Arizona Bill Repealing Retail Energy Choice Statutes Heads To Governor -- EnergyChoiceMatters.com

Arizona Bill Repealing Retail Energy Choice Statutes Heads To Governor

April 21, 2022

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Copyright 2010-21 EnergyChoiceMatters.com
Reporting by Paul Ring • ring@energychoicematters.com

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The Arizona Senate has passed House Bill 2101, which generally repeals the state's statutes providing for retail electric choice

The House passed the bill earlier, and the bill now goes to the Governor.

House Bill 2101 generally deletes provisions confirming the ACC's authority to take regulatory steps to transition to competition for electric generation services and other related services.

Based on the engrossed version of the bill (an enrolled bill was not yet available, but there were no apparent Senate amendments), specific existing statutory text repealed by the bill includes, "It is the public policy of this state that a competitive market shall exist in the sale of electric generation service."

The bill deletes the statute providing that, "After December 31, 2000 service territories established by a certificate of convenience and necessity shall be open to electric generation service competition for all retail electric customers for any electricity supplier that obtains a certificate from the commission pursuant to section 40-207 or any public power entity."

Also repealed is the ACC's authority to, "Open the service territories of public service corporations, except foreign nonprofit, member owned cooperative corporations, to competitive access by other electricity suppliers or providers of other services not later than December 31, 1998 for at least twenty per cent of their 1995 retail load, at least fifteen per cent of which shall be reserved for customers in the residential customer class, and open their entire service territory to competition not later than December 31, 2000."

The bill specifically repeals a statute which directs public power entities to open their service territories to competition

Furthermore, the bill repeals the ACC's statutory authorization to adopt rules reasonably necessary to carry out a to-be-repealed statute which had required competitive suppliers to receive a certificate before providing service

The bill further repeals a host of other related statutes addressing the originally contemplated transition to retail competition

The bill does require that a public power entity that is a Title 48, Chapter 17 agricultural improvement district to offer a "buy-through" program by 2024, defined as, "a purchase of electricity by a public power entity at the direction of a particular retail consumer, subject to the terms of the program." (generally, a wholesale purchase program similar to others in Arizona)

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