Your electric bill could stop increasing if the Affordable Energy Reform Act — endorsed by clean energy advocates — makes it through the Florida Legislature this session.
State Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith, D-Orlando, wants to change the way electricity rate hikes are determined.
His measure, SB 1532, would require the Florida Public Service Commission, which regulates power companies, ensure utilities don't recover certain costs from ratepayers, while also capping profits.
Brooke Ward, the Florida State Director of Food & Water Watch, has been advocating for these changes for a long time.
"It's really exciting to see this year that we have truly reformative legislation being introduced that will win real improvements in the lives of Florida families," she said.
The legislation could also improve transparency and accountability when it comes to rate hikes.
This comes after the PSC granted Florida Power and Light a $7 billion rate increase spread over four years.
"Fifty cents of every dollar of that rate increase was because of the return on equity. So it was for profit, and the associated taxes with profit," Ward said.
The Affordable Energy Reform Act would cap such returns by forcing them to match the national average. And profits would also be tied to efficiency.
"Not only does it mean that the total cost of energy goes down, but it also incentivizes utilities to use less energy when creating the electricity to power our homes," she said, leading to lower bills and less climate-warming fossil fuels.
Sen. Guillermo Smith didn't respond to a request for comment, but was quoted in a Food & Water Watch release.
"Floridians are being squeezed by record utility rate hikes while investor-owned utilities post some of the highest profits in the nation. The Affordable Energy Reform Act puts working families first by capping excessive profits, holding utilities accountable for fuel costs, and giving people a real voice in rate decisions," he said.
"Affordable electricity shouldn't be a luxury—it's a basic necessity. This commonsense proposal ensures that the Public Service Commission finally does what it was created to do: regulate utilities for the benefit of ratepayers," he continued.
Many residents are also calling electricity a "luxury" rather than a necessity via an online petition to sue Tampa Electric for "price gouging" on change.org, which has more than 25,000 verified signatures.
This past June, Tampa Electric averaged the highest residential bills across Florida and the second-highest in the country for large utilities.
Guillermo Smith isn't the only lawmaker targeting change within the utility-regulating PSC this legislative session.
Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, also wants to limit power companies from earning returns on equity that exceed the national average.
His proposal, SB 126, additionally seeks to expand the commission to seven members, requiring one be a certified public accountant and another a chartered financial analyst.
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