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FPL Seeks To Raise Bills For All Of 2025 To Cover Hurricane Costs; Here’s How Much
November 16, 2024
Florida Power & Light customers could soon see higher bills to cover the utility’s hurricane restoration costs.
FPL has asked the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) to approve a temporary surcharge on customer bills in 2025 to recover restoration costs after four hurricanes battered Florida in less than 14 months.
For FPL customers in Northwest Florida, the a typical bill for residential customers using 1,000 kwh would increase $8.07 from $135.38 to $143.45 each month of 2025 for a total of $96.84 . For FPL customers in the rest of Florida, that typical bill would increase $12.02 to $133.99.
The petition filed with the PSC seeks to recover restoration expenses for Hurricanes Debby, Helene and Milton, which ripped through Florida this year. It also seeks $150 million to replenish the company’s storm reserve, which was primarily depleted by Hurricane Idalia last year and then wiped out after Hurricane Debby in August. If approved by the PSC, the temporary surcharge would reimburse FPL about $1.2 billion.
Category 3 Idalia struck Florida in August 2023. This year, Category 1 Debby hit Florida in August, then Category 4 Helene and Category 3 Milton pounded the state less than two weeks apart in September and October. The four hurricanes caused more than 3 million combined outages to FPL customers with damaging winds, storm surge and – in the case of Milton – dozens of powerful, long-track tornadoes.
“FPL worked relentlessly to quickly restore power to our customers in the aftermath of each of these hurricanes,” FPL President and CEO Armando Pimentel said. “We’re mindful that customers pay these restoration costs, which is why we continue to invest in storm hardening and smart grid technology. This avoids many outages, speeds restoration and reduces restoration costs while helping customers bounce back faster, from getting kids back to school to getting Florida’s economy back up and running.”
Comments
28 Responses to “FPL Seeks To Raise Bills For All Of 2025 To Cover Hurricane Costs; Here’s How Much”
What is going on at the Christ pant? There has been, looks like dirt hauling semi-trucks, coming out of there for over 3 months. As many as 30 a day pass my house on some days. Anyone??
It’s not because of a hurricane (What hurricane in Escambia?) It’s because FP&L is recouping the money they paid for Gulf Power. That’s the real truth. We are still better off with FP&L. They are a professional, established Company. GP still has an ancient transformer near our house but our neighbor next door (GP bigwig) has his very own single service transformer. Hopefully it’s being paid for now.
If they have to rely on other customers to get by, they don’t need to be in business
https://www.fema.gov/press-release/20230502/fema-awards-55-million-prepa-reimburse-florida-power-and-light-company
This is from 2023 in Puerto Rico but proof that FP&L has been granted FEMA funds.
Power companies are eligible for FEMA reimbursement. Sounds like they just using that as an excuse, double dipping. I am willing to bet they have already recieved reimbursement from FEMA for all their expenses.
They Don’t need a hike in rates.
FPL has done a great job hardening our power lines and clearing debris and overgrowth around them to lessen the impacts of extreme weather events and the associated challenges.
My bill varies, but it’s pretty much the same as under Gulf Power, and $150/month average is a fair price.
I do not understand everyone. I am frugal with my power. I learned a long time ago (30+) years ago how to keep my power bill down. My next bill is less than $200 I have a 2400 sq ft home, a pool and 2 out bldg. extreme heat, extreme cold, yes it goes up but we learn to deal with it. Believe me it could and has been way worse. I can remember a $600 bill back in 2004
You would think that FPL would have insurance to cover extra expenses from hurricane damage to the equipment. Homeowners have it to cover cost of damages. Hey maybe we could turn tables on them and put the extra expense on homeowners insurance when damage occurs in a storm. Bet something would change then
@Henry Coe – Exactly my thoughts! FEMA pays for this. Yes the paper work is cumbersome, but it will come through. FPL should have to prove they are not double dipping with this added fee. PSC was formed to regulate the added fees; not just rubber stamp them. Michele Salzman what is your office doing to protect us from possible double dipping?
gulf power use to invest portion income to help cover these costs. we are now on natural gas they said would keep bills lower. now we must turn off light every time we leave a room to save $ on our bills.
