Steve Zylstra, the president and CEO of the Arizona Technology Council authored a piece this week in the Phoenix Business Journal, which highlighted a path for Arizona to climb out of the economic downturn created by the COVID pandemic using Arizona’s “foundation as a technology and innovation hub driven by big ideas.” Zylstra details how renewable energy can be a strong solution to restoring Arizona’s economic security and called on the Arizona Corporation Commission to modernize Arizona’s energy goals. Zylstra wrote:
“Our state must get on a fast track toward modernizing our energy rules. And to do so, the Arizona Technology Council is calling on the Arizona Corporation Commission to increase the state’s Renewable Energy Standard and Tariff, or REST, to at least 50% renewable energy by 2030 and 100% carbon-free by 2050.
Technology plays a huge part in this endeavor. Arizona’s innovation ecosystem is making electric and autonomous vehicles, testing zero-emission semi-trucks, building the solar grid, installing energy-efficient devices, flying electric airplanes, and making global advancements in water technology, just to mention a few examples of the clean-energy space.”
The Western Way agrees that modernizing Arizona’s energy rules will help position Arizona to benefit from new innovations in the clean energy space at a time when economic development and new jobs are crucial. Rural regions of the state stand to benefit from increased investments made by utilities to build out transmission infrastructure and new renewable facilities and advanced manufacturing from companies like Lucid Motors will mark a new chapter for Arizona’s economy. The largest utilities in Arizona have already committed to aggressive clean and renewable energy goals, it is time for the Corporation Commission’s to agree on new Energy Rules.