Tomorrow, Wednesday February 16th at 2:00 p.m. the Senate Committee on Natural Resources, Energy and Water will hear SB1631, electric energy; public policy; reliability. If passed, this bill will repeal the state statute that allows for retail energy competition. Sound familiar? It should. HB2101 failed on the house floor on Monday and it would have had the same impact.
I encourage you to oppose this bill with RTS and reach out to your state Senator to ask them to read up on the bill and not to take the word of lobbyists. It is bad for consumers, the climate, and for Arizona.
Learn more about this bill:
I will repeat my reasons for opposing any bill that eliminates the possibility of competition.
You may hear arguments that:
- A “deregulated” market would lead to Texas-style grid failures, or
- Allowing competition decreases the reliability of our power grid
The truth is:
- Utilities would continue to be regulated with prices set by the ACC, so not anybody can just throw electricity onto the grid
- This is a direct and targeted attack on rooftop solar. It deletes statutes that SRP customers are using to bring an antitrust claim against them because of SRP’s move to decimate rooftop solar
- Regulated competition drives down prices and allows customers the option to choose cleaner, cheaper energy to power their homes or businesses
- “Bad actors” in regulated competition can lose their license to serve and people can choose to do business with whoever they want
- People choosing a competitive provider will still pay the incumbent utility a fee for their services. This keeps the incumbent whole. Those that choose to stay on the incumbent still get the same service they have always had.
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