Gary Pierce

In a letter sent to the entire Arizona delegationin the U.S. House and Senate, the Arizona Corporation Commission is urging the state's national legislators to support the extension of the investment tax credit for solar energy and other renewable energy sources. The credit's renewal was passed in the House but is stalling in the Senate, and is set to expire in December of 2008.

"As rising natural gas prices drive the cost of electricity upward," read the letter, "it is vital that Arizona look to alternative sources of energy. With more than 300 days of sunshine a year, solar power is the logical choice for our state."

The ACC has been supporting two large-scale solar power projects: The Solana Generating Station, which will cover hundreds of acres at Gila Bend, and another station whose construction costs and output will be shared by a "multi-state consortium of ten southwestern utilities."

In the letter, the ACC warns, "Unless Congress acts soon to extend the 30 percent investment tax credit ("ITC") past its December 31, 2008 expiration date, neither of these projects will come to fruition."