TAMPA, Fla – Tampa Electric customers will see yet another rate increase in January, following a unanimous vote this week by the Florida Public Service Commission to approve the utility’s latest request.
What we know:
The rate adjustment, finalized Tuesday, will raise the average residential customer’s bill by $5.51 per month, based on 1,000 kilowatt-hours of usage. Â
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It marks the fourth rate hike for TECO customers in the past year. Earlier increases in 2025 included a $9-13 monthly base rate hike in January, a $20-25 storm recovery charge in March, and a 10 percent rise in fuel costs in June.
Consumer advocates say the cumulative effect has been dramatic. According to Food and Water Watch, TECO customers have seen their electricity bills climb 82% since 2020. Brooke Ward, the group’s Florida organizer, said regulators have failed to protect consumers from mounting energy costs.
“Utility regulators have been rubber-stamping these rate increases. So if they ask for it, they get it,” Ward said. “Although we do want to see reliable energy, we don’t want to be seeing Florida families who are struggling to pay for food, medicine, electricity, and rent padding the pockets of shareholders at that expense.”
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The other side:
TECO officials say the rate increases are justified and necessary to maintain a reliable power grid. The company described the latest adjustment as part of a two-phase plan approved by regulators in 2024.
“What customers are seeing is us as their proven electric company investing in our infrastructure so that we can increase reliability and improve resilience,” said Karen Sparkman, TECO’s vice president of customer experience.
Company representatives also pointed to ongoing recovery efforts from the 2024 hurricane season, saying costs tied to catastrophic storms have contributed to higher monthly bills.
Sparkman noted that a temporary hurricane recovery charge will be removed next September, offering some relief.
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TECO also disputes the 82 percent figure cited by Food and Water Watch, saying it inflates the increase because the group’s calculation starts in 2020, when rates were unusually low due to pandemic-related adjustments.
What’s next:
The new rates will take effect in January 2026, though temporary relief is expected when storm recovery fees expire later in the year.
Still, advocates warn that without stronger oversight, utilities across Florida may continue to seek rate increases for years to come.
“We have a legislature that has been passing laws that allow those rate increases to be larger than they had been historically,” Ward said.
The Source: Information for this story came from the Florida Public Service Commission meeting and interviews with representatives for Tampa Electric and Food and Water Watch.