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A.G. GancarskiJanuary 7, 2016

In August, the JEA utility service brought Northeast Florida Republican legend Mike Hightower in to handle external affairs, a move lauded at the time. Now we’re seeing more evidence of Hightower’s expanding role at a critical time for JEA as it hammers out its JEA Agreement with the city of Jacksonville. Judi Spann told Florida Politics […]

A.G. GancarskiDecember 29, 2015

In late October, Jacksonville public officials trumpeted Google considering Jacksonville for Google Fiber implementation. In the past two months, meetings between public officials and Google representatives have laid out terms, point by point, and a review of city emails reveals a potential sticking point: the pole attachment agreement. Paul Cosgrave, PIO for JEA, lays out […]

A.G. GancarskiDecember 29, 2015

Despite the handwringing in certain quarters about JEA’s annual bond ratings agency trip to New York earlier in December, JEA says it was “excellent.” An email from JEA CFO Melissa Dykes to Kerri Stewart, Chief of Staff of the Lenny Curry administration, credits the Jacksonville mayor. “The rating agency meetings were excellent. In particular, we have received […]

A.G. GancarskiDecember 14, 2015

Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry just returned from his first JEA bond rating trip to New York; he says it went well, and that a lot of that had to do with the story of economic growth he could tell because of Governor Rick Scott. “I was able to tell a very succinct story,” Curry said at a […]

A.G. GancarskiDecember 9, 2015

In 2012, Jacksonville General Counsel Cindy Laquidara decided that JEA had the power to raise its employees’ pay. Laquidara was quoted in The Florida Times-Union at the time as saying “the city used to be the employer; the facts changed but the charter language did not.” Fast-forward to 2015. Jacksonville has a new General Counsel, […]

A.G. GancarskiDecember 8, 2015

Tuesday’s JEA Agreement meeting, the final one before the Jacksonville public utility’s trip to New York for pivotal meetings with bond-rating agencies, was not expected to have drama. One pragmatic reason for such an expectation: Bond agencies might not look favorably on the kind of morality play theater that has become a staple of JEA […]

A.G. GancarskiNovember 24, 2015

The JEA Agreement Committee meeting last week brimmed with optimism over getting close to an accord on the contribution proposal. Would Tuesday’s meeting brim with similar good feeling and bonhomie? Not so much. JEA CEO Paul McElroy noted that “given where we are with our governance structure,” it would be necessary to have the board consider […]

A.G. GancarskiNovember 18, 2015

Bill Gulliford celebrated his 72nd birthday by chairing the JEA Agreement meeting, promising, at long last, an extended discussion of the contribution formula, before a vote on it next Tuesday. The proposal specs: a 10-year agreement, starting October 2016; a contribution floor of $114,187,538; a reset of tax millage to achieve the floor; an annual […]

A.G. GancarskiNovember 10, 2015

The agenda for Tuesday’s JEA Interlocal Agreement meeting included some tantalizing topics. Joint operating/cost savings opportunities; JEA Board composition; a semantic discussion of “profits”; pension issues; and the contribution formula, which is the crux of the continuing contretemps between the public utility and the city. They didn’t really get there. They did, however, get to […]

A.G. GancarskiNovember 4, 2015

The JEA Board is taking shape, and Lenny Curry is bringing two big time players to the game. One of them is a longtime Democratic City Councilman. A Tuesday morning email from Director of Appointments and Special Projects Jordan Elsbury signals the administration’s intention to advance Warren Jones and Ed Burr on an expedited emergency cycle […]

Tag: JEA

JEA makes organizational move; Mike Hightower over media affairs

Could Jax Google Fiber deal fall through?

JEA credits Lenny Curry on “excellent” ratings agency meetings

Lenny Curry: JEA bond rating trip was “positive”

Jax General Counsel deems City Council “appropriative” body in JEA pay negotiations

JEA Agreement meeting addresses contribution “floor”

JEA Agreement contribution negotiations snag because of board turnover

JEA Agreement meeting addresses contribution formula proposal

JEA Agreement meeting addresses septic tank, sewer issues

Warren Jones, Ed Burr to JEA Board