Arizona Corporation Commissioners on Thursday voted unanimously to prohibit power companies from disconnecting electricity to residential customers during the scorching weeks of June 1 through October 15.
The new rule, slated to take effect Friday, is a temporary one, prompted by news of a death due to utility shutoff. The changes came about as part of an emergency rule-making process, and will be effective for 180 days. The temporary rule addresses just one aspect of a much broader set of issues that the CorpComm faces, as a taut exchange between two commissioners showed on Thursday.
Before the 180-day period is up, the CorpComm is supposed to take up a formal rule-making process. Commissioners referenced the upcoming work multiple times during their open meeting, frequently punting on thornier questions and saving public comments for a later date.