With any luck, you were able to have a long holiday weekend free from the sort of news coverage that can add stress to your daily life.
Of course, now that you’ve returned to your normal routine, it’s worth knowing that one of the state’s major investor-owned utilities has a natural gas plant purchase proposal pending before the Oklahoma Corporation Commission. It’s also worth knowing that a bill in the Legislature about wind farm setback requirements has stalled out — for now.
And, of course, a federal judge has temporarily blocked a bill from last year’s session from taking effect while a legal challenge continues. Read on to learn more about those three issues and the criminal charges filed — for two separate incidents in two separate counties — against a former police officer.
PSO pitches power plant purchase to Oklahoma Corporation Commission amid backlash
Public Service Company of Oklahoma defended its proposal to purchase the Green Country Power Plant before the Oklahoma Corporation Commission last week after an administrative judge recommended the board deny the acquisition.
“The report of the (administrative law judge) ignores and fails to mention some very key pieces of evidence,” PSO attorney Jack Fite said.
PSO is seeking authority to pass along $753 million of the purchase price to ratepayers, saying the power plant is necessary to meet growing electricity demand. But according to the administrative law judge, Carly Ortel, the acquisition’s costs are unpredictable and will result in higher monthly rates for customers.
“The costs associated with Green Country are unreasonable and largely unknown,” Ortel said in her report.
PSO offered $730 million for the 23-year-old Jenks power plant, which sits near the bank of the Arkansas Rive. Both the cost and age of the power plant have raised questions from energy consumer groups and the Attorney General’s Office.
Chase Snodgrass, deputy attorney general, said Attorney General Gentner Drummond recognizes a need for greater energy capacity and approves of the price. But Snodgrass said Drummond is still withholding support for the proposal.
“If the company wants the attorney general to support this project, then we need some level of safeguards for customers to hold the company accountable to their estimates,” Snodgrass said.
Commissioner Todd Hiett brought forth additional concerns about whether the price PSO offered is fair considering the natural gas power plant’s age. Petroleum Alliance of Oklahoma attorney David Jacobson and AARP Oklahoma attorney Adam Singer said they are concerned about consumers bearing the cost of the power plant, urging the commissioners to deny PSO’s proposal.
“This Green Country facility is just simply too expensive for pre-approval, and (…) at this point about half its life has already been used up,” Jacobson said. “PSO’s acquisition of the Green Country facility will not add to the overall electric generation for the state, it just simply shifts the ownership of a currently existing facility.”
Speaking to the OCC on Monday, May 19, Fite acknowledged the power plant acquisition will have impacts on consumers, with the company asking commissioners to approve adding $7.24 a month to typical customer bills.
“There’s no justification that I heard as to why customers should be able to get the benefits of a power plant without having to pay anything for it,” Fite said. “That’s certainly not the way the regulation has run in the past.”
Tom Schroedter, executive director and general counsel of Oklahoma Industrial Energy Consumers, said the commission should deny the company’s proposal based on the judge’s report. Schroedter, voicing a different concern than others who spoke to the OCC, claimed PSO violated the commission’s competitive bidding rules.
“The competitive bidding rules provide that you’re going to go out and competitively bid when you need new generation. They didn’t do that,” Schroedter said. “So unfortunately, we don’t know what a competitive bid would have resulted in and how Green Country would have been evaluated in that competitive bid.”
Commissioners met again Wednesday and briefly discussed the proposal. Commission Chairwoman Kim David said although she doesn’t like the market price, the deal would be a good one for PSO to acquire the power plant. However, David was receptive to some criticism, saying she wants to increase protections for consumers if the commission permits PSO to purchase the facility.
“It’s a tough one, but I would like to be able to put as much guardrails in this if we do vote to allow this,” David said. “We (should) have as many guardrails in place to protect the rate payer moving forward.”
Hiett said he remained undecided on whether to grant approval of PSO’s proposal. He added that the case is “very messy” regarding whether a need for energy is established and whether proper methodology has been used to assess the power plant’s value.
“I think the [administrative law judge] presented solid basis for a rejection, but that doesn’t mean we should reject,” Hiett said. “Just because there’s solid legal basis, there may be other values that need to be considered.”
Though the commission did not make a decision last week, David said she, Hiett and Commissioner Brian Bingman will revisit the issue shortly.
Health care groups launch effort to combat measles spread
With the Oklahoma State Department of Health identifying 17 measles cases in Oklahoma — 14 confirmed and three probable — as of May 23, state health care groups have launched an effort intended to curb the spread.
The Oklahoma Alliance for Healthy Families, OU Children’s Hospital and the Oklahoma State Medical Association are partnering to assist schools in encouraging vaccination against the disease. The groups have developed a toolkit for schools, which includes a flyer and social media posts for parental outreach.
“In today’s environment of information overload, it can be challenging for parents to find trustworthy information on measles and immunizations. While it can be easy to turn to the internet for answers, there’s also a great deal of misinformation packaged to look like science,” OSMA President Sumit Nanda said in a press release. “When it comes to determining what’s best for your family, I encourage families who have questions about immunizations and measles to ask their pediatrician, family physician or other trusted doctor.”
