For years now, JanePAC has invested in the clean energy candidates running for roles on Arizona’s Salt River Project (SRP) board. Why? Because this “local utility” is the largest public utility in the nation, serving ~2 million people in one of the most water-hungry and sun-rich states in the nation.
Now the GOP is coming for these seats, too. But we’ll come back to that.
When we started building toward a clean energy majority on the Salt River Project board, solar made up less than 4% of SRP’s power portfolio. Under the leadership of JanePAC-backed clean energy champs, that number has more than doubled, but there’s still so far to go. We’re committed to being in this fight for the long haul because this “local” utility has major implications for the broader climate fight.
Unlike investor-owned utilities (like PG&E or The Southern Company) that answer to shareholders, Salt River Project is a political subdivision of the State of Arizona. That distinction is important, because as a public entity SRP’s decisions aren’t driven by profits or shareholder interests, but by the elected Board of Directors.
Located near Phoenix, the Salt River Project service area is about 240,000 acres in Maricopa, Gila and Pinal Counties, with some of the highest solar irradiance in the world — and severe water scarcity. Conveniently, solar power requires practically zero water whereas coal and gas plants require millions of gallons, but we digress.
If a public utility like SRP can successfully transition to 100% clean energy while keeping rates low for consumers, not only will 2 million people be plugged into a more sustainable power grid, but the “affordability” excuse will evaporate for every other utility in the nation. Oh, and we can make a dent in the water crisis, too.
With the natural landscape primed for solar power, and with elected leadership not beholden to profit margins or shareholder interests, seats on the Salt River Project Board of Directors are climate must-wins.
That’s probably why Turning Point — a famously anti-progress GOP group whose goal is to control the future of this country by organizing young people — is diving into the SRP race, and not on the side of the good guys. They’re investing in their own slate of GOP-backed, oil-loving candidates for these SRP seats; putting up billboards and making their presence known.
The stakes here are high, and even the GOP machine knows it.
It’s critical that we do everything we can to ensure clean energy candidates are elected to the Salt River Project’s board. JanePAC is financially investing in every candidate on our clean energy slate, but we can’t win this without your help.
Support Our Clean Energy Slate
Can we count on you to support the brave climate-conscious leaders willing to take on this proof-in-the-pudding fight for clean energy?
We’ve set up a donation form that will split every dollar you give amongst EVERY candidate we’re backing. Not one dime is coming back to JanePAC because this isn’t about sustaining the PAC, we can worry about that on another day. This is about winning races that give us the power to prove clean energy is more efficient, cheaper, and more sustainable than coal or oil will ever be. And we’d love to send the Turning Point boys packing, too.
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