Ahead of the 2026 legislative session, elected officials filed dozens of environmental bills that range from reckoning with data centers to banning dams on a southeastern Oklahoma river.
Here are a few measures to watch in the coming months.
Data centers and electricity rates
Several lawmakers have introduced bills to set rules on large electricity users like data centers and expand the state’s knowledge of their environmental impacts.
After hosting an interim study on data centers in the fall, Rep. Amanda Clinton, D-Tulsa, filed a package of bills with directions for state regulators to keep track of the facilities.
“Data centers are an increasingly significant part of Oklahoma’s economy and infrastructure,” Clinton said in October. “But as this industry experiences unprecedented growth, it is also poorly understood by many.”
Clinton’s House Bill 3392 would require the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC) to conduct a study on the impacts of large electricity users. The findings would focus on electricity rates, system reliability, energy generation capacity and infrastructure investment needs. Another, House Bill 3394, would direct the OCC to keep a detailed directory of large-scale data centers.
House Bill 3397 asks the commission to create a separate classification for big energy consumers like data centers. The legislation is meant to prevent other classes of rate payers, like residential homes, from paying “unwarranted costs.”
One bill aims to temporarily shut down the introduction of data centers.
Senate Bill 1488, authored by Sen. Kendal Sacchieri, R-Blanchard, would place a moratorium on new builds until November 1, 2029. In the meantime, the OCC would be instructed to put together a study on impacts to water supply, utility rates and property values.
Sacchieri said in a news release that potentially significant environmental effects from the large electricity consumers have gone unexplored.
“We must be sincere in addressing these unknowns and finding the best solutions for the erection of these very large facilities,” she said. “There may be better solutions out there than what we are currently doing — which is allowing data centers to be sited anywhere and everywhere without thinking through the long-term effects and repercussions.”
In a bid to rein in rising electricity rates, Rep. Brad Boles, R-Marlow, filed House Bill 2992. The measure is intended to keep regular consumers from paying higher utility rates as more data centers are proposed in the state.
"This bill is about protecting ratepayers and making sure massive energy users cover the infrastructure needed to support their operations instead of shifting that burden onto families and small businesses,” Boles, who is running for a seat with the Corporation Commission, wrote in a news release.
Some bills aim to tighten rules around which entities decide on the fate of large electricity users or energy projects and who can own them.
House Bill 3095, authored by Rep. Molly Jenkins, R-Coyle, would require landowners to vote for projects like data centers, wind energy infrastructure, battery storage and carbon capture. Residents within a five-mile radius of the proposals would be part of an election process to decide on the projects.
Sen. Warren Hamilton’s Senate Bill 1706 prevents entities outside of the U.S. from renting, leasing or controlling data centers in Oklahoma.
“Under no circumstances can we permit non-citizens to gain access to our lands, resources or personal data,” the McCurtain republican said in a news release.
Lawmakers address energy industries and water conservation
Senate Bill 1474, introduced by Sen. Mary Boren, D-Norman, would direct the OCC to charge a 1 cent fee per barrel on water produced as a byproduct of oil and gas drilling. Still, operators can deduct water that is recycled or reused. It also asks the commission to impose a $25 fee per acre for surface disturbance from oil and gas operations on agricultural land.
Owners of wind and solar energy facilities would need to file a $100,000 surety bond with the state under Hamilton’s Senate Bill 1510. The money would be used for potential damages to nearby land.
Senate Bill 1935, authored by Sen. Casey Murdock, R-Felt, proposes the Commercial Solar Facility Setback Act. The measure would ban utility-scale solar projects from being built within 125 feet of a residence, unless the homeowner signs a waiver. It would ensure that the setback requirements are measured from the closest electric generating equipment to the residence property line.
Sen. David Bullard, R-Durant, introduced Senate Bill 1917, which would ban solar projects from being installed on agricultural land. Single-family homes and commercial properties would still be allowed to host solar panels.
Ahead of the Corporation Commission’s March 7 deadline to produce a nuclear energy feasibility study, one lawmaker proposed creating a team dedicated to the energy industry.
House Bill 3175, authored by Rep. Nick Archer, R-Elk City, would establish a state nuclear energy office designed to promote the industry and facilitate a transition toward using nuclear energy. The law includes hiring a director to serve under the governor to manage the program.
A water proposal, Senate Bill 1933, would ban diversion from the Kiamichi River for “nonlocal municipalities or counties for profit, power generation or battery or data storage.” The measure, written by Bullard , also prohibits building dams on the river or using land within four miles for agriculture.
Potential changes to the Corporation Commission and recruitment of a national laboratory
A shell bill, which doesn’t contain specific language, targets the OCC. House Bill 3992, written by Rep. Trey Caldwell, R-Faxon, would create the Corporation Commission Modernization Act of 2026. Lawmakers could add to the bill later in the session.
Archer’s House Bill 3176 is intended to attract a national lab by creating the Oklahoma Gas, Artificial Intelligence and Space Research Hub (GAS Hub). The hub wouldn’t be focused on a specific project, according to a news release, but would be used to organize for future opportunities.
"We have the talent and resources available, but we need Oklahoma to be in position when the starting gun goes off, so we don't miss our chance,” Archer said in the release.
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