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Title:	Arizona Votes 4-1 in Favor of Renewable Energy
Author:	Sara Parker
Source:	Renewable Energy Access
Web Site:	http://www.RenewableEnergyAccess.com
Date:	November 1, 2006

Arizona Votes 4-1 in Favor of Renewable Energy

PHOENIX, AZ-- The future of solar, and renewable energy as a whole, just got a whole lot sunnier in the state of Arizona. By a vote of 4-1, the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) voted on October 31 to expand the state's renewable portfolio standard to 15% by 2025, with 30% of that to come from distributed generation technologies -- potentially resulting in up to 2,000 megawatts of solar.

"The state has no regulations for interconnection standards, nor net metering. The financial incentives are the engine for solar's development -- but these policies are the road... now is the time to celebrate."

"With world-class sunshine and explosive population growth, Arizona is well positioned to become a key solar market. The game's not over yet, however. It takes more than incentives to make a sustainable solar market. The state has no regulations for interconnection standards, nor net metering. The financial incentives are the engine for solar's development -- but these policies are the road... now is the time to celebrate," stated Adam Browning, director of the Vote Solar Initiative, in an e-mail announcing the results of the October 31 vote.

Funding for the Renewable Energy Standard will be provided through a tariff assessment of $0.004988 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) with monthly impacts capped at $1.05 for residential customers, $39 for small commercial, and $117 for large commercial. The new standard also allow for new and emerging technologies to be added as they become feasible.

The ACC's vote yesterday marked the end of a two-year campaign to revise and expand Arizona's existing Environmental Portfolio Standard, which required just 1.1 percent of electricity sold in the state to come from renewables.

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