STAFF REPORT

Florida Power and Light has begun assessing a $3.65 monthly charge to recover for costs associated with Hurricane Matthew.  FPL’s bill for 1000 kWh is now $102.37.  Florida Today writes, “The storm charge follows the commission (Florida Public Service Commission) approval in late 2016 of a four-year $811 million base-rate increase that pushed up the typical customer’s 1,000-kilowatt hour monthly bill by $6.93 in January. The base-rate hike will require increases in January 2018 and June 2019.”

Curiously, local utility activist, Stephen Faherty, avoids mentioning FPL additional charges in his regular propaganda e-mail newsletter. Faherty, along with fellow activist Glenn Heran first build support for the sale of Vero Electric by claiming the City would net some $170 million from the sale.  There would, they said, be no need for tax increases or cuts in municipal services.  Now it appears any sale will require not only tax hikes and service cuts, but also a hefty, multi-year surcharge to be paid by the customers of Vero Electric.