31 Days of Hearings Just Ended. Your APS Bill Is Next.
31 Days of Hearings Just Ended. Your Bill Is Next.
The APS rate case hearing wrapped on July 7 after one of the longest runs in Arizona Corporation Commission history. A decision is expected before the end of 2026 — and the demand driving it isn't coming from your house.
The Rate Case Is Over. The Waiting Is the Only Part Left.
The hearing in the Arizona Public Service rate case began on May 18, 2026 and ran 31 days before concluding on July 7. That is one of the longest utility rate case hearings the Arizona Corporation Commission has held in recent memory, and it opened with hours of public protest. The ACC's final decision is expected before the end of this year.
What APS asked for: roughly $662 million in additional revenue, about a 16% increase overall. Broken out, that lands as a proposed hike of more than 45% for extra-large electricity users — the data center class — and roughly 14 to 16% for households, or about $20 more a month on a typical residential bill.
| The Rate Case, By the Numbers | Detail |
|---|---|
| Hearing dates | May 18 – July 7, 2026 — 31 hearing days, one of the ACC's longest |
| Total revenue requested | Approximately $662 million, roughly a 16% increase |
| Proposed data center increase | More than 45% for extra-large electricity users |
| Proposed residential increase | Roughly 14–16%, about $20 more per month |
| Peak load forecast | APS projects peak load growing up to 40% by 2031, driven largely by data centers |
Sources: Arizona Corporation Commission ("What's Next in the APS Rate Case?", July 10, 2026), Arizona Capitol Times, APS regulatory filings. Compiled from public reporting.
Read that peak load number again. APS is forecasting its peak load could grow by as much as 40% by 2031, and it says data centers are the primary driver. Serving that kind of growth means new generation, new substations, and new transmission lines — capital projects that get built now and paid for over decades by everyone on the system.
Nobody in Show Low, Snowflake, or Vernon voted for a data center. Everybody on the APS system helps pay for the wires that feed one.
This Isn't Just an Arizona Story
The same math is playing out nationally. The U.S. Department of Energy estimated data centers would consume between 6.7% and 12% of total U.S. electricity by 2028, up from 4.4% in 2023. PJM, the largest grid operator in the country, has attributed roughly $6.3 billion in added consumer electricity costs over the next three years mostly to data center demand. Residential electricity prices nationwide have already climbed more than 36% since 2020.
Arizona happens to be one of the places that growth is landing hardest. That is why your bill keeps moving even when your thermostat doesn't.
A dual-inverter setup with the 48V lithium battery bank wired underneath — installed and tested by our crew before the customer ever plugged it in.
What a Rate Decision Can and Cannot Do to You
Here is the uncomfortable part: whatever the Commission decides, you have no vote in it, no way to opt out, and no rate lock. If the increase lands at 14%, you pay it. If a future case asks for more in two years, you pay that too. APS has now come to the Commission three times in three years.
The one variable you actually control is how many kilowatt-hours you buy from them in the first place. Every kilowatt-hour your own panels and batteries cover is a kilowatt-hour that is immune to the next rate case, the one after that, and every data center that gets built between now and 2031.
The simple version of the math
- A rate increase raises the price per kilowatt-hour you buy from APS.
- It does not change the price of a kilowatt-hour your own system produced.
- So every percentage point APS adds makes the solar side of your bill relatively more valuable, not less.
- A battery lets you use your own production during the expensive hours instead of buying then.
The Kit We Recommend for a Typical White Mountains Home
For a small to medium home — or a home plus a well and a shop — the 10kW SRNE Kit is the sweet spot. It is a full 120/240V hybrid system with real lithium storage, prewired and programmed on a board in Show Low before it ever leaves our shop.
10kW SRNE Kit
A full 120/240V hybrid system for small to medium homes, wells, and 50-amp RVs — sized to take a real bite out of what you buy from APS.
- 1 x 10,000W SRNE Hybrid Inverter 120/240V -- 2 x 80A charge controllers -- generator ready
- 3 x 5.1 kWh LiFePo4 48V batteries -- 15.3 kWh total storage (10-Year Warranty) -- add more batteries for $988 each
- 16 x 410W VSun bifacial panels -- 6,560+ watts total (25-Year Warranty)
- 200ft 10 AWG panel wire -- 15ft 2/0 AWG copper battery cable with lugs
- Prebuilt on a board, programmed and tested in Show Low -- 30A generator charging ready
A rooftop array we mounted on a standing-seam metal roof — no roof penetrations, and it sheds snow clean through winter.
Bigger place? The 12kW EG4 Basic ($12,880 cash, $11,880 after the AZ credit) and the 12kW EG4 Large with 60.2 kWh of storage ($26,806 cash) both step up from here. Smaller footprint? The 6kW EG4 Full Kit runs $8,888 cash, $7,888 after the credit. We will size it around your real usage, not a brochure.
Why Homeowners Here Call Us First
A ground-mount array we set among the junipers — sited and angled for this property, not a one-size template.
Every Kit Includes Storage
Panels alone still leave you buying power during the expensive hours. Every kit we build ships with real lithium battery storage.
Prebuilt in Show Low
Wired, programmed, and load-tested on a board before it leaves our shop. You connect batteries and panels and turn it on.
We Live Here Too
We are on the mountain, not in a call center three states away. Same weather, same grid, same APS bill.
Straight Pricing
Cash price, financed price, and what the Arizona credit takes off. No moving numbers, no pressure close.
Proudly Serving the White Mountains
White Mountains Solar serves homeowners across northeastern Arizona, including:
- Show Low, AZ
- Snowflake-Taylor, AZ
- Pinetop-Lakeside, AZ
- Concho, AZ
- Saint Johns, AZ
- Vernon, AZ
- White Mountains, AZ region
Get a Free Quote Before the Commission Rules
Tell us a little about your home and we will size a battery-backed system around what you actually run. No pressure, no obligation, just a straight answer on what fits and what it costs.
Ready When You Are
Talk to a real person about sizing a battery-backed system for your home. No pressure, no obligation.
Contact UsNo Money Down Financing Available
Do not wait for the Commission's decision to land on your bill. Ask about our zero-down solar and battery financing for the White Mountains region.
Call 928-251-0114