Attorney General Mayes Warns of Rising Costs and Grid Unreliability as the Corporation Commission Initiates Repeal of Arizona’s Electric Energy Efficiency Standard

PHOENIX – Today, Attorney General Kris Mayes issued the following statement opposing the Arizona Corporation Commission's (ACC) vote to initiate the rulemaking process to repeal Arizona’s Electric Energy Efficiency Standard Rules (EEES Rules).  

“If Arizona removes this key consumer protection and economic policy, electricity bills will go up and the power grid could become less reliable as a result,” said Attorney General Mayes, “Now more than ever, Arizona’s monopoly utilities must answer to policies that cut costs and protect families. By pushing this repeal, the ACC is turning its back on the very ratepayers it’s meant to serve.”  

The ACC voted 5-0 to direct ACC Staff to file a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking with the Secretary of State’s Office to repeal the EEES Rules. In 2010, the ACC adopted the EEES Rules. The Rules required utilities like APS and TEP to invest in energy efficiency programs to save an amount of electricity equal to 22% of their prior year’s sales by 2020. The EES Rules have put real money back into Arizonans’ pockets—delivering billions of dollars in net benefits to households and businesses statewide. Those benefits include:  

• Avoiding investments in expensive new power plants, transmission lines, and distribution systems, which utilities profit from; 
• Avoiding unnecessary spending on fuel or power purchased on the wholesale market;
• Lowering customer utility bills while improving the comfort and safety of their homes; and
• Improving grid stability by shifting power demand away from the hottest and most expensive hours of the day. 

Utility programs funded by the EEES Rules are required to show that each dollar spent provided a positive return for ratepayers.  

In addition, the Attorney General sent a letter last month opposing the ACC’s initiation of a rulemaking process to repeal the Renewable Energy Standard and Tariff Rules (REST Rules) and highlighted the repeal would jeopardize the affordability and reliability of electricity for millions of Arizonans.  

Attorney General Mayes served as a Republican Commissioner on the ACC from 2003 - 2010 and was the Commission Chair from 2009 – 2010. She was instrumental in the adoption of both the EEES Rules and the REST Rules.