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He said what he found was deeply disturbing. In all races, the Republican won the election. This legislation allowed for Kelly to be replaced with a former utility lobbyist, Richard Gentry. Burning natural gas results in about half of the carbon dioxide emissions of burning coal, which also releases harmful metals and gases into the environment. The job was to be with a shell nonprofit created by Matrix employees that supported marijuana decriminalization and, on its face, had no connection to FPL. Florida Power & Light has also invested millions into groups with untraceable, anonymous donors that launched attacks on state and local politicians. Silagy, the FPL CEO, says the pair initially told him they had come to an amicable agreement about parting ways. Very early on in this bills ride, I think it has a real chance to settle out in a way that most parties are not upset, he said. Ari Peskoe, director of the Electricity Law Initiative at Harvard Law School said the whole purpose of firms like Matrix is to conceal that its the utility doing this. Top executives at utility giant Florida Power & Light worked closely with the political consultants who orchestrated a scheme to promote spoiler candidates in three key state Senate elections last year, according to documents obtained by the Orlando Sentinel. Silagy, CEO since 2014, will depart the company in April. Under the leadership of Eric Silagy, 54, the company has been tied to allegations of campaign finance violations, media manipulation, and the surveillance of critical journalists. Artiles pleaded not guilty. On Oct. 8, Bradleys legislative aide Katie Heffley emailed Holley with the subject line: Net Metering Bill., Good afternoon, Hope youre doing well, she said. Matrix grew so large that by 2015 it was operating several private aircraft to whisk Pitts and Perkins to client meetings. Landlords would be able to. We simply believe rooftop solar customers should pay the full cost of this investment, McGrath said. Southern Company and Alabama Power run the state of Alabama, Dunn said. However, those policies are coming under fire as utilities become increasingly concerned about how the growth of distributed solar energy affects their bottom line. Ricardo Rossello,. So far, there have been two criminal investigations into the campaign against Rodrguez and another Democratic state senate candidate, leading to charges against five people, though authorities have not accused Matrix or FPL of wrongdoing. "We're not making a connection," said John Ketchum, CEO of NextEra Energy. Bradley said she is open to discussing alternative models for her bill, including a system in use in the Carolinas to compensate rooftop solar customers who provide extra power for the grid when it is most needed, during peak hours. With these facilities, FPL replaced inefficient 20th-century coal plants and weaned itself off foreign imported oil. That same year, a consultant told the Jacksonville City Council that taking JEA privatewould "likelyrepresent the largest and most complex" transaction of its kind in the United States. Asked by Wall Street analysts during an earnings call on Wednesday whether Silagy's retirement was in any way prompted by those reports, the parent company's chief executive asserted that was not the case. Leaked records in the possession of that consulting firm show that Matrix employees worked behind the scenes in cities across Florida for years to advance FPL's interests, sometimes going to extreme lengths to manipulate the political process in the utility's favor. In May 2018, FPL's sprawling utility empire laid claim to both boundaries,reaching a pinnacle of power and influence rare even among the mega-corporations that call Florida home. At the start of the Monday earnings call, Ketchum, the NextEra chief executive, directly addressed the media reports and federal election complaint. And additional reporting since last year has made it clear the leakedMatrix records contain legitimate information. If this bill passes as it is, it has the potential to send Florida back to 2013, as if the advances of the last 10 years didnt happen, Vandenbroeck said. I feel rooftop solar is beneficial to the environment, and Floridians. The ongoing clash between Matrixs founder Joe Perkins, 72, and former CEO Jeff Pitts, 51, is exposing the firms decades of extensive influence peddling on behalf of utility clients. Following up right after Ketchum's comments, Silagy said that his predecessors had held their roles for about a decade each, and that gearing up for another multi-year rate case with state regulators would mean he would have to stay until 2026. Hannah Morse covers consumer issues for The Palm Beach Post. Companies do not pass legislation. The ghostcandidate controversy set off a wide-ranging criminal investigation by prosecutors in Miami, whosecured a guilty pleafrom the independent candidate in District 37 andfiled felony charges against Frank Artiles, a former Republican lawmaker accused of bribing the candidate to run. At least its not coal., The intent of the report was to highlight coal and the negative of coal and offer information that may be pertinent to those who live near the plants, Hope said. Miami's independent source of I think they are doing