Contact Your Legislator

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Dear Official:

I urge you to vote NO on HB4097 the ROFR or STAR plan.

In all honesty, Right of First Refusal (ROFR) plans are deceptively simple, and today the values of competition and free enterprise are under threat. ROFR plans are cropping up all over the country and should be seen as a concerning erosion of our conservative principles.

This plan isn't about protecting the ratepayer (voters) or ensuring a level playing field. No, it's about consolidating power into the hands of a select few. Why is this policy necessary, why now? Why are large incumbent utilities pushing this idea all over the country?

As an Oklahoman, I believe in the power of competition to drive innovation, lower costs, and provide choice to consumers. But this ROFR plan? It's a direct assault on competition. By handing over exclusive rights to certain projects, it effectively shuts the door on any chance for new players to enter the game.

As your constituents, we deserve a utility system that works to our benefit and thrives on competition. As utility rates continue to rise, I urge you to fight for ratepayers across the state.
I urge you to vote NO on HB4097 the ROFR or STAR plan.

Sincerely,

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No On HB4097

If House Bill 4097 - Right of First Refusal (ROFR) passes, Oklahoma businesses and families will see higher bills.

Right of First Refusal legislation, or ROFR, gives special rights to utilities by limiting competition on who can build electric transmission lines and automatically grants current utility providers the right to build any new transmission lines in their service area. Tens of billions of dollars in new transmission lines are slated for development in the Midwest in the coming years.

ROFR laws raise constitutional questions and promote legal uncertainty. In 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit struck down Texas’s ROFR law because it discriminates against interstate commerce, in violation of the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution. The Iowa Supreme Court tossed the measure there calling it “rent-seeking protectionist legislation” that is “anti-competitive... Ultimately, the ROFR will impose higher costs on Iowans.

HB4097 can keep state regulators from considering the most cost-effective options for new projects, to the detriment of Oklahoma ratepayers. Implementation of ROFR in Oklahoma would impede competition in power supply, erect barriers to entry for new transmission-related technologies and would raise electricity prices for Oklahomans.

Competition works.

Cost reductions from competitively developed transmission can provide important rate relief to residential customers, especially as they face already endure significant increases.

By eliminating competition, you eliminate the benefits of cost caps and schedule commitments that free market competition brings. This means higher utility bills for businesses and families across Oklahoma.

Simply put, Oklahoma families and businesses cannot afford this burden.

We encourage you to email your legislator by filling out the information and tell them to stop harmful ROFR legislation and keep energy affordable to Oklahomans.