Else v. Arizona Corporation Commission

The Arizona Court of Appeals rejected a challenge to the Arizona Corporation Commission’s authorization of a transmission project that the developers said would provide service for growing demand for renewable energy. The challengers alleged that there was not substantial evidence that the project would ever transmit renewable energy. The Commission chose not to explicitly condition authorization of the project on compliance with renewable energy benchmarks but instead required the developer to “in good faith … use its best efforts to secure transmission service contracts for renewable energy generation.” The appellate court found that there was substantial evidence supporting the authorization—including numerous environmental studies and statements about the project’s anticipated energy sources—and that if the developer did not make good-faith efforts to secure renewable power, then there might be a future action for violation of the authorization’s conditions.