their part. I find this to be horrifying and undemocratic, said Gianna Trocino Bonner, former chief legislative aide for Rodrguez, after reviewing some of the leaked documents. The money was allegedly funneled through a network of tax-exempt nonprofits that obscured its origin. Records show FPL trusted Matrix operatives with millions, including giving $14m to a single Matrix-run nonprofit in 2018 alone. Get the FPL Mobile App. to documents submitted to the Florida Public Service Commission. Records obtained by Floodlight and the Orlando Sentinel show that Matrix consulted for FPL, as well as another Florida company, Gulf Power, and Alabama Power. Documents shared by an anonymous source show Silagy directing his team to make life hell for Florida senator Jos Javier Rodrguez. During an investigation by this newspaper, as well as the Sentinel and Floodlight, FPL became at least vaguely threatening about our decision to continue reporting. But Dennis, in an interview last year, recalled receiving a job offer with remarkable similarities to the one outlined in the internal Matrix documents. In California, regulators plan to increase fees on rooftop solar customers. And a former regional administrator for the EPA who did business with Pitts pleaded guilty to violating state ethics law multiple times. In other words, FPL's gas-fired plant produced almost 20% more power but with a third of the emissions as the coal-powered plant. "When you think about all the challenges that he had to overcome, with the hurricanes and high natural gas prices and inflation and supply chain and, you know, the media allegations and all those things, I think it took a toll on Eric that year," Ketchum said during a question-and-answer session on the call. Taken together, the internal Matrix records depict a group of well-resourced executives and their enablers who have nurtured twisted views of theFirst Amendment and American democracy, and who have little hesitation over going to remarkable and troubling lengths to achieve their goals. Run by a former Rick Scott spokesman, Brian Burgess, The Capitolist often focused criticism not on powerful industry players or politicians but on individual journalists at publications like the Miami Herald, Palm Beach Post and Times-Union that had crossed the interests of one of the state's large corporations, like FPL. Reporting by the Orlando Sentinel and the Miami Herald tied Silagy to a group of political consultants who had spent millions of dollars to secretly further the power company's political goals. Such a turn in the political tidecould be particularly dire for a regulated company like FPL, whose literal fortunes rise and fall on the decisions made by the Public Service Commission appointees of the governor who must sign off on any number of high-stakes operational and financial issues for Florida's private utilities, starting with electric rates. FPL emerged from that episode empty handed, a particularly punishing outcome in the world of investor-owned utilities, which are locked in a rat race to grow bigger or die. Pitts in turn has accused Perkins of defamation and of leaking confidential records to the media. Florida Power & Light CEO Eric Silagy announced his retirement on Wednesday. Crist has also criticized FPL on the campaign trail, calling the utility out for raising its rates on Floridians and criticizing FPL for attempting to block clean energy with anti-solar legislation. Skeptics of that plan notably included the Office of Public Counsel, thewatchdog group that represents consumers before the Public Service Commission butwas thought to have been more friendly to utility interests after the installation of a longtime industry lobbyist in 2021. The string of controversy spans nearly the entire Florida Peninsula already an impressive trail of dirty tricks. Yet he acknowledged that the reports may have had an influence on the decision. "It's a 24-hour day job. Bradley said the bill language emerged after a meeting she had with Holley and other members of the utility industry. That is your choice, but rest assured, we will hold you accountable if that continues to happen. Documents show Matrix operatives arranged for the commissioner to record a robocall in which she called Stoddard a creep. Ketchum also reiterated that when he was named to the NextEra CEO role after Jim Robo stepped down, Silagy had committed to Ketchum that he would lead FPL for at least one more year. That month, FPL announced a planned purchase ofGulf Power, expanding its reach for the first time into the Florida Panhandle, and in the process snatching away a lucrative asset from regional rival Southern Company, which had owned Gulf since 1925. DeSantis is running against former Republican Governor and current Democratic nominee Charlie Crist, who has been a vocal critic of FPL throughout his political career. 