![\"Electric](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Electric-grid-power-cables-by-Trygve-Finkelsen-via-iStock-for-WMNF-News-scaled.jpg\")
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tElectric grid power cables by Trygve Finkelsen via iStock for WMNF News.<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tElectric grid power cables by Trygve Finkelsen via iStock for WMNF News.<\/p>\n
by Mitch Perry, Florida Phoenix<\/a> A bill directing the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) to justify rate increases for investor-owned utilities and consider affordability advanced in its first committee stop Tuesday ahead of the 2026 legislative session.<\/p>\n The bill\u00a0(SB 126<\/a>) was introduced just weeks after the PSC\u00a0approved<\/a>\u00a0a nearly $7 billion rate increase for Florida Power & Light\u2019s (FPL) 12 million customers, the largest rate hike in history.<\/p>\n State Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Crestview, introduced a \u201cstrike-all\u201d amendment Tuesday before the Senate Regulated Industries Committee revising Florida law regarding the PSC, including:<\/p>\n Expanding the number of PSC commissioners from five to seven and requiring one commissioner to be a certified public accountant and another a chartered financial analyst.Requiring the PSC, when issuing orders, to provide adequate support for its conclusions.Requiring the PSC to provide reasoned explanations when accepting or denying a settlement agreement.Requiring the PSC to submit an annual report on public utility rates that includes benchmarking and analysis on economics, costs, return on equity, and executive compensation.<\/p>\n One provision that the amendment drops from Gaetz\u2019s original bill would have capped a utility\u2019s return on equity (ROE). That represents the utility\u2019s allowed profit. FPL\u2019s recently approved rate increase includes an ROE of 10.95%.<\/p>\n The removal of that provision upset two members of the public who spoke about the legislation during the hearing.<\/p>\n \u201cThe bill as amended has altered a critical tool \u2014 a cap that would limit shareholder profits, which is necessary to keep utilities from passing executive costs on to taxpayers,\u201d said Brian Lee of Reclaiming Florida\u2019s Future.<\/p>\n \u201cThe strike-all amendment weakens its ability to deliver real relief for Florida families,\u201d added Taylor Brown. \u201cHousing costs, insurance, and utility bills are pushing people to a breaking point.\u201d<\/p>\n Affordability\t<\/p>\n Florida law requires the rates of regulated utility companies to be \u201cfair, just and reasonable.\u201d<\/p>\n Sen. Gaetz\u2019s bill says that the PSC should consider affordability in any proceeding before the agency that has the potential to affect rates.<\/p>\n \u201cThe reason affordability got into this bill is because when the latest case came before the PSC, associated with FPL, commissioners were asked to consider affordability and they said, \u2018We can\u2019t because it wasn\u2019t in the statute.\u2019 We\u2019re going to help them with that, I hope,\u201d he told the committee.<\/p>\n Committee chair Jennifer Bradley, R-Fleming Island, asked Mark Futrell, deputy executive director with the PSC, whether the agency could define affordability.<\/p>\n \u201cI think more certainty, more clarity as far as definitions from the intent of the Legislature is always helpful, but I think that we can work through that,\u201d Futrell said. \u201cAffordability is something that \u2014 we get the sentiment of it. I think we understand that part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n Sen. Debbie Mayfield, R-Melbourne, said she had a number of concerns about the legislation, including the provisions about adding two new members to the PSC.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we have a problem with the PSC board, I don\u2019t think increasing it would solve their problem,\u201d she said. \u201cWe are the ones who do confirm them, so if we have a problem with the commission, it\u2019s just as much our fault for confirming people that we don\u2019t think are going to do a good job.\u201d<\/p>\n Sen. Jason Pizzo, NPA-Sunny Isles Beach, said he appreciated that Gaetz had removed the provision that would have capped a utility\u2019s ROE.<\/p>\n \u201cI am not for caps,\u201d he said. \u201cI think that\u2019s socialism.\u201d<\/p>\n Gaetz told the committee his intent was \u201cnot to tie the hands of the utility companies.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe intent of the bill is to direct the commission to justify their decisions,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd to explain how they made their decisions and the effect that those decisions have on ratepayers.\u201d<\/p>\n The bill was ultimately unanimously approved by the committee, 9-0, and moves to the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Environment, and General Government.<\/p>\n Independent Journalism for All <\/p>\n As a nonprofit newsroom, our articles are free for everyone to access. Readers like you make that possible. Can you help sustain our watchdog reporting today?<\/p>\n SUPPORT <\/p>\n <\/a> <\/p>\n Florida Phoenix<\/a> is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Electric grid power cables by Trygve Finkelsen via iStock for WMNF News. by Mitch Perry, Florida Phoenix December…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":79896,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[20709,5593,28,30,29,44667,14680,22353],"class_list":["post-79895","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-electric-rates","tag-energy","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news","tag-florida-psc","tag-mitch-perry","tag-psc"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79895","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=79895"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79895\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/79896"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=79895"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=79895"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=79895"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
December 9, 2025<\/p>\n