Talk about bad timing.
With the country in a war with Iran that has spiked up oil prices and what the consumer pays at the gas pump, the Arizona Corporation Commission, in a March 4 5-0 vote, thought now was the best time to repeal its Renewable Energy Standard and Tariff (REST) Mandate that required utility companies to use 15 percent of alternative-clean energy sources to deliver power to their customers.
Passed in 2006, the current Commission justified its move in the below statement:
“The mandates are no longer needed, and the costs are no longer justified. Twenty years have passed since the ACC adopted the REST rules. During that time, APS, TEP, and UNSE have collected more than $2.3 Billion in REST surcharges from all customer classes to meet these mandates. The renewable energy landscape has changed dramatically in the last two decades.”
With utility companies APS, TEP, and UNSE having exceeded the 15 percent threshold and seeing their move as a way to reduce utility costs for consumers, Commissioner Kevin Thompson offered:
“There is no disputing that Arizona’s current renewable portfolio is one of the most robust in the country and has the potential to thrive for the foreseeable future. While some point to the REST rules as a major impetus for that success, the time has come for the renewable mandate and the customer surcharges that have cost ratepayers billions of dollars to end. Industry must find a way to capitalize on the economics of renewables and demonstrate their reliability without relying upon subsidies or forcing ratepayers to pay for mandates that have outlived their useful life.”
It seems the Corporation Commission members have been letting the scene below from Naked Gun 2 1/2 guide their energy policies.
Please click here to watch.
Arizona Senate Democratic Leader Priya Sundareshan and the three Democratic candidates running for positions on the Corporation Commission see this mandate repeal differently.
In August 2025, Senator Sundareshan posted:
After the Commission held their vote, Senator Sundareshan wrote:
“Another episode of Republicans ignoring all the data and evidence in order to help billionaires profit on the backs of the people.”
Commenting to Blog for Arizona, she added:
“This is another example of Republicans in Arizona ignoring all the data and evidence (including that solar energy is cheaper than any other source) in order to help billionaires profit on the backs of regular Arizona ratepayers.”
Corporation Commission Candidate Clara Pratte commented to Blog for Arizona:
“The all-Republican Corporation Commission is why Arizona families are paying more for electricity every year.
The commissioners have been a rubber stamp for raising rates so utility companies can make more money than ever before. And now the commission is voting for policies that will further increase long-term costs.
It’s no accident that Arizonans are paying some of the highest electricity costs in the U.S. It’s the result of absent oversight by commissioners who work harder to please industry executives than to protect ratepayers.
Growing up on the Navajo Nation, I know what it’s like to struggle to afford water and electricity. Decisions like this only make it harder for Arizonans.
Now, as I raise my two boys, I am determined to ensure Arizonans have someone to fight for them.
I co-founded an energy company that provides affordable, reliable power to families across the Navajo and Hopi reservations. We can make smarter decisions about our state’s energy future if we elect the right people.
We need to put serious people in office who will fight for Arizonans.”
Another candidate, Derrick Espadas wrote to the Blog:
“Repealing the REST rules is a step backward for Arizona. For nearly two decades, these standards helped drive investment in solar, create local jobs, and move our state toward a more reliable and sustainable energy future. At an earlier hearing, the ACC staff described the rules as inert. I responded, “If they are inert, then having them exist has no effect, and instead of grandstanding the repeal they could be left as guides.” Scrapping them now sends the message-the ACC engages in partisan politics and a preference to support out of state energy providers rather than putting Arizona first. They consistently talk about protecting the rate payer while failing to back up their rhetoric with their vote.”
Third Corporation Commission Candidate Jonathan Hill offered to the Blog:
“We don’t need more politicians pushing backward ideas. We need lower bills.
Arizonans’ energy bills are through the roof because of Republican politicians who control the Arizona Corporation Commission.
It is irresponsible for the commissioners to undermine the most cheap and dependable energy sources we have today while favoring the most polluting and outdated ones.
As an engineer, it’s strange to me that our Arizona Corporation Commissioners aren’t doing everything they can to support the best technology to ensure energy independence and affordability. Instead, they’re trying to drag us back to the Stone Age to drive up profits and please Wall Street investors.
Arizona leaders should be working to lower electricity bills, not raise them.
Families are already paying too much for electricity. I’ll put affordability first.”
This is what happens when voters do not vote for down-ballot races or are not well educated on the purpose or importance of offices like the Arizona Corporation Commission, an agency regarded in many circles as the Grand Canyon State’s fourth branch of government.
In a time when incentives to invest in clean, affordable energy sources are under attack at the national and state levels, public servant activists need to do a better job of educating and stressing to the people why it is important to vote for the right candidates for the Arizona Corporation Commission.
Oil should be regarded as yesterday.
Solar and Wind should be treated as the energy sources of today and tomorrow.
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