Arizona’s largest utility has agreed not to cut off electrical service to customers for nonpayment while high temperatures are 95 degrees Fahrenheit (35 degrees Celsius) or above as part of a $7 million settlement of a lawsuit prompted in part by the 2024 death of an 82-year-old woman whose power was disconnected, Attorney General Kris Mayes said Wednesday.
The state’s settlement with Arizona Public Service, which previously prohibited shutoffs because of nonpayment between June 1 and Oct. 15, also called for the utility to pay $2.7 million that will be deposited into a state consumer protection fund and another $3.4 million to improve a program that lets customers designate family members or friends as emergency contacts who can receive notices in a bid to help prevent shutoffs.
