Private water utility Arizona American Water Co. advised its nearly 5,000 customers in Scottsdale and Paradise Valley Wednesday to drink bottled water after discovering a malfunction that may have allowed a suspected cancer-causing chemical into their tap water.

State utility officials are considering a formal investigation of Arizona American Water Co. after water from one of its facilities contained unhealthy amounts of a suspected cancer-causing agent for a second time in three months.

Lately, Mesa officials are managing the city’s affairs a little like someone who’s losing at a game of Monopoly. City-owned property is on the auction block to the highest bidder. Mesa is trying to borrow more and more money just to stay in the game.

State utility regulators are free to require utilities to buy or generate power from solar, wind and other sources, even if that costs their ratepayers more, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled Tuesday.

State utility regulators are free to require utilities to buy or generate power from solar, wind and other sources, even if that costs their ratepayers more, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled Tuesday.

We know a city is in bad shape when its fiscal problems are of such a scale where they can be explained in terms most people can understand.

Want to save money and reduce water use by your lawn this summer? Chandler’s popular landscaping and irrigation workshops will teach you how from 6 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. Thursdays through May 3 at Chandler City Hall, 175 N. Arizona Ave.

Free tax preparation help will be given Saturday for East Valley residents in danger of missing out on economic stimulus payments.

Ken Colburn: If you are like most avid Internet surfers, not only are you likely to use multiple computers, you're probably using one of various browsers such as Internet Explorer, Firefox or Safari, depending on which machine and which sites you are surfing.

Scottsdale is hosting a free lecture on solar buildings and energy from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday at Granite Reef Senior Center, 1700 N. Granite Reef Road, Scottsdale.

Phoenix is known for its “urban sprawl,” where suburbs and cities stretch across the entire Valley of the Sun. Back in the days of the housing boom, one popular slogan among realtors was “drive until you qualify,” meaning housing got more affordable the further you went from the city. The trade-off to that, however, was a longer commute. Since public transit in Phoenix is horrible (aside from the light rail for a few college kids), the only option for most of us is to drive if we need to get anywhere.

SRP is hosting a free electric safety workshop 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Feb. 26. Sign-in begins at 6 a.m.

Don Brandt, Paul Bonavia and Richard Silverman: As the leaders of Arizona’s largest electric utilities, our goal is to provide safe, reliable power to our customers at the lowest possible cost. And while some still question some of the climate change panel’s conclusions, we have to address this important issue.

May 8, 2004

February 16, 2005

Free full-day kindergarten will be available in the Kyrene Elementary School District next year even though the state will no longer fund the program.

NEW ORLEANS - To help boost its stalled economy, hurricane-ravaged New Orleans is offering the nation's first free wireless Internet network owned and run by a major city.

October 25, 2004

If you want to find information on the Web, just use your favorite Internet search engine. But if you want to pull up a file from your PC’s hard drive, good luck.

If your household income is under $50,000, taking the “EZ” path to tax-return preparation could cost you dearly. Mesa United Way invites you to use its free tax service to ensure you get all the tax credits you may be entitled to.

The Kyrene School District Governing Board approved a plan that will allow them access to $2.5 million of what was previously untouchable money.

For some, throwing a party is easier than iPhone navigation. They point their finger and a party materializes, scrapbooked nametags and all. For others, just the thought of a party sends their blood pressure through the ceiling. It doesn’t have to be that way though, says Phoenix designer Cheryl Najafi.

Q: I have tried to use various programs to stop pop-up ads, but it seems like they just keep coming back. What can I do to stop these darn things? —Julie