This effort comes after OSDH issued a memo at the beginning of May to school administrators, advising them to encourage childhood immunization, especially to families who have submitted vaccination exemption forms.
“[We have] recently seen several measles cases, and we’ve activated hospital-wide protocols to respond,” added Donna Tyungu, pediatric disease section chief at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine. “With Oklahoma’s [measles mumps and rubella] vaccination rate for kindergartners at approximately 88 percent, we must work toward the 95 percent threshold needed to stop the spread of this highly contagious virus. As both a physician and a mother, I urge families to vaccinate; it’s the most effective way to protect children from the serious, potentially life-threatening complications of measles.”
According to OSDH, measles is significantly more contagious than other respiratory viruses such as influenza, RSV and COVID-19. In a room of unvaccinated individuals, nine out of 10 will contract the disease, per the health care groups. Exposure to measles has been identified in Cleveland and Sequoyah counties, according to the agency.
The groups wrote in their press release that the disease also causes a high rate of hospitalizations, with about one of every five cases requiring hospitalization. Children and teens have made up 32 percent of measles hospitalizations in 2025.
“We urge all caregivers to consider their response to the measles outbreak, with Oklahoma’s most vulnerable populations in mind. Students in classrooms, children in summer camps and babies too young to be immunized make up some of the at-risk groups,” said Steven Crawford, Oklahoma Alliance for Healthy Families chairperson. “Make the choice to protect your child for life by having them immunized. It’s the best protection we have.”
Former Oilton police officer charged for two incidence 5 years apart
(Editor’s note: The following section of this article details an allegation of rape.)
Former Oilton police officer Joseph Beers is facing five criminal counts in two different counties for separate incidents investigated by the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation. In Creek County, beers is facing charges of aggravated assault and battery, kidnapping and trespassing following an altercation with a man on his property. In Rogers County, Beers is facing charges of sexual assault and rape in the second degree for his actions when responding to an incapacitated motorist in 2019.
In late March 2024, the Creek County district attorney’s office requested OSBI to investigate allegations that beers assaulted 76-year-old Willard Walbridge Jr. after Beers attempted to confront two people he believed were soliciting the sale of solar panels without a municipal license.
“While on Walbridge’s property, (not within Oilton Police jurisdiction) Beers grabbed Walbridge and attempted to handcuff him,” OSBI agent Steve Tanner wrote in a probable cause affidavit. “It appeared in the video Beers was attempting to take Walbridge into custody and confine him from free movement, while still on Walbridge’s property. Beers slammed Walbridge to the ground at which time Walbridge had a heart incident incapacitating him. Walbridge was transported to Cushing Hospital. Walbridge received several bruises from being slammed to the ground.”
Tanner wrote that Walbridge had mistakenly thought the solicitors were representatives of a solar panel company he had contacted about the product, and he repeatedly told Beers to leave his property because the people were there at his request.
“Beers told those guys to get in their car and leave, which they did not do Walbridge got in Beers’ face and told him he was on county property and Walbridge wanted Beers off of his property. Walbridge did have a bit of a temper and he did not back up for nothing. Walbridge wanted, and told Beers several times to get off of his property and Beers did not leave,” Tanner wrote. “Beers put his hands on Walbridge to cuff him. Walbridge said to Beers, ‘You don’t put your hands on me, especially not here [on my property].’ Walbridge said Beers had a chance to de-escalate at the time he arrived at Walbridge’s property, but Beers did not. Instead, Beers continued to bark orders to Walbridge and Walbridge’s visitors.”
At some point during that investigation of Beers’ actions, Rogers County District Attorney Matt Ballard asked OSBI to investigate an allegation of rape against Beers from August 2019. According to a probable cause affidavit filed by OSBI agent Brendan Burke, Beers responded to a call about a motorist who had realized she was lost while heavily intoxicated on State Highway 412 near Oilton.
Burke wrote:
[The victim] remembered a police officer knocking on the door to the window. The officer shined a light into [her] vehicle. [She] had her nurse identification badge hanging on her rearview mirror. Her son’s scooter was also lying in the back seat. The officer told [her] that “she had a lot to lose.”
The officer then asked [her] to return to his patrol vehicle and sit inside. The officer took [her] driver’s license and ran her information. The officer informed [her] that he would let [her] call her mother to pick [her] up if he were allowed to touch [her]. The officer stuck his hand up [her] shirt and touched her bare breasts. The officer then stuck his hand down [her] pants and digitally penetrated [her] vagina. The officer identified himself as Joe Baker to [her] parents. It was not till after contacting Rogers Count that [she] learned the officer’s name was Joseph Beers.
