Talk of a “death spiral” for utilities or speculation about an existential threat from rooftop solar is off base, APS insists. John Hatfield, the utility’s VP of communications, told our reporter last week that the narrative about a battle pitting the utilities against rooftop solar is “compelling but false.”

Since 2009, the Arizona Attorney General’s Office has received more than 500 complaints about rooftop solar, ranging from “Do Not Call” list violations to a failure to disclose the total cost to a buyer.

An Arizona Senate bill intended to protect consumers from potentially misleading solar leases unanimously passed through a committee Monday.

Arizona Public Service will soon start installing solar panels on residential homes after the state’s energy regulators paved the way for it to enter the residential solar market.

Fifteen years ago flat-screen televisions were a rare luxury item, and the era of cell phones was just beginning. Video chats happened mostly in Star Trek reruns, and few homes had broadband Internet service. Just as all these technological advances have become commonplace, solar energy, a rather exotic power source at the start of the millennium, is growing faster than you might think.

A key division of the Corporation Commission is not convinced a proposal by utility giant Arizona Public Service to install solar rooftop panels is necessary.

Calling it unfair — and fearing a loss of business — the state’s solar industry called on Gov. Jan Brewer on June 4 to overrule a decision by her Department of Revenue that the rooftop panels they lease are taxable.

In a blow to Arizona Public Service, energy regulators agreed a few minutes ago to a compromise proposal charging users of solar rooftop panels with a fixed fee of 70 cents per kilowatt.

The new charge, which will begin next year, is only a fraction of what Arizona Public Service sought – which was to reduce savings from the solar incentive by roughly half.

As students cavort around Sunnyslope Elementary School’s playground, a shade structure high above the slides and monkey bars helps harness the sun’s power.

Committing to preserving the environment, including supporting the use of electric vehicles, is no longer an “optional nicety” for cities, Mayor Greg Stanton said Friday.