Jeff Clemens voted to raise Utility rates by $358 million a year

A message from:
Apryl Marie Fogel
State Director
Americans for Prosperity-Florida

Efforts to Increase Utility Rates Must Be Stopped

Last week, House and Senate Committees in Tallahassee approved legislation – SB 7082 and HB 7217 – that allows the four investor owned utility companies unlimited ability to build renewable energy plants and charge their customers for the costs of construction and operation. This equates to a $358 million a year increase in utility rates for Floridians at a time when the Florida Public Service Commission has stated that we don’t have a need for any new electricity generation for at least ten years.

STOP this massive tax hike by clicking here!

The proposed bills remove any required need for the new energy however, meaning that there doesn’t have to be any review or determination that the renewable energy plant is necessary before the customer gets footed with the bill. The utility companies are painting this bill as something to encourage renewable energy in the state. But the reality is that this will hurt individual renewable investments in the state and give complete market control to the large companies.

Florida’s industrial utility rates are already 52 percent higher and residential rates are 20 percent higher that the average of surrounding states. Raising rates higher will only further prevent our economic recovery and growth.

Click here to send a message to the members of the House and Senate that they can’t impose this tax while killing market competition – all at a time when our state desperately needs economic growth and jobs.

The House Energy & Utilities Subcommittee passed this bill out unanimously with 10 Republican and 5 Democrats voting for the bill.

The Senate Committee on Communications, Energy and Public Utilities also passed the bill with 8 Republicans and 5 Democrats voting for it and Senator Mike Fasano (R) casting the lone vote against it.

Please take a moment to write your House and Senate members to make your voice heard and say “ENOUGH IS ENOUGH NO MORE TAXES & FEES."

In addition, we encourage you to check the links above and see if your member was one of the votes to help get this through committee last week; if so please call their offices and tell them they made promises against job killing legislation and this is no exception you will remember their votes.