FPL Customers Spared Hurricane Irma Surcharge

JUNO BEACH, FL — While Hurricane Irma hit Florida back in September, Floridians almost got hit a second time in the form of higher electric bills related to the storm. Florida Power and Light announced on Tuesday that it will offset a planned increase in utility bills with the savings it gets under the recent tax changes. Hurricane Irma cost FPL an estimated $1.3 billion

"Because of federal tax savings beginning in 2018, FPL will not need to raise rates to pay for the unprecedented Hurricane Irma restoration — saving each of FPL's 4.9 million customers an average of $250," the company said in a statement released Tuesday afternoon.

FPL said that a typical customer who uses 1,000-kWh will see bills that are nearly 30 percent below the latest national average with a decrease of $3.35 a month starting on March 1 when the company pays off its Hurricane Matthew costs.

"Tax savings in future years may enable FPL to continue the current rate agreement and avoid a general base rate increase potentially through the end of 2022," FPL officials added.

FPL said tax reform couldn't have come at a better time from the perspective of its customers.

"The timing of federal tax reform, coming on the heels of the most expensive hurricane in Florida history, created an unusual and unprecedented opportunity," explained FPL President and CEO Eric Silagy. "We believe the plan we've outlined is the fastest way to begin passing tax savings along to our customers and the most appropriate approach to keeping rates low and stable for years to come."

FPL's response to Hurricane Irma was unprecedented both in scale and the speed of power restoration, according to company officials. The company had previously announced its intention to impose a surcharge on customer bills through 2020 to pay for Hurricane Irma.

Officials said that FPL's 2016 base rate agreement allowed it to pass along the savings.

"Our current rate agreement provides the ability to use federal tax savings to entirely offset Hurricane Irma restoration costs, which delivers an immediate benefit to customers, and also the potential opportunity to avoid a general base rate increase for up to an additional two years," Silagy said.

FPL said that its typical bill for consumers is lower today than it was more than 10 years ago.

Image courtesy Florida Power and Light