Mayes forces APS to halt shutoffs during dangerous heat in Yuma County

Arizona’s largest electric utility will have to stop residential shutoffs before the desert heat turns deadly. Under a $7 million settlement announced by Attorney General Kris Mayes, Arizona Public Service Company must reinstate a 95-degree hold on nonpayment disconnections, a change with immediate stakes for Yuma County, where extreme heat is not a rare emergency but a normal part of summer life.

The agreement requires APS to keep power on when temperatures are forecast to reach 95 degrees Fahrenheit or higher the next day, even outside the utility’s existing summer moratorium from June 1 to October 15. APS also must maintain its 32-degree cold-weather hold, add text-message alerts for past-due and disconnection notices, and spend money on consumer outreach and related program upgrades.

Mayes said the settlement grew out of an investigation into APS disconnection practices during extreme heat. The case was driven in part by the death of 82-year-old Katherine Korman, an APS customer whose power was disconnected on May 13, 2024, when temperatures were about 99 degrees in Sun City. She was found dead six days later.

For Yuma County residents, the stakes are especially high. The National Weather Service says Yuma averages 109 days each year at 100 degrees or higher and 25 days at 110 degrees or higher. The area’s longest stretch of 110-degree-or-hotter days on record lasted 31 straight days, from June 30, 2023, to July 30, 2023. In a place where air-conditioning can be the difference between a rough afternoon and a medical emergency, the difference between keeping and losing service can be life-threatening.

The settlement sends about $2.7 million to Arizona’s consumer protection fund and about $3.4 million to customer-service improvements. It also reinforces a broader practice already reflected in Arizona Corporation Commission guidance, which says most regulated electric utilities do not disconnect residential customers during extreme weather conditions.

The new APS hold gives households a stronger shield during punishing heat, but it is not a blanket ban on all summer shutoffs. The protection applies to APS residential customers and depends on a forecast of 95 degrees or above for the next day, leaving a gap on days that are still dangerous in Yuma but fall below that threshold. Even so, for families trying to keep the lights on and the cool air running, the settlement marks one of the most consequential consumer protections Arizona has put in place in years.