Pima County board backs attorney general’s 4% alternative, opposes TEP’s 14% rate request in 2-1 vote

The Pima County Board of Supervisors on a 2-1 vote on a special-meeting resolution opposed Tucson Electric Power’s proposed 14% rate increase and a utility-requested annual rate-adjustment mechanism, and signaled support for the Arizona attorney general’s roughly 4% recommendation and other consumer protections.

The board passed the amended resolution, listed in the record as resolution number 2026-25, after debating components that include opposing the ARAM (annual rate adjustment mechanism), endorsing a percentage-based low-income assistance program for those at about 200% of the federal poverty level, and supporting Rider 23 to allow individual metering for mobile home park tenants.

"We are living in a tremendously difficult time where costs are skyrocketing," said the supervisor who seconded the amendment and urged backing the resolution, adding that the company "reported over $200,000,000 in profits last year," and that the county should be "on the side of ratepayers." The speaker also described Rider 23 as a way to enable individual metering, noting upfront costs "about 3 to $500 per unit and then 6 per unit monthly cost for 10 years thereafter." (speaker label: Supervisor, District 5)

Supervisor Christie said she opposed the resolution, arguing that the Arizona Corporation Commission governs the process and that public hearings should be allowed to proceed. "I will be voting against this resolution," she said.

The chair who introduced the resolution told the board that Pima County has filed to intervene in the rate case at the Arizona Corporation Commission and that the county’s participation during current evidentiary hearings—scheduled to conclude May 12—makes timely board guidance to county attorneys important. The chair summarized the resolution as backing the attorney general’s analysis supporting a roughly 4% increase rather than the utility’s 14% request, opposing the annual adjustment mechanism, supporting a percentage-based discount targeted at households near 200% of the federal poverty level, and supporting Rider 23 for mobile-home metering.

Under the county’s description, TEP’s existing low-income program provides a $20-per-month flat credit; the resolution would support replacing that with a percentage-based discount tied to income eligibility. The board’s discussion also referenced the procedural limits of the ACC process, questions about costs of grid upgrades and metering conversions, and the county’s stated goal of protecting ratepayers.

The board recorded the vote as 2 in favor and 1 opposed. Supervisors Heinz and Scott were not present at the special meeting, according to the clerk.

The county’s resolution and the board’s guidance will be available to county attorneys participating in the Arizona Corporation Commission proceedings; the ACC’s evidentiary hearings on the rate case were ongoing at the time of the meeting.