On Environmental Justice Day, Our Voice, Our Vote Arizona and CHISPA Arizona PAC Endorse Arizona Corporation Commission Candidates
Phoenix, Ariz. (Aug. 29, 2024) — Nonprofit groups Our Voice, Our Vote Arizona (OVOV AZ) and CHISPA Arizona PAC today jointly announced their endorsements of Democratic candidates Ylenia Aguilar, Jonathon Hill, and Joshua Polacheck for seats on the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC).
Comprised of five publicly-elected commissioners, the ACC is a state regulatory board responsible for overseeing Arizona’s utility companies and cooperatives. There are three open seats on the ACC this fall, which opens the possibility of flipping the ACC from majority Republican to majority Democrat. Aguilar, Hill, and Polacheck are running on the Democratic ticket.
“Environmental Justice Day is an opportunity to bring awareness to the ways that Arizona’s Black and Brown communities are disproportionately impacted by climate change and the burning of fossil fuels,” said Sena Mohammed, executive director for OVOV AZ. “Nowhere is that more true than in Arizona, where we have the highest summer energy bills of any state in the country. In Phoenix, we have the fifth-worst air quality of any U.S. city, our rates of asthma are twice the national average, and half the people who are considered at-risk for bad health outcomes from polluted air are people of color. The ACC could require utilities to transition to clean energy, but instead it just keeps enabling them to pay their CEOs 7-figure bonuses for polluting our air and raising our rates. Enough is enough. Our Voice, Our Vote Arizona is endorsing Ylenia Aguilar, Jonathon Hill, and Joshua Polacheck for the ACC because we trust these candidates to represent the public interest, not special interests.”
Aguilar serves on the Central Arizona Water Conservation District and is an alumna of the University of Arizona. Hill is a NASA engineer and researcher at Arizona State University. Polacheck is a former foreign service officer with the U.S. Department of State. On all three of their websites, Aguilar, Hill, and Polacheck name clean energy and consumer protection as top priorities.
“The ACC is costing our wallets, it’s costing our health, and it’s costing our quality of life,” said Vianey Olivarria, executive director of CHISPA Arizona. “Our current commissioners are way too cozy with fossil fuel interests and we are paying the price not just financially, but with our health outcomes. Arizona is the sunniest state in the U.S. We are sitting on so much solar potential that we could generate 370 times the energy Arizonans use in a year. This fall, Arizona voters have the opportunity to remind the ACC commissioners that they work for us, not for the monopolies. The three candidates we are endorsing today get it. They are committed to harnessing our state’s clean energy potential so we can all enjoy cleaner air, better health outcomes, and lower energy bills.”
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Our Voice, Our Vote Arizona is a member-led organization, committed to advocating for sustainable progressive public policies that address the most pressing issues in our communities. We build power by mobilizing voters, training the next generation of leaders, electing champions into office, and holding elected officials accountable. We work to empower our communities by putting people first to ensure all voices are heard. Learn more about Our Voice, Our Vote at www.ourvoiceourvote.us and follow on social media at @OVOV_AZ.
CHISPA Arizona builds the capacity of Latine families to influence policy makers, and pressure polluters to protect communities’ rights to clean air and water, healthy neighborhoods and a safe climate for generations to come. Learn more at https://chispaaz.org/