Judge recommends PSO return $428M to utility customers

An administrative law judge that heard testimony in PSO’s pending rate case before the Oklahoma Corporation Commission is recommending the utility return an estimated $428 million in earnings to customers.

A recommendation the judge filed in the case states evidence and testimony indicates the company accumulated the income thanks to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act approved by Congress at the end of 2017.

Attorney General Mike Hunter, who filed cases in December that seek for regulated utilities to be required to pass through such earnings to customers, applauded the recommendation Thursday.

“The tax cut provides an opportunity for real savings for customers, especially during the summer months when energy usage rises along with the temperature,” Hunter stated in a release. “We hope the members of the Oklahoma Corporation Commission complete their review as quickly as possible to benefit PSO customers.”

The attorney general’s staff estimates the recommendation, if approved, would return approximately $23.85 to an average residential customer of PSO, spread over the remaining months of 2018. Local businesses and school districts would also see savings if the recommendation is approved.

PSO has about 547,000 electric customers in eastern and southwestern Oklahoma.