New Mexico Utility Shareholders Alliance

New Mexico Utility Shareholders Alliance
Name	New Mexico Utility Shareholders Alliance
Type	Nonprofit advocacy group
Founded	2013
Location	Albuquerque, New Mexico
Key people	Don Hancock; John D’Antonio; Celia E. Clarke
Area served	New Mexico
Focus	Energy policy, utility regulation, shareholder rights

New Mexico Utility Shareholders Alliance is a nonprofit advocacy organization that represents investor and consumer interests related to electricity and natural gas utilities in New Mexico. The group engages with regulatory bodies such as the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission, utility companies including PNM Resources and Tucson Electric Power, and stakeholders across the Southwest United States to influence rate cases, infrastructure investment, and energy transition policy. It frequently interacts with legal, legislative, and administrative arenas including the New Mexico Legislature and state regulatory hearings.

History

Founded in 2013 during debates over rate design and resource planning, the Alliance emerged amid contested proceedings involving Public Service Company of New Mexico and debates influenced by precedents from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Arizona Corporation Commission, and New Mexico Attorney General interventions. Its early activities coincided with regional developments such as the closure of coal-fired plants at San Juan Generating Station and policy shifts following the Clean Power Plan. The group grew alongside advocacy networks including Western Resource Advocates, Sierra Club, GridLab, and trade associations like the Edison Electric Institute, while responding to filings by utilities such as Xcel Energy and litigation involving New Mexico Environment Department permits. Over time it has filed testimony in proceedings influenced by cases before state courts such as the New Mexico Supreme Court.

Organization and Governance

The Alliance is governed by a board that has included former utility analysts, legal counsel, and shareholder representatives with professional ties to institutions such as University of New Mexico, New Mexico State University, and law firms that have appeared before the Public Regulation Commission of New Mexico. Its leadership has collaborated with consultants and experts formerly associated with Brattle Group, Economists Incorporated, and R Street Institute; it has also coordinated with consumer groups like AARP and New Mexico Voices for Children. Governance documents reference compliance with Internal Revenue Service rules applicable to 501(c)(4) entities and regulatory filing standards used in proceedings before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and state utility commissions. The board establishes litigation and advocacy strategy, retaining counsel from firms experienced with cases similar to those tried in Bernalillo County District Court.

Objectives and Activities

The Alliance’s stated objectives include protecting investor rights, ensuring fair rate design, and advocating for prudent infrastructure investment in transmission and distribution systems. Its activities encompass filing testimony in rate cases involving Public Service Company of New Mexico and other carriers, intervening in resource planning dockets influenced by North American Electric Reliability Corporation standards, and submitting comments to agencies such as the U.S. Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency. It organizes stakeholder briefings that attract participants from PNM Resources, Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, and municipal utilities like City of Albuquerque Public Utilities. The group also commissions expert reports drawing on methodologies used by National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory to evaluate integrated resource plans and distributed generation impacts.

Policy Positions and Advocacy

The Alliance advocates for rate structures and regulatory outcomes it argues will preserve shareholder value while enabling compliance with state energy mandates such as those enacted by the New Mexico Renewable Energy Act and directives from the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission. It has supported cost recovery mechanisms for utility investments in transmission upgrades tied to regional projects coordinated by entities like Western Electricity Coordinating Council and Southwestern Power Pool, while contesting accelerated retirements when replacement costs rely on procurement approaches favored by Clean Energy States Alliance or Sierra Club. In legislative sessions at the New Mexico State Capitol, the Alliance has engaged with lawmakers from districts represented by legislators including Senator Peter Wirth and Representative Javier Martínez, submitting testimony about proposed changes to decoupling, performance-based regulation, and stranded-asset mitigation.

Funding and Membership

Funding for the Alliance comes from dues, legal defense funds, and contributions from shareholder groups, investor advisory firms, and industry-aligned organizations such as trade groups that have previously supported regulatory interventions in New Mexico and neighboring states. Its membership roster has included individual investors, institutional shareholders, and proxy advisory affiliates with links to entities like BlackRock and Vanguard in broader shareholder dialogues, as well as local stakeholders from Santa Fe and Doña Ana County. The organization has contracted expert witnesses from consultancies such as PA Consulting and academic affiliates from New Mexico Tech to support filings. Financial disclosures filed in regulatory dockets cite retainer agreements and expert costs, and reflect interactions with corporate entities including PNM Resources and independent power producers.

Controversies and Criticism

Critics have accused the Alliance of prioritizing shareholder returns over rapid decarbonization goals championed by environmental groups including Sierra Club and 350.org, and of aligning too closely with utility executives and investors like those represented by Edison Electric Institute. Environmental law advocates citing cases before the New Mexico Supreme Court and administrative rulings from the Environmental Improvement Board have challenged the Alliance’s testimony on integrated resource plans and coal-plant retirements. Consumer advocates such as New Mexico Voices for Children and regulatory reform proponents have argued that the Alliance’s positions can lead to higher near-term rates for residential customers in Albuquerque and Las Cruces. The organization has been involved in adversarial proceedings with public-interest intervenors and has faced public scrutiny during contentious hearings at the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission and legislative oversight sessions at the New Mexico State Capitol.

Category:Energy organizations in New Mexico Category:Nonprofit organizations based in Albuquerque