Oklahoma Electric Rate Update
Liberty files to adjust its Oklahoma electric rates in first quarter of 2027
Updated rates would recover costs for infrastructure and investments completed over the last five years to support reliability and improve service, lower generation fuel costs, and meet rising energy demand.
Since 2022, Liberty has invested more than $31 million to strengthen the electric system and energy grid serving Oklahoma homes and businesses. This amount reflects the Oklahoma portion of an overall investment in Liberty's system serving Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. This investment upgraded aging infrastructure and modernized technology to support reliability and increased capacity to strengthen grid resilience during extreme weather. It also made energy generation more cost-effective during periods of high energy demand and enabled more convenient and accessible service for customers.
To seek cost recovery for this investment, on August 14, 2026, The Empire District Electric Company, doing business as Liberty, filed a request with the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC) to adjust electric base rates. If approved by the OCC, new rates would take effect in the first quarter of 2027.
What this means for Oklahoma customers
The rate update process can take several months as the OCC and other stakeholders carefully review Liberty’s request to determine whether the rate changes are fair and reasonable and reflect Liberty’s obligation to serve customers safely and reliably.
Liberty recognizes the impact of rising energy bills on customers. To help address this, Liberty proposes to phase in new rates over two years as part of this rate change request.
If the OCC approves the proposed rates, the average residential electric customer using about 1,000 kilowatt hours per month would see a total monthly bill adjustment of about:
- $29.51 in year one (an approximately 18% change over current rates), and
- $29.51 in year two (an approximately 15.5% change over year one).
The current total monthly bill, including riders, for Oklahoma residential customers using 1,000 kilowatt-hours of energy is approximately $160.67. The proposed total monthly bill in year one would increase to approximately $190.18 and in year two to approximately $219.69.
Here’s what we completed for Oklahoma customers
The investments that are part of Liberty’s rate change request include:
- Support for reliability with the addition of upgraded substations
- Increased capacity to meet rising energy demand from improvements to our generation plants
- Hardening our system against extreme weather through the reinforcement or replacement of utility poles, upgrades to transmission and distribution lines, and vegetation management
- Reducing the number of customers impacted by outages and speeding up outage restoration with protective devices that sectionalize existing circuits to isolate damage
- Providing customers with more access to energy information and more options for convenient service through a new My Account platform and mobile app with email and text notifications for billing and outages
At a Glance
Requested rates reflect more than $31 million in completed capital investments benefiting our approximately 4,932 Oklahoma customers.
- Upgrades to aging infrastructure and technology to help us keep the lights on and respond quickly to prevent and shorten outages
- Strengthening Liberty's system against extreme weather and other challenges caused by storms
- Increased generation capacity to meet rising energy demand
- New My Account platform and mobile app with email and text notifications for billing and outages
If approved by the OCC, the proposed rate change would begin to take effect in the first quarter of 2027 and be phased in over two years to help lessen the impact on customer bills.
Frequently Asked Questions
A rate update request is a public regulatory review process in which a utility must demonstrate to its state public service commission why a proposed change in rates is needed based on its documented costs to provide service to its customers.
In Oklahoma, the Oklahoma Corporate Commission sets rates for regulated utilities like Liberty. The Commission must determine if new rates are just and reasonable.
Like all utilities and other businesses, Liberty must make regular investments in its system to continue providing the safe and reliable service our customers expect. Since 2022, Liberty has invested more than $31 million in capital investments intended to benefit Oklahoma customers including:
- Strengthening Liberty’s system against extreme weather
- Improving grid reliability and resilience
- Enhancing energy generation capacity to meet rising demand
- Liberty recognizes the impact of rising energy bills on customers. To help address this, Liberty is requesting that new rates be phased in over two years.
- As part of the filing, Liberty is also seeking to continue and make permanent its low-income affordability program (LIAP), which provides financial assistance for qualifying customers.
- Liberty provides payment options to help customers who may be experiencing financial hardship and can connect customers with local agencies that provide utility bill assistance.
- Liberty offers payment options for residential and business customers to allow for additional time to spread out past-due balances and make payments more manageable. Customers can learn more about our assistance options here or by calling our Customer Care team at 1-800-206-2300.
- Liberty has a list of various agencies that may be able to provide financial assistance for some portion of the utility bill. This list is available here, or customers can call our Customer Care team at 1-800-206-2300 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday - Friday.
- Liberty offers assistance programs that customers may qualify for depending on income and account standing. Call 1-800-206-2300 to speak to a Customer Care representative to discuss the payment assistance options that may work best for you.