Florida Power & Light faces two-week hearing on proposed $1.7 billion rate hike settlement

By WFOR Staff

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    Florida (WFOR) — The Florida Public Service Commission will hold what could be a two-week hearing in October on a proposed base-rate settlement for Florida Power & Light.

Commission Chairman Mike La Rosa on Friday signed an order scheduling the hearing during the weeks of Oct. 6 to Oct. 10 and Oct. 13 to Oct. 17.

Mixed reactions to rate increase plan The commission would decide later in the year whether to approve the proposal.

FPL and numerous groups and businesses reached agreement on the proposal, which was filed Wednesday. It would lead to base-rate increases of $945 million in 2026 and $766 million in 2027, according to FPL.

The utility also would collect additional amounts in 2028 and 2029 for solar energy and battery storage projects. But the state Office of Public Counsel, which is designated by law to represent consumers on utility issues, said in a filing Thursday that it opposes the proposed settlement, as do some other groups that are parties in the case.

Shift from earlier proposal FPL in February filed a proposal that would have led to larger rate increases over the next four years. But on Aug. 8, three days before the Public Service Commission was scheduled to start a likely contentious hearing on that proposal, FPL and other parties announced they had reached a “settlement in principle.”

The proposal filed Wednesday spelled out details.

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