Shown verbatim: the complete text as captured from the official PDF posted by the Oklahoma Legislature, fetched 2026-07-23. Page and line markers are part of the official record; nothing is edited or removed. The official bill page.
1 STATE OF OKLAHOMA
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2 2nd Session of the 60th Legislature (2026)
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3 SENATE BILL 1935 By: Murdock
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7 AS INTRODUCED
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8 An Act relating to solar setbacks; creating the
8 Commercial Solar Facility Setback Act; providing
9 short title; defining terms; establishing certain
9 setback requirements; stating criteria for which
10 certain agreement applies; clarifying scope of
10 application; providing for noncodification; providing
11 for codification; and providing an effective date.
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14 BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
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15 SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law not to be
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16 codified in the Oklahoma Statutes reads as follows:
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17 This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Commercial
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18 Solar Facility Setback Act".
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19 SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
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20 in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 810 of Title 17, unless there is
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21 created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
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22 A. As used in this section:
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23 1. "Balance of plant systems" means the electrical, structural,
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24 mechanical, communications, and civil systems necessary to support,
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Req. No. 3334 Page 1
1 operate, monitor, and deliver energy from a utility-scale solar
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2 energy facility, excluding the photovoltaic modules. Balance of
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3 plant systems includes inverters, transformers, wiring and
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4 collection systems, racing or tracking equipment, foundations, site
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5 communications and control systems, access roads, drainage
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6 improvements, and other supporting infrastructure located within the
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7 project boundary;
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8 2. "Original generation interconnection agreement date" means
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9 the effective date of the first executed generation interconnection
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10 agreement (GIA) between a generation facility and the Southwest
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11 Power Pool (SPP) under the Open Access Transmission Tariff (OATT) of
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12 the SPP that establishes the facility's initial interconnection
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13 rights and obligations;
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14 3. "Overhead infrastructure" means distribution- and
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15 transmission-related equipment that is not buried or otherwise
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16 primarily attached to the ground;
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17 4. "Participating residence" means a residence located on a
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18 parcel that is subject to a written agreement with the owner or
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19 operator of a utility-scale solar energy facility concerning siting,
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20 compensation, easement, or participation;
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21 5. "Repowering" means the replacement, upgrade, or
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22 refurbishment of one or more components of a utility-scale energy
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23 facility including photovoltaic modules, inverters, racking, wiring,
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24 electrical equipment, or balance of plant systems without relocating
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1 the facility's original point of interconnection or expanding the
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2 project boundary. Repowering shall not mean new construction,
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3 expansion, or reconfiguration for the purposes of applying or
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4 recalculating any setback established under this section including,
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5 but not limited to, setbacks from residences, property lines, public
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6 roads, or non-project-related overhead infrastructure;
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7 6. "Residence" means a single-family detached dwelling that the
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8 occupant owns or leases and uses as the individual's principal place
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9 of dwelling for at least nine (9) consecutive months during each
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10 calendar year and is the individual's declared and actual home for
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11 that period as evidenced by the listed address on two or more of the
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12 following documents: driver license, state income tax filing, voter
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13 registration, or nine (9) months of utility bills. Residence does
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14 not include:
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15 a. any dwelling held primarily for seasonal,
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16 recreational, vacation, or secondary-home use,
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17 b. any mobile home, manufactured home, house trailer,
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18 tiny home on wheels, recreational vehicle, or other
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19 relocatable structure, unless installed on a permanent
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20 foundation, or
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21 c. any multi-unit residential structure including, but
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22 not limited to, condominiums, townhouses, or apartment
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23 buildings; and
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1 7. "Utility-scale solar energy facility" means an electric
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2 generating facility that uses photovoltaic or solar-thermal
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3 technologies with a nameplate capacity greater than one (1) megawatt
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4 alternating current (AC) designed to deliver energy to the electric
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5 grid and not primarily to on-site load.
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6 B. 1. Utility-scale solar energy facilities, excluding
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7 residential solar energy panels, shall not be located within one
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8 hundred twenty-five (125) feet of a participating or non-
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9 participating residence unless this requirement is waived in writing
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10 by the residence owner. Non-project-related overhead infrastructure
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11 shall not be located within fifty (50) feet of the edge of a public
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12 road; provided, however, this shall not apply to project-related
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13 overhead interconnection lines including generation interconnect
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14 lines where a crossing or necessary alignment is required to reach
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15 the point of interconnection.
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16 2. The setback provisions established in paragraph 1 of this
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17 subsection shall be measured using industry standard practices and
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18 no extra setback or buffer shall be required. Setbacks shall be
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19 measured from the closest electric generating equipment such as
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20 solar panels, inverters, or transformers to the residence or
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21 property line. Fences, access roads, operations buildings, and
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22 similar facilities are not subject to the setback requirements as
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23 provided in this subsection.
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1 C. 1. Repowering of a utility-scale solar energy facility
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2 shall not require the application of new or modified setbacks
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3 adopted after the facility's original GIA date. Setbacks applicable
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4 to the facility at the time of the original GIA date shall remain as
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5 the controlling setbacks for the repowered facility.
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6 2. a. An amendment or replacement of the GIA shall not
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7 create a new original GIA date unless the SPP
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8 determines under the OATT that the change is a
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9 material modification and the change either:
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10 (1) relocates the point of interconnection, or
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11 (2) increases the facility's net nameplate capacity
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12 by more than twenty percent (20%) and requires a
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13 new system-impact study.
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14 b. The repowering of a utility-scale solar energy
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15 facility shall not be considered a material change for
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16 purposes of determining or resetting the facility's
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17 original GIA date and shall not require a new or
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18 restated GIA unless the owner seeks to relocate the
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19 point of interconnection or expand the project
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20 boundary.
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21 c. Any other administrative or technical revision shall
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22 not reset the original GIA date.
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23 D. The provisions of this section shall not apply to
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24 residential solar energy panels.
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1 SECTION 3. This act shall become effective November 1, 2026.
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3 60-2-3334 CN 1/15/2026 8:56:32 AM
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Req. No. 3334 Page 6Every fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record.