1 factor to reduce greenhouse gases is the transition from coal to gas. And Burgess himself seemed to recognize it was an unlikely proposal, lamenting that "they are such douchebag newspaper people they added the poison pill to prevent ahostil [sic] takeover, even if it costs them hundreds of millions in stock value" (it's not clear in his email what the alleged"poison pill" is supposed to have been). FPL's financials remain strong. FPL has long despised Klas' hard-hitting coverage of the company. In Florida, Matrixs work touched almost every level of politics, from influencing local mayoral and county commission elections to combating attempts to reshape the state constitution. From a public perception, maybe there is value in highlighting where our emissions come from, Patino-Echeverri said. A Democratic state senator was proposing a law that could cut into Florida Power & Lights (FPL) profits. Im not afraid if the conclusion is its not the time to do this. They work off intimidating. Its the right thing to do for our state.. Rob Bradley, an influential politician who was head of the Senate budget committee. Florida is one of 47 states that allow households and businesses that produce power to sell it back to the grid at a set rate. Ron DeSantis, approved FPLs rate hike, raising Floridians monthly bills by over $1.5 billion in the next few years with annual increases through 2025, while increasing FPLs profits. What people may not realize is that public opinion is very much in our favor, said Bryan Jacob of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. These customers are a mix of 88.48% residential customer accounts, 11.29% commercial customers and 0.22% industrial properties. The list consists of 83 coal-powered plants, 16 natural gas plants and one plant that uses petroleum coke as its primary fuel type. Duke has 2 million customers, followed by TECO with 800,000 and then many other smaller utilities. One-tenth of 1percent of the power comes from oil. FPL has already passed the $5.1 million total amount it spent in the 2020 cycle. The sites publisher, Brian Burgess, a former top spokesperson for past Florida governor Rick Scott, also suggested in emails that Matrix should lure prominent Florida journalists to a new site or buy local papers owned by media giant Gannett Company and then lay off most of the clown reporters to inject content into publications without anyone knowing who was pulling the strings. The bill also allows utilities to charge rooftop solar customers more, by adding in facility charges, grid access fees and minimum monthly payments. She likened it to comparing emissions from a personal car used once a week and a city bus that takes many trips. McGrath added that the companys move toward cleaner energy sources is a march, not a sprint.. The commission held a workshop, which drew 16,000 messages from solar advocates urging it to leave the net metering program alone. Florida Power & Light, one of the largest utilities in the country, abruptly announced the retirement of its chief executive after a tenure marked by strong financial returns, moves toward. Customers at the time were paying some of the highest rates for electricity in the south-east. In 2020,the plant generated 19.7 million megawatt hours of energy and had an emissions rate of 371.3 kilograms of carbon dioxide per megawatt hour. But in the years that followed, FPL would loosen the grip of its dependence on oil-powered plants, including demolishing a 1960s-era Riviera Beach oil plant, with its memorable red-and-white smokestacks, and rebuilding it in 2014 as a natural gas plant. We need to have the debate, he said. He is also suing Perkins, alleging defamation and extortion. Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Utility Front Group Advertisement Tracker, American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, Gas utilities push RNG and hydrogen to expand fossil fuel infrastructure, AGA uses millions of dollars from utility customers to promote a fossil fuel agenda, Internal documents detail how gas utilities greenwash RNG and hydrogen, Front groups and trade associations funded by gas utilities fight electrification policies, List of deceptive RNG and hydrogen projects, FirstEnergy CEO Steven Strah emailed about under the radar House Bill 6 provision that cost Ohio ratepayers millions of dollars. More:FPL seeks to raise monthly power bills for residental customers by 10%. But wherever the pair went, indictments often followed. 11:52AM. FPL has complained bitterly about the news coverage of the leaked records, and there is little indication its parent company, NextEra, is reflective about what the records have to say about the involvement of its largest subsidiaryandits highest-level executives. All of that work was a closely held secret until recently. In seeking ways to reduce carbon dioxide pollution particularly to address federal emissions goals that aim to stem the effects of climate change its natural to look at the high-emitting plants to find opportunities for efficiencies, said Dalia Patino-Echeverri, an associate professor at Duke Universitys Nicholas School of the Environment, who studies public policy design for energy systems. Maggie Shober, research director with the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, agreed that the report shows just one of many ways to look at emissions. Its CEO, Mark Crosswhite, stepped down in December. While the utility has contributed over $105,000 to the Florida Democratic Party, neither Crist nor his political committee has reported any political contributions from NextEra or the companys subsidiaries during this or previous cycles. TALLAHASSEE Rooftop solar power generation in Florida is still a nascent industry, but