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PSC Highlights National Consumer Protection Week

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Consumer protections are a priority at the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC), and each spring the PSC reinforces this by celebrating National Consumer Protection Week (NCPW). This year, during NCPW’s 20th anniversary, March 4-10, the PSC will help consumers avoid scams and fraud, conserve water and energy, and manage utility bills.

“The PSC has been protecting consumers for more than 130 years,” said PSC Chairman Art Graham.  “A week devoted to consumer protections is always a good thing, but I encourage consumers needing utility information or assistance to call the PSC at 800-342-3552 any time of the year!”

Here are three excellent ways the PSC keeps consumers informed year-round:

  • Awareness/Education

The PSC coordinates or participates in community events to promote energy efficiency, water conservation, and scam prevention education. Each month, we also plan events to promote Lifeline Assistance, a federal program designed to make telecommunications/broadband services more affordable for low-income households.

  • Free Resources

The PSC has many educational brochures to help consumers save energy, conserve water, avoid utility-related scams, and learn about Lifeline and other relevant topics. Brochures may be accessed and printed directly from the website, ordered free online, or requested by mail or phone (800-342-3552).  Consumers can also learn about docketed or emerging utility issues by visiting floridapsc.com.

  • Hearings, Meetings, and Workshops

Consumers can learn about the PSC and its proceedings by attending a hearing, meeting, or workshop in Tallahassee, or a customer hearing or meeting held throughout the state. Public customer meetings provide an inclusive process, allowing consumers to share their views with Commissioners. The PSC also live streams all Tallahassee meetings, as well as off-site meetings attended by two or more Commissioners.

During NCPW, the PSC will make presentations to consumers in Hillsborough, Washington, and Leon Counties. Presentation locations and times can be found on the PSC website, floridapsc.com.

For more information about NCPW, sponsored by the Federal Trade Commission and other partners, visit the official 2018 NCPW website.

Truck Parking Availability System Installation Starts along Interstate 75 in Central Florida

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The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) will start installing truck parking sensory technology in six locations along Interstate 75 (I-75) in Marion and Sumter counties the beginning of March.

The work is part of the FDOT’s Truck Parking Availability System (TPAS) project, which detects available parking spaces at welcome centers, rest areas and weigh stations, and sends alerts to commercial truck drivers via message boards, in-truck sensors and mobile apps. Installation is estimated to be completed at all six locations by Summer 2018, and is dependent on weather or other unforeseen circumstances.

The locations are:

Marion County

  • I-75 northbound rest area located 4 miles north of County Road (C.R.) 484 (Exit 341)
  • I-75 southbound rest area located 3 miles south of State Road (S.R.) 200 (Exit 350)
  • I-75 northbound Truck Comfort Station (Weigh-in-Motion station) located 10 miles north of S.R. 44 (Exit 329)
  • I-75 southbound Truck Comfort Station (Weigh-in-Motion station) located 2 miles south of C.R. 484 (Exit 341)

Sumter County

  • I-75 northbound rest area located 6 miles north of S.R. 50/U.S. 98 (Exit 301)
  • I-75 southbound rest area located 1 mile south of C.R. 476B (Exit 309)

Commercial drivers are advised that construction will require about half of the truck parking spaces at each location to be closed for a short time for installation of the in-ground sensors within the parking space. Only one location at a time will have parking space closures, and at least one handicap space will be available at all times. Information about closures will be posted at cflroads.com.

Media inquiries can be directed to the FDOT District Five Communications Office at (386) 943-5479 or via email at [email protected].

FAMU President Names New Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer

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Florida A&M University (FAMU) President Larry Robinson, Ph.D., has named Rica Calhoun the University’s new chief ethics and compliance officer. Her appointment is effective today, March 1.

In her new role at FAMU, Calhoun will be responsible for providing leadership in offering guidance and communicating with the campus community about compliance risks. She will also advise the president and senior administrators on matters of compliance and ethics.

Calhoun’s responsibilities also include exercising the authority and autonomy necessary to impartially review, evaluate and report compliance issues across the University. She will also design, implement or enhance programs that identify and avert compliance issues or unethical behavior.

“Mrs. Calhoun comes to FAMU with a wealth of experiences that will serve us well as we continue our focus on strengthening and enhancing the performance of the University through the implementation of our new ‘FAMU Rising’ Strategic Plan,” said Robinson. “We welcome her expertise and wealth of knowledge in law, ethics, and compliance.”

