By Phil Riske | Managing Editor
(Editor’s note: Third in a series of articles reviewing the 2014 news stories published by Rose Law Group Reporter that were most read and gained momentum during the rest of the year.)
March came in like a lion, with the ignition of what became a fire between Arizona Public Service (APS) and the solar industry. It also was a month of near-weekly rumors about where Tesla would locate its battery “gigaplant.” Governor Jan Brewer announced she would not seek re-election, opening the door for numerous candidates.
Energy/Environment
APS denied involvement in a bill that sought to make law the Department of Revenue’s finding leased and financed rooftop solar should be assessed for property tax purposes. APS officials were sticking to that claim, even after one of Gov. Brewer’s top policy advisors and a lawmaker said APS has been actively lobbying on the issue as recently as this week. Meanwhile, APS lobbyist Michael Vargas said his company’s position was clear to him: “What they’ve told me is they are supportive of having the tax on it, because that’s what they have to pay.”
APS’ goal is to kill solar, charged Rose Law Group Senior Partner Court Rich, and a poll found 75% of homeowners said utilities shouldn’t block solar.
*******
Meanwhile Morningstar said utilities that rely on nuclear fleets and speculative coal plants were most vulnerable to the solar-powered “death spiral” roiling the electric industry, Heavily regulated utilities like APS parent, Pinnacle are also vulnerable in places where regulators have only begun to address the competitive threat from distributed generation.
*******
A drought declaration covered all of Arizona’s Arizona’s 15 counties in March. The counties were designated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as natural disaster areas for drought, making farmers and ranchers eligible for federal low-interest emergency loans.
*******
A five-year delay of an Arizona Department of Water Resources plan to phase out agricultural extinguishment credits was projected to be in place by mid- September. The agency’s temporary suspension of the phase- out is expected to end in September.
Real Estate
A new report by Realtor.com showed Mesa is among the Top 10 markets in the nation for first-time homebuyers.
The luxury house market in metro Phoenix was beginning to shift again toward buyers as more owners of houses priced $500,000 and higher try to sell.
Arizonans had to earn $17.52 an hour, more than twice the minimum wage, to afford a typical two-bedroom home without spending more than 30 percent of their income on rent, stated a new report from The National Low Income Housing Coalition.
Metro Phoenix has long been known as an area that grows outward, with new affordable communities stretching its edges farther and farther. As of March, however, sought-after land by homebuilders was closer in. Infill sites from central Phoenix to south Scottsdale and Tempe were drawing both builders and homebuyers.
Buying a home was said to be possibly less expensive than renting, a home-pricing Website said. Trulia.com said monthly payments are less for homeowners than renters. “Owning a house is about 38 percent cheaper than renting,” said Valley real estate expert Dean Wegner. Meanwhile, March saw a surge in plans for new multi-family construction.
The Glendale City Council voted to oppose a bill moving through Congress that would block the Tohono O’odham Nation from building a casino near the Westgate Entertainment District. The 4-3 vote signified a major shift for a city embroiled in lawsuits with the tribe
At the same time, Peoria has announced plans to greatly expand its commercial core around the Peoria Sports Complex.
Development/Transportation
Northern Nevada was said to be the frontrunner to land Tesla Motors’ $5 billion electric battery factory, though the California automaker was still talking to Texas, Arizona and New Mexico officials about incentive packages for the 1,000-acre site selection.
An Arizona Senate panel approved a plan for Tesla to sell cars to Arizona customers directly.
*******
An environmental group gave the proposed Interstate 11 through Arizona a conditional green light, signaling growing acceptance of an ambitious project that was little more than an idea two years ago. State transportation departments in Arizona and Nevada were wrapping up talks on the highway plan.
Politics
In the weeks since Gov. Jan Brewer announced she would not run for re-election, the already crowded field of Republicans looking to replace had grown noisy, with nine candidates of widely varying interests and experiences vying for attention.
Meanwhile, a trend that began after Arizona started letting independents vote in partisan primaries reached fruition this month when they officially became the largest voting bloc in the state, outnumbering registered Republicans by a few thousand.
*******
Wrapping It Up
Fiesta Bowl chief executive John Junker was sentenced to eight months in federal prison on after acknowledging he participated in an illegal campaign contribution scheme. He was sentenced after pleading guilty two years ago to a conspiracy charge in the scheme.
*******
A Maricopa County Superior Court judge ruled a 5-year-old Mesa boy with debilitating seizures could be treated with marijuana extract, effectively re-interpreting the Arizona’s medical marijuana law.
The proposed University of Arizona scientific study about using marijuana to treat veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder was given the green light from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration. It passed the Arizona House of Representatives, but
State Senator Kimberly Yee of Phoenix stopped the bill in its tracks by refusing to hear it in her committee.
