Michael Moline
The Public Service Commission on Monday said OK to Florida Public Utilities’ plan to front restoration costs to the 1,100 Panhandle customers whose homes are too damaged to reconnect to the company’s grid.
However, the commission took a pass on the utility’s proposal to pass along the costs to other ratepayers if customers renege on the loans.
The Office of Public Counsel objected that the cost of restoring consumer-owned equipment “should not be socialized” across the ratepayer base, said the office’s Patty Christensen.
“We think this is a good program,” Public Counsel J.R. Kelly said following the hearing. ”At the same time, this is a nonutility service.
“We’ll take a very close look at the order when it comes out,” he added. “As long as it doesn’t address this bad-debt expense, we’re fine.”
FPU would pay up to $1,500 to electricians reconnecting the affected homes, and the customers would repay the money in $20 increments in their monthly bills, plus a service charge.
The utility, a subsidiary of Chesapeake Utilities Corp., serves 13,000 customers in Calhoun, Jackson, and Liberty counties — every one of whom lost power during Hurricane Michael, according to its petition to the PSC.
As of Monday, the company had restored power to 97 percent of those customers, and was scheduled to have reopened its Marianna office.
“However, the company estimates that up to 9 percent of customers’ homes in these areas cannot be reconnected to FPUC’s system due to damage to the electric facilities owned by the customer,” the company said in its petition, filed Thursday.
“FPUC is aware that the damage to customers’ homes and associated electric equipment is, in many cases, significant and widespread. Due to the rural nature of this service territory, there is a limited number of local electricians able to provide assistance.
“Moreover, given the scope of damage to the area and the economic impact that this will have on these communities both in the short and long term, many customers will likely find paying for the electrical repairs necessary to restore service to their home exceedingly challenging.”
The utility promised not to disconnect any customers for nonpayment of the reimbursement charge.
Customers could choose their own licensed, bonded electricians but — given a shortage of qualified electricians in the disaster zone — the company might have to find electricians outside that area.
Kelly wasn’t aware of similar proposals from any other investor-owned utilities. They are free to offer similar plans as long as they don’t try to push any bad-debt expenses onto the broader rate base, he said.
It was that element that necessitated PSC review of the FPUC proposal.
“Here comes a snowball coming downhill,” he said. “What would prevent Gulf Power from doing that for Bay County folks? Duke doing it for Mexico Beach folks?”
