CRC - 2017 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT Proposal No. P 51 Ì887772MÎ887772 LEGISLATIVE ACTION Senate . House Comm: UNFAV . 01/16/2018 . . . . ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— The Committee on General Provisions (Heuchan) recommended the following: 1 CRC Amendment 2 3 Delete everything after the enacting clause 4 and insert: 5 (a) POLICY DECLARATION. The people of the State of Florida 6 declare it to be the policy of this State that its wholesale and 7 retail electricity markets be open and competitive so that 8 electricity customers are afforded meaningful choices among 9 different electricity providers, and that economic and 10 regulatory burdens be minimized so as to promote a wide variety 11 of choices for electricity customers in open and competitive 12 wholesale and retail electricity markets. The Legislature shall 13 liberally construe this section to achieve these purposes. 14 (b) RIGHTS OF ELECTRICITY CUSTOMERS. Effective upon the 15 dates set forth in subsection (c), and subject to the exceptions 16 set forth in subsection (d), every person, business, association 17 of persons or businesses (regardless of organizational status), 18 nonprofit organization, state agency, political subdivision, or 19 any other entity in Florida that receives electric service 20 (referred to in this section as “electricity customers”) has the 21 right to choose their electricity provider, including, but not 22 limited to, selecting from multiple providers in a competitive 23 retail electricity market, or by producing electricity for 24 themselves or in association with others, and shall not be 25 forced to purchase electricity service from one provider. Except 26 as provided for by subsection (d), nothing in this section shall 27 be construed as limiting the right of electricity customers to 28 sell, trade or otherwise dispose of electricity. 29 (c) IMPLEMENTATION. The Legislature shall adopt 30 comprehensive legislation to implement this section in a manner 31 consistent with its broad purposes and stated terms, which shall 32 take effect January 1, 2023, which shall: 33 (1) establish open and competitive wholesale and retail 34 electricity markets, the goal of which will be to (i) lower 35 electricity prices for all types of electricity customers, (ii) 36 inspire innovation in electricity generation, delivery, and 37 service, and (iii) lead to a better customer service experience 38 for electricity customers, and 39 (2) implement protections that entitle electricity 40 customers to safe, reliable, and competitively priced 41 electricity, including but not limited to provisions that are 42 designed to (i) ensure lower costs to all types of electricity 43 customers, (ii) provide for the recovery of all net, verifiable, 44 and non-mitigable stranded generation costs by electric 45 utilities, (iii) assist low-income and fixed-income electricity 46 customers, as well as veterans and senior citizens, in obtaining 47 safe and reliable electricity service at affordable rates, (iv) 48 protect against service disconnections and deceptive or unfair 49 practices, and (v) prohibit the granting of either monopolies or 50 exclusive franchises for the generation and sale of electricity. 51 (3) Nothing in this section, however, shall be construed 52 to affect the existing rights or duties of electric 53 cooperatives, municipally-owned electric utilities, or their 54 customers in any way, except that electric cooperatives and 55 municipally-owned electric utilities may freely participate in a 56 competitive wholesale market and may choose to participate, at 57 their discretion, in an optional competitive retail electricity 58 market. 59 (4) Upon enactment of any law by the Legislature pursuant 60 to this section, all laws, regulations, orders or other 61 provisions which conflict with this section shall be void. 62 (d) MUNICIPAL IMPACT OFFSET. Notwithstanding Article VII, 63 Section 1(a) and Article VII, Section 9(a), a municipality or a 64 county may levy any tax, assessment, fee, or charge to offset 65 any fiscal impact to the municipality or county related to the 66 exercise of any right pursuant to this section. 67 (e) CONSENT TO JURISDICTION. Before engaging in the sale of 68 electricity a provider of electricity service shall enter into 69 an agreement with the Florida Public Service Commission that 70 specifies the provider’s consent to the jurisdiction of the 71 state and municipal and county governments within the state, and 72 which shall provide for enforcement by the state, municipal and 73 county governments within the state. The agreement shall 74 include an acknowledgement that the point of sale of any 75 transaction between an electricity customer and a provider of 76 electricity service shall be deemed to occur at the geographical 77 location where the electricity is consumed. 78 (f)EXCEPTIONS. Nothing in this section shall be construed 79 to invalidate this State's public policies on renewable energy, 80 energy efficiency, and environmental protection, or to limit the 81 Legislature's and the executive branch’s ability to impose such 82 policies on participants in competitive electricity markets. 83