Ministers and the Sierra Club push for ditching coal and remember those living in older, less insulated homes who have high electric bills
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — It’s costing more to keep the lights on in Jacksonville homes. Because of that, faith leaders and environmentalists are teaming up to urge JEA and the City of Jacksonville to take action and move toward less expensive and more renewable sources of energy.
“So we think that there is an affordability crisis,” Reverend Russel Meyer said. He is the pastor at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Jacksonville’s Springfield community.
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Some of his parishioners are having a tough time paying their utility bills. He told the story about one family, “They are paying JEA a minimum of $400 a month. In the summer, it’s $600 a month. They’re in a historic home. They have limits to what can be done to their homes.”
Reverend Meyer, other faith leaders, the NAACP, and the Sierra Club held a town hall meeting on Tuesday in Springfield, asking people to share their affordability stories and concerns when it comes to paying the utility bills.
The Sierra Club, for years, has urged JEA to ditch the use of coal, proceed with less reliance on fossil fuels, and use more renewable resources. The environmental organization argues the changes could lower rates for customers.
“Choosing to retire the (JEA) Northside (Generating Station’s) coal units would save JEA customers up to $500 million over 12 years, granting customers necessary relief on their bills. The change will also improve public health by drastically lowering health-harming emissions and preventing 112 asthma attacks annually,” the club says.
JEA tells First Coast News that in 2021, a household using 1,000 kilowatt hours of power had a bill of $129.82. That same household in February 2026, using the same amount, had a bill of $150.99. That’s a 16 percent increase.
JEA is scheduled to vote in June on whether to increase rates again in October “to keep pace with rising operating costs.”
A spokesperson also says JEA’s rates are consistently in the low range when compared to other Florida utilities.
As for using coal, JEA says in 2024, coal and petcoke accounted for six percent of JEA’s overall energy mix. Currently, it does not have a timeline to phase out coal and petcoke. However, it points out that the utility “has made substantial progress toward clean energy” with solar energy.
JEA does have programs to access people’s homes and suggest power-saving techniques and advancements.
However, Rev. Meyer said many people in his community do not have the money to implement those changes.
Meyer’s congregation and community members who live in old homes with little insulation, they want JEA and the city of Jacksonville to listen and make changes.
Meyer said, “The public utility should be looking out for the public and not looking out for investors. I’m asking for the people who are making choices between health and food and livability.”