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In 1990, I moved to Phoenix and built a life here with my three children. For 44 years, I was proud to focus my career on advocating for disabled and deaf children, a mission I continue today as a volunteer. Now at 66, I am blessed with 11 wonderful grandchildren, and much of my time is spent making sure my family has the basics they need — food, shelter and safety.
Every month, I face choices no one should have to make. Do I pay my utility bills, buy groceries or cover critical medical needs? These are tough choices for anyone, but I live with multiple sclerosis and other health challenges, making these choices even more difficult. Sometimes, just to stay afloat, I am forced to skip my pain medication or keep my home uncomfortably hot or cold in extreme weather.
No one who works hard every day should have to face these decisions in America, the richest nation on Earth. Even with careful budgeting and regular calls to Arizona Public Service to ask for extensions, it is almost impossible to live comfortably on a fixed income.
APS has raised rates again and again. In 2022 and 2024, the company raised rates by 8%. My monthly bill during the winter months has increased from $23 to $45, and my summer bill jumped from $52 to $156 per month. Now APS is asking for another 14% increase in 2026. For the average customer, that could add up to between $240 and $300, or even more. That’s scary for families like mine, for whom every dollar counts.
While many Arizonans like my family and me have struggled to pay the bills that keep our lights on and our homes safe, APS’s parent company made over $600 million in profit last year!
Courtesy of Cheri Hall
Americans should not have to choose between buying groceries or running the air conditioner in the middle of a Phoenix summer. No one should have to decide between medication and electricity. These are all necessities, not luxuries. Every American family deserves to live with dignity and security, without the fear that the next bill could upend their month, year or entire future. Instead, APS is asking us to sacrifice our own well-being to take home even more millions.
Fortunately, Arizona regulators can make a difference. The Arizona Corporation Commission will likely vote on APS’s rate case in July or August. Before that, APS has scheduled four public comment sessions this month and in February, both in person and over the phone. The first one is set for Jan. 20. You can sign up to speak here.
This is the time for APS customers to speak out and share our stories. I hope others join me in letting regulators know what these hikes mean for our families, our neighbors and our communities. We must demand rates that reflect the reality of everyday life, not the profits of a corporation.
I speak not just for myself, but also for countless others quietly struggling to keep their homes safe and their families fed. Arizona is our home, and we all deserve fairness, decency and respect. We cannot accept a system that rewards corporate profit over the well-being of our families. APS and our elected officials must remember the people behind the bills: the children, the retirees and the families working hard every day to make ends meet.
It is time for Arizona to put working-class people first. Our families, health, and dignity depend on it.
Cheri Hall is a grandmother and retired advocate for deaf and disabled children who lives in Phoenix.
