(The Center Square) – Florida regulators held the first of two public meetings on a proposed rate hike by the Florida Public Utilities Company in Fernandina Beach this week.
Most of the customers that spoke at the hearing said they opposed the rate hike, while Florida Public Utilities says the the existing rates “are no longer sufficient.” The next public meeting will be on Jan. 8 in Marianna.
In the company’s rate filing, it says that the rate hike will be used to buy new substations and upgrade existing ones, which the company says will reduce fuel costs and improve safety and reliability. The company also says the improvements are needed for the company to be in compliance with industry regulations.
The utility, which serves more than 33,000 customers on Amelia Island and Jackson, Calhoun and Liberty counties, says it hasn’t asked for a rate hike in a decade and needs more from customers to pay for the cost of running the utility and provide it with a larger return on its investment.
Florida Public Utilities is a subsidiary of Delaware-based Chesapeake Utilities and doesn’t own any generation plants in the state and has to buy power from other utilities.
If approved by regulators, the company would increase its customer facilities charge from $16.95 to $18.20 per month and increase the price for electricity usage from 2.37 cents per kilowatt hour to nearly 2.55 cents per kWh up to 1,000 kWh per month and nearly 3.89 cents per kWh to 4.17 cents per kWh for usage exceeding 1,000 kWh.
Customers with a monthly usage of 1,000 kWh would actually have a decrease on their bills since a 2019 storm damage bill rider (a temporary charge designed to help utilities pay for repairs) approved by the Public Service Commission after Hurricane Michael will expire before the rate hike would take effect
The present charge for a 1,000 kWh customer is $169.06 and that same bill would decrease to $161.66 if the increase goes into effect.
The Public Service Commission staff will file a recommendation on March 14 and the commissioners could vote as soon as March 20.
