OCT. 18 NEWS: ARIZONA CORPORATION COMMISSION (ACC) UPDATES

Evidentiary hearings in the Arizona Public Service Company (APS) customer rate case complaint proceeding end

• As you may remember, several months ago, a group of APS customers launched a petition requesting that the ACC rehear the August 2017 APS rate case decision under Arizona Revised Statute 40-246. Under that statute, if at least 25 utility customers sign onto a complaint, legal proceedings at the Commission are automatically triggered. The petition has since been signed by more than 7,000 individuals.

• This petition ultimately led to a formal complaint proceeding (see Docket No. E-01345A-18-0002). Evidentiary hearings in the matter began on September 25th and ended on October 1st. Video of the hearings can be accessed here. 

• The hearings focused on whether or not the rates approved for APS customers by the Commission in August 2017 were reasonable; if the rate increase and available rate options had been well communicated to APS customers or not; and whether or not the impact on the average APS residential bill equates to a $6 monthly increase as APS and the Commission communicated when the rate increase was approved.

• Initial post-hearing briefs will be due on Oct. 26th and reply briefs will be due on Nov. 16th. In addition, at the request of the presiding Administrative Law Judge and Commissioner Tobin, APS will file actual data on the bill increases experienced by customers.

• The Judge’s recommendation to the Commission is expected sometime this winter.

• Following the hearings, Commissioner Boyd Dunn filed a letter raising concerns about APS’s customer education and requesting more information on APS’s education and outreach efforts.

AriSEIA thanks Ellen Zuckerman from SWEEP for sharing her report!