[She woke up to a Facebook message from J.B. Baker, asking if [she] made it home OK. [She] found it odd for an officer to reach out over Facebook to see if someone made it home. [She] began to research who Joe Baker was. In the text conversation, [she] confronted Beers about the incident, and Beers became defensive, asking, “Do I have to worry about ruining my life.” [The victim] never felt free to leave during the Aug. 9, 2019, encounter. Beers implied that [she] must do what Beers said, or [she] could go to jail.
Beers turned himself in to the Creek County Sheriff’s Office on May 16. He was booked into the Creek County Jail and later transported to the Rogers County Jail. A federal lawsuit filed by Walbridge against Beers in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma is pending.
Judge grants temporary restraining order against Oklahoma immigration law
A federal judge granted a temporary restraining order May 20 to block enforcement of a controversial Oklahoma law intended to curb illegal immigration in the state.
HB 4156, passed by the Legislature and signed into law last year by Gov. Kevin Stitt, created the crime of “impermissible occupation” for any “non-citizen or national of the United States” to reside in the state without permission or federal legal authorization.
The crime of “impermissible occupation” carries a misdemeanor charge on first offense and felony on second offense. The charges carry potential fines and jail time, while also requiring offenders to leave the state within 72 hours of release from custody.
U.S. District Judge Bernard Jones of the Western District of Oklahoma issued the order, saying it will expire in two weeks “unless extended for good cause or dissolved or modified sooner.” As it stands, the restraining order is set to expire Tuesday, June 3.
Though Stitt signed the bill into law last year, federal lawsuits have since delayed its enforcement. Organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union have continued to push back against the law, filing an initial lawsuit in May 2024.
Once President Donald Trump took office, however, the federal government dropped its challenge to the law. The ACLU filed an amended lawsuit with additional plaintiffs on May 13, asking for a temporary restraining order, which Bernard granted.
In his order, Jones said state politicians’ frustrations about undocumented immigration are not lost on the court. However, Jones said their concerns cannot “override constitutional design.”
“Based on the comprehensive and exhaustive immigration framework that Congress designed, the Court is left with one conclusion: HB 4156 must fail,” Bernard wrote.
Tamya Cox-Touré, executive director for the ACLU of Oklahoma, said in a statement that the judge’s decision is a victory for the state’s immigrant community. She added that HB 4156 contributes to damaging political rhetoric creating fear among Oklahomans.
“No matter what someone looks like, sounds like, or what their immigration status may be, they should feel safe in their own communities,” Cox-Touré said. “We will continue to fight for the rights and dignity of immigrants and their families.”
Attorney General Gentner Drummond has steadfastly supported the law’s enforcement. Drummond released a statement following the judge’s order, calling it “outrageous” and “bewildering.”
“In the name of federal law, the court is protecting admitted lawbreakers from federal and state consequences,” Drummond said in a press release. “This is perverse, contrary to the rule of law, and we will be evaluating all options for challenging the ruling.”
Paxton: Wind farm setback bill stalled this session
SB 2, one of the most controversial proposals during this year’s regular session of the Oklahoma Legislature, is not receiving further action in the State Senate owing to the body’s “final action rule,” Senate President Pro Tempore Lonnie Paxton has announced.
Described by lawmakers as an effort to balance competing property rights, SB 2 and a similar bill, HB 2751, proposed slightly different versions of new requirements on how far wind turbines must be set back from non-participating properties. Combined, versions of the bills were voted down three separate times by different bodies of the Legislature this year.
After the Senate Energy Committee voted down HB 2751, the House amended SB 2 to include virtually the same language in HB 2751. That House floor vote failed, although it was reconsidered and advanced the next day.
Ultimately, Paxton (R-Tuttle) called the House version a “massive violation” of private property rights and announced that there was no reason for the Senate to vote again on a version that had died in one of its committees.
“I made the decision to hit pause on this bill because it violates the Senate’s final action rule, as legislation with this language already failed in the Senate Energy Committee,” Paxton wrote in a statement. “In its current form, this bill would arguably legislate an industry out of business and likely draw legal challenges.”
While legislative leaders functionally can — and frequently do — change any rule they would like to further their goals, Senate Rule 6.7 states:
If final action is such as to defeat an amendment, a bill or a resolution, no other amendment, bill or resolution having the same effect and covering the same specific or substantially similar subject matter shall be considered by the Senate during either session of the current Legislature.
Paxton announced his decision in a press release.
“Furthermore, politics, misinformation and petty personal agendas have co-opted the debate on this bill, resulting in senators being harassed and making it nearly impossible to have a serious, rational policy discussion on this bill and other wind energy regulations this late in session,” Paxton said. “I think the best path forward for this legislation is to hit pause and find a better path forward where everyone can come to a reasonable agreement.”
(Clarification: This article was updated at 2:45 p.m. Wednesday, May 28, to clarify that the Creek County investigation regarding Joseph Beers was initiated in 2024. It was also updated to include reference to a federal lawsuit pending against Beers.)
(Editor’s note: The Oklahoma State Medical Association, the Petroleum Alliance of Oklahoma and Public Service Company of Oklahoma are all charitable sponsors of the Sustainable Journalism Foundation.)