I would like to know when the power bill will go down from the hurricanes that we have had witch was a temporary increase to recover from the inventory used from them. FPL will have a reason to increase our power bill each year because Florida will always have hurricanes somewhere in Florida. I hope president Trump makes FPL and other companies to lower their prices so the people that have to choose to keep their lights on or feed their family or gas in their cars so they can make it to work. I just pray that the next 4 years we can get above water instead of drowning in debt.
They don’t need the money, trust me they charge me and everyone else every month enough to cover all this and still be a billion dollar industry. I don’t think they will be bankrupt anytime soon…
WHY CAN’T THEY USE THE MONEY FROM ADVERTIZING (THAT THEY DON’T NEED TO DO) TO COMER THE BILL?
WHAT ABOUT ALL THE DONATIONS TO THE DIFFERANT ORGANIZATIONS, THAT IS MONEY THAT COULD COME OFF OUR BILL.
If all customers refused to pay the $8.07 what would they do? Turn off the power for 8 dollars? We can gripe this time, but next year it just might be us needing our power restored. We choose to live on FL and it’s the cost of living here.
Your allowed this RIPOFF company to have almost a monopoly in Fl which IS against the federal law which means ZERO to him -our bills almost DOUBLED the very first bill when they took over—and the cuts they talked about—-???00-000 so as long as you let your governor so what he wants-suck it up–WE LOSE
I’m pretty sure fp&l already gets a storm restoration fee on their bills already why do they need to raise cost even further? I’m pretty sure it’s to recoup some if the cost to build all the solar farms that’s not producing the electricity they thought they would
They need to disclose to the public all of their employees that get a giant bonus check every year. I don’t mind paying what I owe. But this company is expensive enough as it is.
this just is not right… the CEO’s need to take a LARGE pay cut and see what they are doing to us…. we need an Electric Co-Op like EREC, or at the very least FPL should have competition instead of a monopoly on a utility that is a necessity…. FPL is filled with money hungry greedy CEO’s in my opinion….
PSC y’all need to do your part and say NO! Not this time FPL!…. use your own insurance to re-cover losses ….. it’s the end of the year…. use it as a tax write off…. how about treating us fairly for a change….. i mean, we do like to eat, take care of our kids, struggling family members and pay our bills in a timely manner too……
Aren’t there programs out there to cover natural disasters? The homeowners have enough to take care of rather then to pay higher power bills. We have to cover natural disasters for our homes and now this. Where is FEMA or the Government, what will they do for this.
I have solar power on my house and there is a base amount that I have to pay for being hooked to the grid, but I saw that my base amount was approximately eight dollars more on the past couple of months. I think that I liked Gulf Power more when they were the owners.
Isn’t that what insurance is for… they were paid by fema and others to recoup money before then we got charged and I believe are still being charged for hurricanes Michael and Sally… this is frickin stupid. Our bills are already twice as high as they used to be.. and if you don’t pay it on time then they cut you off..
Thanks again FPL. Continuing to raise rates ever since the takeover.
Wait, FPL does not have a contingency fund ‘emergency fund’ for natural disasters or other events that might effect the company. Does this company not having savings? They serve an area that regularly gets effected by hurricanes and tornadoes. Now this makes me wonder did Erec also raise rates or keep cash on hand for natural disasters?
Just another excuse to raise rates at the hurricane victims expense, so in a since some of the victims who were affected lose their belonging and now get penalized on top of that? Got to love FPL
It is a little ingenuous of FPL to toss in Idalia, Debby, and Helene in the mix as these storms hit in the big bend of Florida, which is not FPL territory. It was Milton that caused the majority of their 2024 damage. However, considering Hurricane Michael alone added $10 per month to the average NW FL bill a few years ago, $8 sounds like a deal.
This sounds like an expense that FEMA should cover. Especially since FPL is not the only power company in Florida and since damage occurred in more states than Florida.
As if your rates were not high enough! Smdh