Court Sets Hearing in Utility Storm Plans

Article reposted with permission from The News Service of Florida.

The Florida Supreme Court on Wednesday said it will hear arguments Feb. 7 in a dispute about state regulators’ approvals of storm-protection plans for four electric utilities. The state Office of Public Counsel, which represents consumers in utility issues, went to the Supreme Court in December 2022 after the Florida Public Service Commission approved plans for a wide range of utility projects, such as increasing the number of underground power lines. The plans, approved for Florida Power & Light, Duke Energy Florida, Tampa Electric Co. and Florida Public Utilities Co., were tied to a 2019 state law that passed after Hurricane Irma, Hurricane Michael and other storms caused widespread power outages. Utilities file 10-year storm-protection plans with the commission and then are able to seek money from customers annually to carry out the plans. In the Supreme Court case, the Office of Public Counsel has argued, in part, that regulators did not properly review what is known as the “prudence” of the storm-protection plans.