Arizona lawmakers form new group focusing on energy costs
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Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers, R-Mesa, and Senate President Karen Fann, R-Prescott, announced the formation of a new joint Ad Hoc Study Committee on Energy.
The committee’s purpose is to get information from experts and the Arizona public on the state’s energy industry.
The two legislators issued a statement Tuesday on how they think it will benefit the state.
“Arizona’s energy needs are diverse. Right now, there is an incredible transformation occurring in the electric industry, incorporating new energy resources, and addressing emerging customer needs without compromising service,” the lawmakers said in a release. “In Arizona, this transition is taking place amid tremendous growth in manufacturing and other energy-intensive industries. Our ability to keep pace with these trends depends on Arizona’s robust energy grid and the policies that supports it.
“We are committed to ensuring Arizona’s electric service remains reliable and affordable and believe a serious discussion by policy makers on this is merited. The interim work of the committee will enable future discussion of the state’s energy policies and the benefits and risks of energy ‘deregulation’ by providing a robust base of knowledge for policymakers and regulators.”
The committee will consider testimony and evidence in the following categories:
- Opportunities to better serve Arizona’s electric consumers;
- Reliability of a diversity of power generation, transmission, and distribution resources;
- Affordability of diversity in power generation, transmission, and distribution resources;
- Arizona’s governance over electric generation supplies and transmission capabilities;
- The current state of the electric industry in Arizona; and,
- The electric industry in other states.
The nine-person committee includes people appointed by Speaker Bowers and President Fann.
Members of the nine-person committee include legislators and others that are jointly appointed by Speaker Bowers and President Fann. They selected the following nine people for the committee:
- Rep. Gail Griffin, R-Hereford
- Sen. Sine Kerr, R-Buckeye
- Rep. Sarah Liguori, D-Phoenix
- Sen. Lisa Otondo, D-Yuma
- Malcolm Hightower, Director, Residential Utility Consumer Office
- Greg Patterson, Executive Director, Arizona’s Competitive Power Alliance
- Russ Patzer, President, Arizona Solar Deployment Alliance
- Ted Geisler, Chief Financial Officer, Arizona Public Service
- Bobby Olsen, Senior Director, Salt River Project
The committee has until December 31, 2022, to submit a report featuring a complete record of its findings.
This article was originally posted on Arizona lawmakers form new group focusing on energy costs
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