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APS Parent Company Spending Thousands On Brnovich Campaign

The parent company of Arizona’s largest utility is spending thousands of dollars through a third party to ensure Republican Mark Brnovich becomes the state’s next Attorney General.

Filings with the state show only that the Republican Attorneys General Association has collected $2.5 million to help Brnovich.

The group does not disclose who provided the money for attack ads on Democratic candidate Felecia Rotellini. But documents obtained by Capitol Media Services show $435,000 came from Pinnacle West Capitol, the parent company of APS, something Rotellini press aide David Leibowitz questions.

“You have a regulated corporation, the state's largest utility, and they're contributing hundreds of thousands of dollars to a dark money group to fund attack ads that are full of lies," Leibowitz said.

An APS spokesman refused to discuss the donation. It comes as APS and other utilities battle the Obama administration over carbon dioxide standards on coal-fired power plants they see as unnecessary and onerous.

Brnovich has promised to sue the administration, if elected, but Leibowitz says Rotellini promised to sue before the Republican did. Brnovich press aide Matthew Benson says the question of who was first, is probably irrelevant,

“The question is, which of these two candidates has credibility that they will actually fight back against the Obama administration. And there is nothing in Felecia Rotellini's past experience that shows she'll do that," Benson said.

Technically, the Republican Attorneys General Association is not a dark money group. You can find out who funds it, but it’s difficult. And, the group takes funds from groups that do not make such disclosures.