oday the Sierra Club, in partnership with Synapse Energy Economics, published a new report, Passing the Buck: How APS’s Gas Rush Risks Ratepayer Dollars that provides analysis on how the utility’s reliance on gas resources has changed over time, the impacts all of the added gas will have on customers’ utility bills, and how a fuel cost sharing mechanism can address some of these concerns. 

The report comes as Arizona Public Service (APS) is requesting a 14% rate hike that would increase the average residential customer’s utility bill by roughly $240 per year. If approved, it would be the third rate increase imposed on customers in the last 5 years. APS is also proposing “formula rates,” which would allow the utility to increase prices every year with less oversight and less public input. At the same time, APS is walking back its clean energy targets, abandoning zero-carbon commitments, and reneging on its commitment to retire the Four Corners coal plant by 2031.