PHOENIX — Arizona Public Service (APS) customers could see their electricity bills go up again in the second half of next year.
The state’s largest utility filed paperwork Friday seeking approval from the Arizona Corporation Commission for a net increase in revenue of $579.5 million, representing a nearly 14% increase.
If approved by the commission, APS projects the impact would be a 14.5% increase for residential customers.
In a statement, APS said for a customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity, “the net monthly bill impact would be about $20. Many factors affect a customer’s bill amount, including energy usage, weather, rate plan and days in a billing period.”
APS said in a statement that its current rates have not kept pace with what it costs to operate a reliable grid.
“The current rates are based upon costs from three to four years ago. This adjustment is essential to cover the cost of delivering power to customers’ homes and businesses, including infrastructure upgrades.
The new rates, if approved, would become effective “no earlier” than July 8, 2026, according to the APS filing.
The request comes one year after the commission approved an increase to boost the average residential bill by about 8 percent more a month.
APS says the increase is needed because of higher costs, including inflation, high-interest rates, and a volatile supply chain.
The possibility of another rate increase is already drawing criticism from community watchdog groups.
Last year, the Arizona Corporation Commission, whose five members are elected by voters, regulated and set rates for many public utilities, including APS, Southwest Gas and Tucson Electric Power. The commission last year approved a controversial new way to calculate utility rates that could mean annual increases on utility bills.
For decades, the commission required state-regulated utilities to use a prior year of expenses and file a request for a rate increase. That lengthy process could take a couple of years.
Instead, the commission will now give utilities the option of seeking updated rates every year. Commissioner Nick Myers, who spearheaded the change, said it will promote gradual rate increases.
“Customers want this,” he said last year. “They don’t want to have a massive jump in their rates every three to five years.”
The possibility of annual price hikes was criticized earlier this week by two Republican lawmakers who have announced they are challenging the two GOP incumbents on the Arizona Corporation Commission for the 2026 election.
The current commission is made up of all Republicans, with two seats open in the 2026 election.
Arizona Rep. David Marshall, a retired police officer, and Arizona Rep. Ralph Heap, a retired orthopedic surgeon, announced their intentions to run for two open seats currently held by Nick Myers and Kevin Thompson.
Myers and Thompson defended their record in a statement, saying “We’ve taken steps to ensure our utilities are planning responsibly and not chasing costly, agenda-driven energy mandates.”
Email ABC15 Investigator Anne Ryman at anne.ryman@abc15.com, or connect on X, formerly known as Twitter and Facebook.