Calhoun comes to FAMU from Western Illinois University (WIU), where she served in a number of roles over her seven-year tenure. She began her career at WIU in the Office of Equal Opportunity and Access as assistant director. She also contributed to the Student Services Division as interim associate vice president before becoming the first internal general counsel for the university.

As general counsel and the ethics and freedom of information officer at WIU, Calhoun represented the university in a wide range of legal matters. She advised the Board of Trustees, president and executive leadership team as well as administrative offices throughout campus to ensure compliance in many areas.

“Every member of the University community plays a role in ensuring compliance, thereby, creating an environment where every stakeholder can thrive,” Calhoun said. “I look forward to joining the team and positively contributing to Florida A&M University’s mission of excellence.”

Calhoun has also served as a member of the American Association for Access, Equity, and Diversity, the National Association of College and University Attorneys and is an Association of Title IX Administrators certified campus investigator.

Calhoun received her juris doctor from the College of William and Mary Marshall Wythe School of Law. She graduated from Florida State University with a master’s degree in international affairs. She lives in Tallahassee with her husband and their three children.

Attorney General Bondi’s Statement on Unanimous Passage of HB 21

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Attorney General Pam Bondi today praised the Florida House for unanimously passing HB 21 to help fight the national opioid crisis claiming lives in Florida:

“This legislation is vital to our continued efforts to combat the national opioid crisis claiming lives in Florida. I want to personally thank Representative Jim Boyd for sponsoring HB 21 and leading the House fight against opioid addiction. I also want to thank each member who voted unanimously to approve this life-saving legislation. This vote comes while I am at the White House for a National Opioid Summit, and I hope the entire country will follow Florida’s lead.”

Florida Senate Committee Sends Payday Lending Bill To Floor Over Strong Objections

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New Report Documents Payday Lenders’ $8 million Investment

A bill that creates a new predatory lending product passed out of the Senate Rules Committee Thursday morning and heads to the Senate Floor. A companion bill is already headed to the House floor. SB 920 and HB 857 would double the amount lenders may loan to each borrower and increase the cost to the consumer for the loans, with annual interest rates over 200%. Senator Anitere Flores (R) and Senator Jose Javier Rodriguez (D) voted against the bill.

“The payday lending expansion bill shot through the committee process,” said Alice Vickers, of the Florida Alliance for Consumer Protection. “You would think a product that is so damaging to the financial stability of so many households would give lawmakers pause. But they seem only to have ears for the payday lenders.”

A new report released this morning by the Florida Consumer Action Network and Every Voice Counts, “Payday Lender Influence in Florida,” documents the dollars payday lenders have spent in Florida. The report found that between campaign contributions and lobbying expenditures, payday lenders have spent at least $8 million in Florida since 2007.

Payday lenders claim they need a new product in Florida to avoid falling under a rule by the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which is meant to protect people from long-term debt traps. But the CFPB rule is under attack in Washington and may never take effect. Regardless, SB 920 and HB 857 would expand payday lending in Florida, which relies on trapping borrowers in a cycle of high-cost loans.

Reform passed in 2001 failed to stop the cycle of debt that payday lending intentionally creates. Payday lenders obtain 75% of their revenue from customers caught in 10 loans per year. In Florida, over 83% of loans go to people with seven or more loans per year, and the payday lenders suck over $300 million annually out of Florida’s economy.

At a Tuesday press conference, Rev. James T. Golden, of the AME Church of Florida said, “While I do not begrudge any business from making a profit, I do not think that it is fair that most of the profit from this business comes from the backs of people who can least afford it. If you want to provide a service, provide it. But if you want to create a situation where people are just not able to get beyond where they are, the payday lending industry is for you.”

Jared Nordlund with UnidosUS, opponents of the bill said, “We do not see usurious loans as a valid alternative for any consumer. Our communities are targeted by these businesses, and we should not be a haven for these predatory lenders.”

“We cannot support loans that place borrowers in a cycle of debt with 50% of these loans going to borrowers with 12 or more loans per year,” said Marucci Guzmán, Executive Director of Latino Leadership. “We look to our legislators to do a better job helping our community meet its financial needs.”

Calls to kill SB 920/HB 857 continue from the NAACP Florida State Conference, Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Florida, Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops, Florida Council of Churches, and 11th District Episcopal AME Church, Latino Leadership, Florida Prosperity Partnership, Florida Veterans for Common Sense, UnidosUS, Florida Hispanic Unity, Florida Legal Services, League of Southeastern Credit Unions, Catalyst Miami, Solita’s House, Jacksonville Area Legal Aid, Beaches Habitat for Humanity and a growing list of other organizations in Florida.

