Arizona Court of Appeals Vacates APS Solar Charges, Clearing the Way for Their Elimination

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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PHOENIX, Ariz. – June 16, 2026 – The Arizona Court of Appeals has vacated the Arizona Corporation Commission's decision approving Arizona Public Service's (APS) solar-specific charges, including the Grid Access Charge (GAC) and the Legacy Solar Rate Increase (LSRI), marking a significant victory for Arizona's rooftop solar customers and the rule of law.

The Court concluded that the Commission's decision cannot stand and remanded the matter for further proceedings after finding that the process used to adopt the charges deprived affected parties of a meaningful opportunity to challenge them.

Importantly, the Court recognized that APS never proposed the solar-specific charges in its rate application and instead sought a uniform residential rate increase. The solar charges were introduced only after the evidentiary record had closed, leaving customers and stakeholders without an opportunity to fully address the proposal.

"This decision confirms what AriSEIA has argued from the beginning: Arizona's rooftop solar customers should not be singled out for discriminatory charges that were never properly proposed or supported," said Autumn Johnson, Executive Director of AriSEIA. "The Court has now vacated those charges, and the Commission should act quickly to eliminate both the Grid Access Charge and the Legacy Solar Rate Increase in the pending APS rate case."

The Commission itself previously found that APS had not demonstrated that rooftop solar customers impose unique costs warranting separate treatment. In this appeal, the Court further recognized that APS did not seek approval of the solar charges in the underlying case and that affected parties lacked meaningful notice that such charges were under consideration.

Rather than continue to defend charges that have now been vacated by the Court of Appeals, AriSEIA urges the Arizona Corporation Commission to use the ongoing APS rate case to permanently eliminate the use of a site load cost of service study and the GAC and LSRI and restore a fair, transparent, and evidence-based approach to ratemaking.

"The Commission has an opportunity to put this issue behind it," Johnson said. "Arizona should encourage customer investment in rooftop solar, not burden it with unlawful and discriminatory charges that have now been rejected by the courts."

For more than four years, AriSEIA has worked alongside its members, national partners, fellow appellants, and Arizona solar customers to challenge these charges and advocate for policies that are lawful, transparent, and support customer choice.

About AriSEIA
The Arizona Solar Energy Industries Association (AriSEIA) is a statewide nonprofit trade association representing the solar, storage, and electrification industry. AriSEIA's mission is to develop and support policies that create opportunities to advance Arizona's economy through solar energy, storage, and electrification. AriSEIA advocates for sustainable job creation in the deployment of solar and complementary technologies and collaborates with stakeholders to encourage utilization of Arizona's greatest natural resource: the sun.
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Media Contact
Autumn Johnson
520-240-4757
[email protected]

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