Oklahomans are reporting sticker shock at the mailbox when opening their electric bills this summer. While artificial intelligence and the data centers needed to support them have become major subjects of public discourse, state lawmakers and regulators say they are only one part of a much larger explanation.
Simply put, some customers are seeing rate hikes, while rising regional transmission costs, summer air-conditioning use and continued investment in an aging grid are contributing to higher bills for all. Data centers pose an emerging demand challenge, but they are not the sole explanation for what customers are paying today.
Rep. Meloyde Blancett, D-Tulsa, hosted a town hall on the subject Thursday evening as a direct result of questions and concerns she has been fielding from constituents. She is running for reelection, but rather than canvass House District 78 on foot in the summer heat, she has called more than 500 constituents.
“I ask what’s on their mind,” said Blancett. “A good percentage of the people I have ended up having conversations with or who text or email me back, say, ‘What the hell is going on with electricity rates?’ That was the impetus for doing this. This is not a campaign event – this is about good governance.”
For Tulsa-area customers, the most immediate change is at Public Service Company of Oklahoma. An interim rate adjustment took effect July 1 while the Oklahoma Corporation Commission considers PSO’s broader case to hike rates permanently.
“This is incredibly frustrating for retirees,” Tulsa resident Ellen Lannert told panelists during Thursday evening’s event. “We do the average, we do everything we can, we do the Power Hours, we keep the temperature at 79. We are beyond knowing what to do.”
The increase is subject to refund if the commission ultimately determines PSO was entitled to less, explained Fairo Mitchell, director of the OCC’s Public Utility Division, who fielded questions at Thursday evening’s town hall at a Tulsa library.
To change their prices, regulated electric utilities like PSO and Oklahoma Gas and Electric file formal rate review cases with the state Corporation Commission. The commission reviews their total revenue needs, which cover operating expenses for labor and materials, capital investments and the profit they are seeking.
A proposed settlement agreement to reduce the residential rate increase from roughly 15%, or about $25 extra per month on average, down to 1%, or about $2.45 extra per month, has been negotiated with PSO by the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office.
It made headlines in late June, but not all interested parties are in agreement, according to
AARP, which represents residential utility customers’ increases at the state Capitol.
“From our perspective, the (average) base increase of $25 was absolutely unacceptable,” said Joy McGill, state director of advocacy for AARP, at the Thursday event.
Another significant factor in higher electric bills is the Southwest Power Pool, the regional electricity transmission organization that manages the grid and wholesale power market in nearly all of Oklahoma along with parts of 16 other states. Rising transmission costs and investments to address growing demand, new technology and weather get passed onto customers.
SPP’s latest, $8.6 billion transmission investment plan specifically identifies extreme-weather resilience as a reason for new investment. And power companies themselves are spending more money to install stronger power poles, upgrade transmission and distribution systems, install underground lines in some locations and manage vegetation to make Oklahoma’s grid more resilient to severe weather.
The cost of steel, lumber, large electrical equipment, and other materials required for the work has risen, along with broader inflation, in recent years.
Then there is the Oklahoma summer itself. When temperatures soar, households can add hundreds of kilowatt-hours to their monthly consumption by running their air conditioners. Higher summer demand across the board requires additional generation, which can be more expensive, Mitchell said.
Rep. Blancett said she was learning the answers alongside her own constituents.
“I am not an expert; I am just a regular Joe like all of the people I represent,” she said. “My electricity bill went up substantially from what it was at this time last year. It just shows up and you’re like, well, crap!”
Large data centers can require enormous amounts of electricity and can trigger the need for new generation and transmission infrastructure, as well as substations. PSO and OG&E are developing special tariffs for exceptionally large electricity users, separate from traditional residential and industrial rate classes.
Widespread concerns over data centers’ power needs also prompted recent legislation by Rep. Brad Boles, R-Marlow, who made the 150-mile trip to Tulsa on Thursday at Blancett’s invitation.
House Bill 2992, the Data Center Consumer Ratepayer Protection Act of 2026, took effect July 1. It established protections for residential, small-business and traditional utility customers when new facilities such as data centers, cryptocurrency mines and AI facilities create massive new demand for power.
The law requires companies that build these new facilities to cover infrastructure costs. In crafting the legislation, Boles worked directly with the utilities, industry associations, data center companies, the oil and gas industry, and AARP.
“This is one of the hottest topics in Oklahoma right now,” Boles told Oklahoma Watch. “The public sentiment is they do not want the utility costs to go up one dollar for these data centers. These data center companies also understand it’s important to be a good neighbor when you come into a state or a community. They did not fight the bill. Some said we planned to do this anyway. I said, ‘That’s great, we’re going to get it into law in case your plans change.’”
HB 2992 received unanimous support in the Legislature and Boles said that was no coincidence. While Oklahoma has the third-lowest residential utility rates in the country, unexpected cost increases are a critical issue for the vast majority of households.
“At the end of the day, I don’t compare my bill to other states around me. I only compare it to what mine was 3-4 years ago,” Boles said. “We have to have good energy policies in place. At the end of the day, this is a bipartisan issue. We can come together and solve these problems.”
Oklahoma Watch, at oklahomawatch.org, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that covers public-policy issues facing the state.
