While most Floridians were enjoying some time off over the holidays, the folks at the state’s monopoly utilities — Florida Power & Light (FPL), Duke and Tampa Electric (TECO) — were busy playing Scrooge. They were asking permission from the Public Service Commission (PSC) to batter their customers with yet another post-hurricane rate hike. On Dec. 27, Duke and TECO filed requests with the PSC to hit their customers up for an extra $262 million and $281 million, respectively. FPL shopped early, securing approval for a $1.2 billion hike on Dec. 4. This is all on top of base rate hikes. The PSC recently approved huge base rate hikes for Duke and TECO. Duke customers are paying an extra $21 per month, with TECO customers on the hook for an extra $9 per month. Those base rates will go up even further in 2026 — and that’s not counting the requested storm-related hikes. FPL customers will likely get the same double whammy. In addition to its hurricane-related charges, on Dec. 30 the utility filed a base rate request to charge customers an extra $1.55 billion starting in 2026. And thanks to some clever, if disingenuous, utility talking points, much of the press coverage has parroted their spin, ludicrously framing these hikes as a win for consumers. For example, when Duke secured its base rate hike, the headline in the Tampa Bay Times was: “Florida Duke Energy customers will see smaller rate hikes on their bills next year.” Smaller than what? Well, smaller than the $820 million hike Duke initially said it wanted. The real headline should have been the...
When it comes to Florida state officials, the lyrics from an old Sam Cooke song come to mind: “Don’t know much about … ,” but instead of “history,” the word here is “energy.” And that would be putting it mildly. Mind-numbing ignorance would be a more accurate description, and Floridians are paying the price with skyrocketing utility bills and unbearable insurance costs. In fact, in 2023 Florida’s energy bills were the fourth highest in the nation. One problem is that most Florida decision-makers either don’t understand, or are unwilling to acknowledge, the basic fundamentals of today’s energy market. While that market, both in the U.S. and globally, has changed dramatically over the past decade, the attitudes of Florida’s officials have not. Energy sources that used to be the cheapest, like coal and natural gas, have gotten much more expensive, while sources that used to be cost prohibitive, like solar, wind and nuclear, are now often the cheapest. There are a few reasons for this change. First, our remaining coal and natural gas-fired power plants are old — between 30 and 50 years old — and cost much more to maintain and operate than they used to. Also, because we now export roughly 13% of U.S. natural gas overseas — and that percentage is expected to double by 2028 — gas prices here are not only increasing, they are becoming more volatile. Just like with gasoline, natural gas is now a global commodity, and its price can suddenly spike due to events halfway around the world. By contrast, the price of solar is cheap and getting cheaper. In sunny states,...
David Jenkins, president of Conservatives for Responsible Stewardship, is featured in a Newsweek article covering a dispute over federal land management policy involving Colorado Representative Lauren Boebert and the Bureau of Land Management. The piece focuses on a proposed federal land rule tied to oil and gas leasing and efforts in Congress to overturn it. Jenkins’ comments highlight concerns that rolling back the policy could shift cleanup and environmental restoration costs away from industry and onto taxpayers, particularly when it comes to abandoned wells and long-term land impacts. The broader discussion centers on how public lands are managed and how energy development policies intersect with environmental responsibility and government accountability. Read the full article:...
If you’ve noticed your utility bills skyrocketing, you’re not alone. Gas and electric bills across the state have been rising at an unprecedented rate over the past several years. And while some of this has been due to natural gas prices and hotter weather, most of it is because big monopoly utilities like NV Energy and Southwest Gas are being allowed to game the system. Here in Nevada, the Public Utility Commission is supposed to provide a check on utility rates, and to balance customer and utility interests. Instead, the PUC is letting these monopolies run wild with one record-breaking rate hike after another. In April, the PUC approved a record $59 million rate increase for Southwest Gas, which is $20 million higher than its previous record hike in 2020. This is despite Southwest Gas reporting a first-quarter net income ($98.5 million) that is more than double that of its first quarter in 2023 ($45.9 million), and a record 12-month operating margin of $1.3 billion. The hike also comes as SWG customers were already reeling from other recent SWG hikes. Even before this latest hike, customers reported their gas bills shooting up more than 300% in a single month. Utilities in Nevada are allowed to make rate adjustments every three months, and those are in addition to the hikes from general rate cases. While average Nevadans are getting hammered by higher and higher gas bills, Southwest Gas officers and shareholders — most of who reside outside of Nevada — are getting richer and richer. And it’s more than just Southwest Gas that keeps bellying up to the PUC...
David Jenkins, president of Conservatives for Responsible Stewardship, contributed a guest piece to Environment America titled Why environmentalism is conservative. The article explores how environmental protection connects to traditional conservative values like stewardship, responsibility, and preserving natural resources for future generations. It highlights the idea that caring for clean air, water, and public lands fits within a long-standing conservative ethic of passing something better on to those who come after us. It also points to examples from past conservative leadership in environmental policy to show that these principles have historically crossed party lines. Read the full piece:...
David Jenkins, president of Conservatives for Responsible Stewardship, is featured in a report from 12 News covering a recent decision by Arizona utility regulators to roll back the state’s renewable energy standards. The coverage explains that Arizona regulators voted to eliminate requirements that had guided how much electricity utilities must generate from renewable sources like wind and solar. Supporters of the change say it gives utilities more flexibility in how they meet energy demand, while critics warn it could slow the growth of clean energy and reduce long-term investment in renewables. The decision has sparked debate over how states should balance energy affordability, reliability, and the future of renewable development....
