HB 2155: Corporation Commission; creating the Renewable Energy Facility Act; emergency. - Oklahoma

Introduced → Amended And Engrossed · 4 edits · May 12, 2025

MODERATE

The Senate amendment to HB 2155 (Renewable Energy Facility Act) makes one substantive policy change and several technical corrections. The key change narrows the definition of 'energy facility' to explicitly exclude transmission and distribution lines providing services to the facility, meaning those infrastructure components fall outside the act's permitting, notification, and penalty requirements. Remaining changes are grammatical fixes (adding articles, correcting cross-references) and renumbering of subsections.

SCOPE

The definition of 'energy facility' now explicitly excludes 'transmission or distribution lines providing services to the facility.' This means operators of transmission and distribution lines serving renewable energy facilities are not subject to the act's permit, notification, financial security, or penalty requirements.

TECHNICAL

Cross-reference in the permit content requirements was corrected from 'subsection 2 of this section' to 'paragraph 2 of this subsection,' making the internal reference more precise.

Multiple grammatical corrections throughout: adding articles ('an applicant,' 'a facility operator'), changing 'will be located' to 'shall be located' in the notification requirement, and adding serial commas in lists.

Subsection lettering in Section 3 was renumbered (complaint system moved from E to D, penalties from F to E, preexisting facility deadline from G to F, filing fee from H to G), likely correcting a skipped letter in the introduced version.

Floor (House) → Floor (Senate) · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was amended to transition from a House version to a Senate floor version, which includes significant reformatting of the text and the addition of a new requirement for facility operators to notify adjacent owners by mail at least 60 days before starting construction. The substantive definitions and core operational rules remain consistent with the original House version.

Scope change

The scope of the bill remains unchanged; it still applies to renewable energy facilities like wind, solar, and battery storage in Oklahoma.

REQUIREMENT

Added a specific requirement that facility operators must notify all surface, mineral, and adjacent owners via U.S. mail at least 60 days before commencing any energy facility operations.

TECHNICAL

Changed the document header from 'HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES' to 'SENATE FLOOR VERSION' and updated the date to April 24, 2025.

Reformatted the bill text layout and section numbering to reflect the Senate floor version, though the underlying legal content of definitions and rules remains largely the same.

HB2155 (5-07-25) (GREEN) FS WDFA1.PDF → Floor (House) · 7 edits

MODERATE

The bill was updated from a floor substitute version to a committee substitute version, incorporating specific amendments to the Renewable Energy Facility Act. These changes refine legal definitions, adjust financial security requirements, and modify permit content to better align with state regulations.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on the Corporation Commission and renewable energy facilities, but the specific rules and definitions governing facility operators have been tightened and clarified.

DEFINITION

The definition of 'energy facility' was expanded to include 'development' in addition to construction and operation, broadening the scope of regulated activities.

The definition of 'adjacent owner' was changed from a half-mile radius to a one-half (1/2) mile radius, clarifying the distance for property rights considerations.

REQUIREMENT

The definition of 'Commission' was updated to explicitly state 'Oklahoma Corporation Commission' for clarity.

The permit requirements were expanded to include proposed methods for disposal of equipment, waste, chemicals, or other substances during the facility's life, adding a proactive planning element.

The permit requirements were updated to include emergency contact information for facility operator representatives, enhancing communication protocols.

The requirement for financial security was clarified to allow for a form determined by the Commission for non-wind facilities, while maintaining specific provisions for wind energy.

The permit content was modified to remove the requirement for a list of water sources, simplifying the documentation needed for facility operators.

House Committee Substitute → HB2155 (5-07-25) (GREEN) FS FA1.PDF · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was revised from a 'Committee Substitute' to a 'Floor Substitute' version, incorporating amendments by additional legislators. The most significant substantive change is a reduction in the required notice period for notifying adjacent landowners before starting construction, shortened from 60 days to 30 days. The text also clarifies that rural electric cooperatives must submit permits but are exempt from the financial security requirements applicable to other facility operators.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on regulating renewable energy facilities (wind, solar, battery storage, hydrogen), but the specific procedural requirements for facility operators have been modified.

REQUIREMENT

The mandatory notice period for informing adjacent landowners of an upcoming energy facility project was reduced from 60 days to 30 days.

A specific provision was added requiring rural electric cooperatives to submit permits, while explicitly exempting them from the financial security requirements that apply to other facility operators.

DEFINITION

Definitions for 'Energy facility' and 'Surface owner' were updated to use consistent terminology (e.g., 'commence' instead of 'development') and clarify the scope of renewable sources included.

TECHNICAL

The document header was updated to reflect the new 'Floor Substitute' status and added the names of the additional sponsoring legislators.

Engrossed → House Committee Substitute · 1 edit

MINOR

The bill was converted from an 'Engrossed' version to a 'House Committee Substitute,' indicating it has been amended by the House committee. The substantive policy content regarding the Renewable Energy Facility Act, including definitions, permit requirements, and penalties, remains identical to the previous version. The changes are primarily formatting updates, such as adding the legislative session date and removing page markers, rather than altering the law's actual rules.

TECHNICAL

The document header was updated to reflect the 'House Committee Substitute' status and added the specific legislative session (1st Session of the 60th Legislature, 2025), while removing internal page numbering and tracking numbers.

Amended And Engrossed → Engrossed · 3 edits · May 12, 2025

MINOR

The amendment adds a new requirement for energy facility operators to notify all surface, mineral, and adjacent landowners at least 60 days before starting construction. It also mandates that decommission plans must comply with specific Oklahoma statutes and requires a list of notified owners to be included in the filing. These changes aim to increase transparency and provide landowners with more time to prepare for facility development.

Scope change

The bill's scope now explicitly includes a mandatory notification process for adjacent landowners regarding the commencement of energy facilities.

REQUIREMENT

Added a requirement for applicants to notify all surface, mineral, and adjacent owners at least 60 days prior to commencing an energy facility via U.S. mail.

Added a requirement that decommission plans must comply with Section 160.14 of Title 17 of the Oklahoma Statutes.

Added a requirement to include a list of names and addresses for all notified owners in the submitted plans.

Corporation Commission; creating the Renewable Energy Facility Act; emergency.

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