Although it’s been a while since the term “utility death spiral” has been trotted out in the media, there’s no doubt that utilities are under pressure to modernize and innovate their business models. This week we saw several significant moves from utilities that may move us toward to a 21st Century electricity system, from an Arizona utility looking to install residential solar panels — for free — to a report that embraces electric vehicles for future utility growth. Plus, a New York utility has filed a rate case that includes distribution automation, microgrids-as-a-service, and community solar.