No. HB 187
Filed under Environment & Water.
Florida Public Service Commission; Revises membership of PSC; requires PSC to include specified information in settlement agreement orders, ensure certain allowable returns on equity, establish certain schedules for rate change requests, & provide annual report to Governor & Legislature.
Plain English Summary
AI-GENERATEDThe Public Service Commission grows from five to seven commissioners, with one seat reserved for a certified public accountant and another for a chartered financial analyst, adding specific financial expertise to the panel that sets utility rates.
A new cap ties every utility's allowed return on equity to the national average for comparable utilities, and commission orders, especially ones accepting or rejecting settlements, must now spell out the specific facts behind each decision.
The commission must set a schedule for when utilities may submit rate change requests, and file a detailed annual report by March 1 comparing Florida's approved returns on equity, and the methods used to set them, against other states.
That annual report must also publish each utility's executive pay, including salaries, bonuses, stock options, and buybacks, both in dollars and as a share of revenue, and flag any pay that tops the industry average.
AIThe Public Service Commission grows to seven commissioners, still appointed under the existing process, but with one seat now required to be filled by a certified public accountant and another by a chartered financial analyst.
AIEvery commission order must now contain adequate support and rationale for its conclusions, and orders accepting or denying a settlement agreement must give a reasoned, fact-based explanation and discuss the settlement's major elements.
AIThe commission must ensure no public utility's allowed return on equity exceeds the national average authorized for comparable utilities elsewhere, replacing individualized rate-case discretion with an external benchmark.
AIThe commission must submit a March 1 report analyzing contemporary rate-change economics, comparing its return-on-equity models against those used by federal agencies and other states, and assessing the long-term impact of rising authorized returns.
AIUtilities can no longer submit rate change requests on an ad hoc basis; the commission must establish and presumably publish a schedule governing when each public utility company may submit such requests.
AIThe annual report must detail the compensation of each utility's executive officers, and those of its affiliated or parent companies, covering salaries, benefits, stock options, bonuses, and stock buybacks as both dollar figures and a share of revenue.