energy

House Bill 2992 would create the Data Center Customer Protection Act of 2026

The legislation's progression comes weeks after the state published its nuclear energy feasibility study.

Armstrong currently serves on the board of Williams Companies, where he was CEO until last year.

Proposed legislation would allow companies to convert abandoned oil and gas wells for geothermal and energy storage use.

Sen. Casey Murdock, R-Felt, authored Senate Bill 1929, which passed the Senate Committee on Energy on Thursday.

Federal data show electricity consumption is up in the U.S. after more than a decade of little growth, partly because of data centers and other energy-hungry facilities. Average electricity prices are following the trend nationwide.

Among the largest single recurring budget requests before lawmakers this year is the Oklahoma Water Resources Board's $50 million investment into fixing the state's dire water infrastructure needs. One state senator hopes his bill will jumpstart the work.

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.

States, territories, tribal governments, municipalities and nonprofits were set to get $7 billion to develop residential solar installations in low-income communities. The grant program was designed under the Biden administration and recipients were announced in 2024.

The act, signed into law on July 4, will eliminate incentives for investing in wind and solar projects.