Circuit engineering districts and county energy district authorities are allowed by state statute.
Eleven western Oklahoma counties formed Circuit Engineering District #7 in October 1998.
By state law, the board of county commissioners of any county in this state “may create a circuit engineering district with any other county or counties. The objectives of the circuit engineering district” shall include:
“To allow county governments to make the most efficient use of their powers by enabling them to cooperate with each other and other units of government on a basis of mutual advantage and thereby to provide services and facilities in a manner and pursuant to forms of governmental organization that will accord best with geographic, economic, population and other factors influencing the needs and development of county government;
“To provide research and research support to county government; “To provide assistance to county governments in performing the functions delegated by law including, but not limited to, the operation of road maintenance, construction, inspection, and equipment purchases and management;
“To provide services to counties in a coordinated manner that will improve the quality of the transportation system and be cost-effective.”
Further, circuit engineering districts may, by affirmative vote of their board, “determine that the association representing the county commissioners of Oklahoma be designated to negotiate for services, required by law or necessity, on behalf of the circuit engineering districts.”
Circuit engineering districts also “[h]ave the power to conduct business, ... incur expenses, and contract for services so long as such business furthers the provisions of this act;”
Circuit Engineering District #7 created the CED #7 County Energy District Authority, a public trust, in October 2010 pursuant to the Oklahoma Energy Independence Act.
CED7 and the CED #7 County Energy District Authority contracted with each other in 2012 to create a joint venture to produce and sell an asphalt emulsion under the name of “7 Oil Joint Venture.”