The NextEra Energy Resources wind company claims in federal court documents it has discovered Hinton did not properly follow state law in creating a 2015 ordinance to control wind farms 2 miles outside the city limits, an ordinance that led to a lawsuit challenging it.
NextEra’s claims were revealed in the lawsuit filed in Oklahoma City Federal court where District Judge Stephen P. Friot has ordered a status scheduling conference on March 6.
“The Ordinance is clearly intended to disrupt the Minco IV Project,” stated NextEra in a recent new filing in the case. ” For example, upon information and belief and according to published reports, Town of Hinton officials cited the development of the Minco IV Project as the reason behind the Ordinance. 21. Further investigation revealed that the Ordinance was not properly enacted.”
The Florida based company further alleged that while Hinton could have worked with a regional planning commission to create such an ordinance it did not act within compliance of state laws.
“Uon information and belief, and after a search of public records, the Town of Hinton and the Regional Planning Commission did not follow the proper procedures to consider and pass the Ordinance,” argued NextEra lawyers who claimed the Regional Planning Commission had no authority at the time it acted with the city of Hinton.
The latest filing claimed Hinton passed the ordinance creating the Regional Planning Commission at its Dec. 20, 2016 meeting. The council adopted an emergency clause to immediately implement the new ordinance.
Here is how the lawyers explained it in their court filing:
“However, this “Emergency” clause was invalid because it did not “state in a separate section the reasons why it is necessary that the measure become effective immediately” as required by 11 O.S. § 14-103. Therefore, Ordinance No. 2016-17 went into effect no earlier than 30 days after its passage, or January 19, 2017. Thus, the Regional Planning Commission did not yet have authority to act when it considered and recommended the Ordinance at its January 12, 2017 meeting. “
NextEra also said the Regional Planning Commission was not properly formed because it did not include the Chairman of the Board of County Commissioners of Caddo County and the County Engineer as required by law. Nor did the commission notify the Chairman or county engineer of the January 12, 2017 meeting when the ordinance was considered.
The lawsuit now claims the Regional Planning Commission also did not make a preliminary report, hold public hearings or submit a final report. It charged the town of Hinton did not wait to receive such a final report before it considered and acted upon the ordinance in alleged violation of the law.
Hinton’s response?
“Hinton is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief about the truth of the allegations set forth—-” was the city’s response to many of the claims made by NextEra. It made numerous denials to the charges and claimed NextEra had violated the Oklahoma Wind Energy Development Act by “failing to comply with the Act’s notice requirements.”
As for the tit for tat, Judge Friot or a federal civil jury will have to decide who’s right and who’s wrong.