The Arizona Corporation Commission gave the state’s largest utility a September deadline to fully roll out its updated time-of-use plans geared to save customers money.
The Jan. 31 ACC filing said Arizona Public Service Co. must “complete implementation of the new (time-of-use) on-peak period” by Sept. 1 after the governing body approved the amendment by Commissioner Lea Marquez Peterson in mid-January.
The plans are meant for customers to save on their bill while using less energy during on-peak hours, which have been during the weekday hours of 3 p.m. to 8 p.m.
APS has recommended customers shift some energy use to off-peak hours — for instance, waiting to do laundry until after 8 p.m. on weekdays. Another example includes not running two appliances at the same time during on-peak hours.
But after Sept. 1, it is expected all time-of-use plans will shift from five hours to three hours — from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. — weekdays. Under the ACC ruling, APS is required to file a report with the commission “every other week” until the September deadline.
The report is expected to show “customers served by residential and commercial rate plans with (time-of-use), customer-specific data (without personally identifiable information) showing (for the applicable billing period) the difference between the amount a customer is billed with the 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. on-peak period and the amount the customer would be billed with the 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on-peak period,” the Jan. 31 filing said.
The filing said APS is to report on the billing difference data collected and its progress in transitioning to the new on-peak period at each ACC open meeting until September.
The utility also is required to “communicate with its customers on bill inserts and through other necessary and appropriate communication methods that APS is tracking the billing differences” that could include customer refunds. At the March 2022 open meeting, the ACC “shall address the billing difference data provided and determine a minimum threshold for positive billing differences (i.e., individual customer overpayments) that could be subject to a refund,” the filing said.
Also, APS is required to complete preparation of its IT software and “any other preparations needed for APS potentially to provide refunds of the billing differences identified” by the March 2022 open meeting, according to the filing.
Sherine Zaya, APS spokeswoman, said currently, there are 32% (380,887) of residential customers are on the time-of-use plans. An additional 30% (357,347) are on the time-of-use with demand plan — which has a monthly demand charge based on the highest hour of energy used during on-peak hours, according to the APS website.
"(There is a ) total of 62% (738,234) residential customer on (time-of-use) and (time- of -use) with demand (this number includes those on frozen and legacy solar, which will not switch to 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on-peak)," Zaya said.
APS said it would take 10 months to implement the new on-peak time of use schedules. The process is expected to be completed in phases. APS, the lone subsidiary of Phoenix-based Pinnacle West Capital Corp., is Arizona’s largest utility company and serves much of the Valley, including the Sun Cities and Surprise, and roughly 1.2 million customers around the state.
In November, the ACC voted to slash APS revenue by about $119 million after the commission started a three-day session to determine if APS rates would rise in the near future. According to a press release, APS “initially filed its rate application requesting a $184 million dollar revenue increase.” The new rates became effective Dec. 1.
APS customers now can choose between plans that range from time-of-use to fixed-energy charge plans.
A fixed-charge plan is where the energy rate stays the same no matter the time of day or day of week, according to the APS website. The website says the plan allows its customers to “have the flexibility to use energy any time of day or day of week, without worrying about the rate,” the website said.
Time-of-use allows customers to manage their costs by shifting energy use to lower-cost off-peak hours and using less energy during the higher-cost on-peak hours, between 3 p.m.–8 p.m. weekdays, according to the APS website. That time frame will eventually switch to 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
For more information, please visit https://www.aps.com/updates.
Brent Ruffner Lead News Reporter | Phoenix @AzNewsmedia
Brent Ruffner joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2021 where he writes about developments at TSMC and Maricopa County issues, including election topics.
He's written about stories that range from accusations that a Mesa monkey breeding facility is unsafe to what to do if you encounter a rattlesnake in the desert.
Community: He is a supporter of the American Cancer Society.
Education: Bachelor's degree in Journalism and Mass Communication, Arizona State University, May 2007.
Random Fact: He met former San Francisco Giants outfielder Willie Mays at a Phoenix Firebird game after winning a contest for an autographed baseball.
Hobbies: Hiking in the woods and collecting sports memorabilia.
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