Residents and city officials in Tucson, Arizona, have been weighing for years whether they could lower utility bills and better meet their climate goals by breaking away from their gas and electricity provider.
Now voters in Arizona’s second-largest city will have a chance to weigh in on a novel arrangement that would keep the city in Tucson Electric Power, with the utility paying into a climate and resiliency fund.
A 25-year energy collaboration agreement announced this month would see the utility and city work together on climate action goals. That would include an annual payment that starts at $2 million and steadily increases, totaling $56 million over the lifetime of the agreement.
Tucson Mayor Regina Romero touted the plan as an “incredible opportunity.” The agreement, if approved by voters, would make Tucson “one of only a handful of cities to receive shareholder funds above the franchise fees a private utility pays,” Romero said in a public meeting earlier this month.
