The Oklahoma Supreme Court moved ahead this week consolidating the three challenges of billions of dollars in rate hikes stemming from the 2021 Winter Storm Uri made by three Republican legislators.
The billions in increased costs were left on the backs of consumers after the Corporation Commission granted securitization and involve an estimated $5 billion to be paid over a period of at least 25 years.
The challenges were also against Corporation Commissioner Todd Hiett’s voting on the cases. They arose after claims were publicly made about Hiett’s drunkenness and incidents of sexual behavior at public conventions and receptions.
Within days after Reps. Tom Gann, Kevin West and Rick West filed a motion asking for the lawsuits involving Okahoma Natural Gas Company, Oklahoma Gas and Electric Company and Public Service Company of Oklahoma to be consolidated.
“The Court notes Appellants’ motions to consolidate filed on August 15, 2025. The motions to consolidate are granted.
These cases are hereby consolidated under surviving case no.
122991. All filing should be made in case no. 122991, with surviving caption of case no. 122991, and designated as “Case No. 122991 (cons. w/ 123020 and 123097),” wrote Chief Justice Dustin P. Rowe.
“The clerk of the corporation commission is directed to prepare one combined record for the appeals, and when ready, to file a Notice of Completion of Record in case No. 122991, to include all designated items in all three appeals.”
In the request for the consolidation, the legislators pointed out that their appeals were made within six weeks of each other and “none are likely to be substantially temporally impacted, regardless of which case’s briefing deadlines are applied to all.”
In what is called “Appellant’s Brief in Chief,” Rep. Gann said the legal issue was simple. “Is the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC) bound by Oklahoma law – including Ethics Rules and the Oklahoma Accountancy Act? Appellant says, “Yes.” The actions of the OCC assert, “No.”
Gann’s brief tells the court that the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC) failed to provide a required audit of the bonds in PSO’s most recent rate case. He also argues PSO’s original 2021 Uri costs that were securitized into the bonds were never audited either. Gann asserts the audit failures are fatal in both cases, making the OCC’s orders void.
Gann contends the Corporation Commisson “misapplied Statutes and ignored Ethics Rules” and that the effect of the errors “has been to cover up significant wrongdoing during and after the 2021 Winter Storm “resulting in millions of Oklahoma utility customers each paying thousands of dollars in illegitimate charges on their monthly bills for decades.”
“When Oklahoma law requires an audit, the Accountancy Act says it has to be done by independent, licensed CPAs following nationally recognized standards,” said Gann in a press release from the House of Representatives. Gann is a former internal auditor for Tulsa International Airport. “Unbelievably, the OCC allowed the utilities to audit themselves after the winter storm. And OCC employees who are not CPAs have performed fake audits of the bonds ever since.”
The brief says Oklahoma utilities PSO, Oklahoma Gas & Electric Co. (OG&E), Oklahoma Natural Gas (ONG) and CenterPoint/Summit paid some of the highest natural gas prices in U.S. history during two weeks in February 2021, incurring some $2.8 billion in debt. Interest and other expenses added another $2 billion, bringing the total cost of the bonds being paid by Oklahoma utility customers close to $5 billion.
He told the Justices in the filing that the thousands add up to billions for a handful of special interests and are being borne on the backs of Oklahoma seniors, single mothers and others struggling daily just to keep the lights on.
“Appellant asks this Court to end the coverup of what a 36-year veteran Commissioner has called “the largest fleecing of the Oklahoma ratepayer in the history of the state,” (R.15283) – during the course of which utility customers’ due process rights have been repeatedly violated (R.15688-98; R.14979-85) – and require the OCC to follow the law.”
He further asked the Court to reverse the OCC order tainted by its clearly erroneous interpretation of laws intended to prevent exactly the kind of wrongdoing that occurred here.
“This Court should afford a remedy for these terrible wrongs (Okla. Const., Art. II, § 6) and deter future wrongdoing. If this Court does not prohibit the fake audits and due process violations tainting this case, it will enable the coverup of the original 2021 Winter Storm “fleecing” to continue. It will also establish a precedent for using fake audits and conflicted commissioners to cover up millions more in illegitimate utility charges for decades to come.”
Gann’s full Brief in Chief can be read online here:
https://www.oscn.net/dockets/GetDocument.aspx?ct=appellate&bc=1062686746&cn=CU-122861&fmt=pdf
“A prior version of the article incorrectly implied that other “commissioners and some of their staff” were present at conventions and receptions where some of Hiett’s alleged drunkenness and incidents occurred. That statement was overly broad and therefore incorrect. We apologize for any confusion.”