{"id":420279,"date":"2026-10-06T14:54:29","date_gmt":"2026-10-06T14:54:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/420279\/"},"modified":"2026-10-06T14:54:29","modified_gmt":"2026-10-06T14:54:29","slug":"jea-customers-seek-answers-on-higher-bills-jacksonville-resident-petitions-for-lower-rates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/420279\/","title":{"rendered":"JEA customers seek answers on higher bills, Jacksonville resident petitions for lower rates"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Jacksonville community advocate and influencer is calling on JEA to lower its rates after his family received a $500 utility bill, prompting an online petition<\/a> that has drawn more than 10,000 signatures.<\/p>\n

Jason Goodrich said he was prepared to help pay the bill but was shocked by the total. He posted about it on TikTok and soon heard from other customers sharing similar concerns.<\/p>\n

“A surprise jump in a utility bill can be devastating for some people,” Goodrich said in a video.<\/p>\n

Goodrich said he did not expect his post to lead to a broader effort.<\/p>\n

“When I said something, I didn’t expect it to turn into this,” he said.<\/p>\n

Hundreds of people have also shared concerns with First Coast News, including photos of bills they said increased without a clear explanation. Those concerns began before JEA’s latest rate adjustments <\/a>took effect Oct. 1.<\/p>\n

Goodrich said the messages he received pushed him to launch a petition urging the utility to lower rates.<\/p>\n

“We’re looking for relief,” he said.<\/p>\n

He said customers want clearer answers about the increases and worry they will be unable to keep up with their bills.<\/p>\n

JEA explains rate adjustments<\/p>\n

JEA spokesperson Karen McAllister said the Oct. 1 adjustments are intended to address rising operating costs and infrastructure investments.<\/p>\n

The utility points to water and wastewater upgrades, replacement of aging equipment and projects designed to meet growing demand. JEA says infrastructure upgrades also are preparing the company to comply with state and federal regulations. The capital projects listed all exceed $25 million. You can find a list of the projects here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

McAllister said lower fuel rates mean electric bills should be about $8 lower compared with April, while water bills will likely be about $5 higher over the same comparison period. Those estimates compare bills with April, rather than describing the effect of the October rate adjustments alone.<\/p>\n

Individual bills vary depending on service and usage, she said.<\/p>\n

McAllister also said hotter weather can increase electricity use even when customers have not changed their thermostat settings.<\/p>\n

“Your AC system may be working harder and running longer and causing your bills to increase,” she said.<\/p>\n

Help for customers<\/p>\n

Customers who question whether their bills are accurate should contact JEA at 904-665-6000, McAllister said.<\/p>\n

The utility offers free energy or irrigation assessments to help customers identify ways to conserve and save money. Customers struggling to pay can also ask about payment arrangements or extensions.<\/p>\n

“We know that affordability is a serious concern for many families in Jacksonville,” McAllister said. “We understand that.”<\/p>\n

JEA also offers an online bill estimator<\/a> that customers can use to see how the new rates could affect their costs.<\/p>\n

Goodrich said he plans to continue raising customers’ concerns and attend JEA’s next board meeting, scheduled for 9 a.m. Oct. 27. The meeting is open to the public.<\/p>\n

“I’m gonna see this battle through,” he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A Jacksonville community advocate and influencer is calling on JEA to lower its rates after his family received…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":420280,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[116,118,117],"class_list":["post-420279","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville-headlines","tag-jacksonville-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/420279","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=420279"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/420279\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/420280"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=420279"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=420279"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=420279"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}