The Oklahoma Corporation Commission approved the interim order on Nov. 5, with Commissioners Todd Hiett and Brian Bingman voting in favor and Chair Kim David dissenting, an OCC spokesperson confirmed.

PSO said the changes will show up in the December billing cycle, but the utility is still calculating exactly how the decision will affect household bills.

The approved order departs from a settlement PSO had supported. That settlement would have produced roughly a 1% residential increase, according to the company. Instead, the commission's decision reallocates costs among customer classes — raising the impact on residential customers and lowering it on industrial users compared with the settlement.

An OCC spokesperson said a reported 3.55% figure reflects what PSO has indicated to the commission's Public Utility Division, but staff must review the company's updated financial calculations before confirming the impacts. Customers should not assume that figure means an additional 3.55% on their current bills.

Under the order, excess temporary collections must be returned with interest within 90 days after revised tariffs take effect. Refunds are allocated among customer classes based on the excess collected from them, and each bill's refund portion must appear as a visible line item. PSO confirmed that industrial customers will receive refunds on interim collections, but residential customers will not.

The OCC spokesperson separately said the agency could not yet confirm refund eligibility because staff still needs to review PSO's updated financials.

The order requires PSO to submit updated accounting and a revised cost-of-service study within six calendar days of Thursday's decision. It then provides an opportunity for objections before revised tariffs are submitted for regulatory approval. New rates would apply beginning with the first regular billing cycle after those tariffs are approved.

The decision has drawn attention from Tulsa-area residents and advocates who work with families struggling to cover basic expenses.

Deni Fohler, who works with the Tulsa ministry Isaiah 58, said helping families manage costs has become increasingly difficult. The ministry assists with rent, groceries and other needs.

“I can't even begin to tell you how hard this is,” Fohler said.

She described a family that had their electricity disconnected and is now living in their car because they could not afford both rent and utility bills. Her account illustrates the combined burden of household expenses; it does not establish that a specific PSO rate change caused the family's housing situation.

Viewers have also raised questions about why higher rates are needed when PSO remains profitable. PSO reported approximately $252 million in net income for 2025, compared with about $249 million in 2024, according to its annual financial filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Those figures represent PSO's earnings, separate from parent company American Electric Power's total profits. PSO's responses to questions did not specifically address how those earnings factor into the need for higher rates.

PSO said the approved order has a larger bill impact on residential customers than the settlement it advocated for. The company also noted that the order excluded tracking a portion of transmission costs and included changes involving certain tax items. PSO expects the decision could lead to another base rate case, as acknowledged by the commissioners who voted yes. That expectation is not another approved increase.

The decision is formally titled an “Interim Order” because certain issues involving power-supply arrangements for large electricity users remain open. It allows rate changes to proceed through the tariff-approval process while those issues continue.

PSO said it is still calculating the effect of Thursday's vote on customer bills. The OCC's review of PSO's refund calculations and customer eligibility, as well as impacts on commercial and nonprofit accounts, also remains pending.