Florida Power & Light, the nations largest power company, is pushing to hamstring it by writing and hand-delivering legislation the company asked state lawmakers to introduce, according to records obtained by the Miami Herald and Floodlight. View MapReport Outage About FPL Company News Careers Environment Community Donate to Care To Share Rates and Your Bill But Shober saida missed opportunity is not factoring in methane emissions associated with the leaking of natural gas, from the production of the fuel to its use. Ricardo Rossello, governor of Puerto Rico, in Bayamon, Puerto Rico, as power was being restored to a neighborhood in February 2018, five months after Hurricane Irma struck the area. Note: This story has been updated to correctly reflect Pimentel's prior roles. So Florida Power & Light did something about it. For years, Florida Power & Light has been one of the largest contributors to legislative Florida political campaigns. Matrixs influence was felt on matters small and large, from Stoddards city of less than 12,000 to statewide fights over the Florida constitution. The regulated monopoly is generally seen as a safe, stable investment, but there is some sign the recent public scrutiny could mushroom into a larger problem for FPL. Added Patino-Echeverri: The No. The financial entanglement between FPL and The Capitolist dated back to 2018, records leaked to the Miami Herald show, when an FPL vice president suggested the website publish a critical piece on DeSantis' Democratic opponent, Andrew Gillum. Pairing solar energy centers with battery storage, including the worlds largest battery in Manatee County. Quick Links Start, Stop, Move Find My Account Number Pay Online Support Categories Billing & Payments My Account Start, Stop, Move Programs Business Customer Save Money & Energy Power Related Concerns Using FPL.com General Support Virtual Chat Most Common Links Otherwise, DeSantis has been largely friendly to NextEra and FPLs legislative priorities, granting the utility $2.75 million in tax breaks on speculative green hydrogen, signing legislation that gave FPL permission to charge customers tens of billions of dollars for burying lines, signing legislation preventing gas bans that would have aided Florida City Gas, and also signing legislation that forced the resignation of utility critic JR Kelly from his leadership of the Office of Public Counsel, which represents ratepayers in rate cases. Before the prospect of JEA had even been formally proposed, Matrix employees were planting seeds intended to underminepublic confidence in the Jacksonville agency, potentially as early as 2017. Over the course of DeSantis tenure, he used that veto power once to block an anti-rooftop solar bill written by FPL. FPL has been ensnaredin public scandal over aggressive political tactics that Florida newspapers have laid bare since late last year. Newman in his memo also took credit for a Miami Herald story about the allegation. Former FPL senior executive Armando Pimentel was named as Silagy's replacement. The team decided an effort to repeal the ordinance would probably fail. Florida Power & Light has a monopoly on power in Florida. NextEra officials say that investigation is close to completion. In one instance, leaked emails revealed Silagy even successfully suggested specific news coverage to one publication. As their feud escalated, internal documents started to arrive in reporters email inboxes from unknown sources. And in 2020, Matrix even harnessed the power of the press for itself, when its employees acquired control of The Capitolist, a Tallahassee-based political news site which it used for favorable coverage, leaked records show. The Florida Panhandle is in revolt over bills that some FPL customers claim are double or triple what they were paying under Southern Company's stewardship of Gulf Power. The sex worker later testified the allegations were untrue, and that she had been paid by a Birmingham businessman to make them. The governors office also comes with a bully pulpit and executive order authority, both of which DeSantis has used frequently, pushing his anti-woke platform on everything from school curriculum to state pensions, unilaterally suspending elected officials, and creating his own election police agency. But DeSantis election police agency has remained silent on FPLs connection to election scandals, criminal trials, and ongoing investigations, instead focusing on the arrest of 20 individuals who may have registered to vote while ineligible, despite allegedly being told that they were eligible to vote, and the states issuance of voter IDs. Silagy is to be replaced by Armando Pimentel, a former senior executive at NextEra Energy. Investigative reporters have directly connected senior FPL executives, including CEO Eric Silagy, to consultants involved in the dark money campaign schemes. Full cost of this investment, McGrath said for Kelly to florida power and light scandal replaced with a former senior Armando! Energy centers with battery storage, including giving $ 14m to a single Matrix-run nonprofit in 2018 alone cycle..., Mark Crosswhite, stepped down in December administrator for the Palm Post! Public perception, maybe there is value in highlighting where our emissions from. 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