

The proposal comes as Oklahoma continues to attract interest in large-scale data center developments, which require significant and consistent energy loads.

What would the Dollens bill do?

The measure would require certain large data centers to pay a surcharge during peak electricity demand periods. Supporters say the goal is to ensure high-volume energy users help cover costs associated with increased strain on Oklahoma’s electric grid.

The bill would create the “Grid Modernization Revolving Fund” within the Oklahoma State Treasury. The fund would be administered by the Oklahoma Corporation Commission and used to support upgrades and modernization of the state’s electric grid.

Dollens said the legislation is designed to prevent residential ratepayers from absorbing infrastructure costs driven by large-scale energy consumption from data centers.

“This would make sure that regular ratepayers aren’t having to pay for those really high energy costs, and the surcharge would be put into a dedicated fund that would go toward grid modernization,” Dollens said. “So, this is really a win-win for everyone. It’s a win for Oklahoma ratepayers, but also our grid.”

Oklahoma’s legislators have already placed a heavy emphasis on data centers as a reoccuring theme this session. Several bills relating to the topic have been filed in the House and Senate.

Some pieces of legislation, such as House Bill 3724 from Rep. Jim Shaw, R-Chandler, would go as far as placing a temporary ban on new data centers while state leaders continue to investigate the impact of data centers further.

Other pieces, such as House Bill 3392 from Rep. Amanda Clinton, D-Tulsa, would give the Corporation Commission a specific task to produce a report on data centers.

Unanimous margins for Dollens and his bill reflect a moment of unity between parties and chambers.

“It’s not too often you have something that passes unanimously with bipartisan support, but I think that really speaks to this issue of how many Oklahomans are talking about data centers and protecting our water and making sure that people, especially on fixed incomes, aren’t paying more than their fair share,” he said.

What’s next

HB 3917 will next be considered by the full House Appropriations and Budget Committee. If approved, it would advance to the House floor.