AARP Oklahoma Asks Supreme Court to Deny Utility Rate Increase

AARP Oklahoma has asked the Oklahoma State Supreme Court to deny a rate increase for utility customers and send the matter back to the Oklahoma Corporation Commission for reconsideration.

AARP filed a brief with the court voicing its opposition to an $81.4 million rate increase for more than half a million customers of American Electric Power-Public Service Company of Oklahoma (PSO.) The association contends that evidence in the case shows that PSO did not deserve such a large increase.

Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson and the Oklahoma Industrial Energy Consumers also are appealing legalities of the ruling.

The rate increase was approved by the Oklahoma Corporation Commission in January and represents the largest rate increase ever adopted by the Commission.

In its filing, AARP says the rate increase would be unaffordable for many older and low income residents and could force these segments of the population to choose between electricity and basic necessities like food, medicine and health care.

“This increase, which we believe is unfair and unreasonable, will have an enormous adverse impact on older and poor ratepayers of Oklahoma and the resulting burdens will be borne by the public at large,” said AARP State President Marjorie Lyons.

AARP advocates for affordable, cost-effective energy efficiency programs and successfully lobbied the Corporation Commission to adopt demand/energy efficiency rules last year. There are currently more than 442,000 AARP members in Oklahoma.