Important Notice to Agency for Persons with Disabilities Customers Regarding Security Breach

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No indication that any sensitive information has been compromised

On February 14 and 15, several employees of the Agency for Persons with Disabilities (APD) were victims of phishing emails. APD immediately began investigating this potential security breach, and it was reported to the APD Inspector General and the Agency for State Technology to begin a thorough review, which is ongoing. To date, there is no indication that any sensitive information has been compromised, including the information of parents or guardians. However, in an abundance of caution we are sending a notification to 55,400 APD customers and providing a one-year membership with a credit monitoring service because client names, addresses, birth dates, and Social Security numbers were potentially included in these email accounts.

APD takes this matter very seriously and has taken steps to protect personal information, including taking swift action to help prevent this type of event from happening again. On February 16, APD implemented a previously-scheduled security upgrade requiring a multi-factor authentication to prevent unauthorized persons from gaining access to APD’s email system. APD will also be enacting additional training for staff members regarding appropriate email security protocols.

At this time, APD has no reason to believe individuals’ information has been misused. Again, in an abundance of caution and to help individuals detect any possible misuse of this information, we are providing a one-year membership with a credit monitoring service for those who could have been affected. This service will be free for APD clients. For more information, individuals may call APD’s hotline at 1-855-476-1180. If you are writing on this event, it is imperative to include APD’s hotline phone number in your reporting.

APD is notifying all potentially affected customers in accordance with state and federal law, including information on credit monitoring services. Pursuant to 45 CFR 164 and Section 501.171, Florida Statutes, this is notification that the Agency for Persons with Disabilities had a security breach, which affected 55,400 individuals in the state of Florida.

APD supports people with developmental disabilities to live, learn, and work in their communities.  The agency annually serves more than 50,000 Floridians with severe autism, cerebral palsy, spina bifida, intellectual disabilities, Down syndrome, Phelan-McDermid syndrome, and Prader-Willi syndrome. For more information about the Agency for Persons with Disabilities, visit APDcares.org or call toll-free 1‑866‑APD‑CARES (1‑866‑273‑2273).

PSC Approval Averts Storm Cost Increase for TECO Customers

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Tampa Electric Company (TECO) customers won’t have to pay the utility’s requested $10 per month storm restoration surcharge. The Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) today approved TECO’s negotiated plan to apply its federal tax savings to cover its storm damage costs.

“We’re happy that customers will benefit sooner rather than later from the federal tax law changes,” said PSC Chairman Art Graham.  “Addressing possible tax savings was part of our approval of TECO’s 2017 rate agreement, and today’s plan affirms that customers will immediately benefit.”

In January, TECO filed a request with the PSC to collect $102.5 million from its customers to pay for 2015-2017 named storm recovery efforts and replenish its storm reserve. A residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours a month would have seen a $10.07 increase beginning in April and continuing for nine months.

After federal tax cuts passed in late 2017, TECO reached an agreement with customer representatives that prevents adding the storm charge to bills by applying the new tax savings earlier than required. The PSC today chose that alternative, avoiding a bill increase.

The Office of Public Counsel, which represents customers, the Florida Industrial Power Users Group, Florida Retail Federation, Federal Executive Agencies, and WCF Hospital Utility Alliance support the plan.

Tampa Electric serves about 750,000 customers in West Central Florida.

Help nesting sea turtles by keeping beaches dark and free of obstacles at night

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Keeping beaches dark at night and free of obstacles will help sea turtles during their nesting season, which begins in Florida on March 1 and lasts through the end of October.

Bright artificial lighting can misdirect and disturb nesting sea turtles and their hatchlings, so beachgoers should avoid using flashlights or cellphones at night. Turning out lights or closing curtains and shades in buildings along the beach after dark will ensure nesting turtles are not disturbed as they come ashore and hatchlings will not become disoriented when they emerge from their nests. Clearing away boats and beach furniture at the end of the day and filling in holes in the sand are also important because turtles can become trapped in furniture and get trapped in holes on the beach.

Florida’s beachfront residents and visitors taking these actions will help conserve the loggerhead, leatherback and green sea turtles that nest on the state’s coastlines.

“Keeping Florida’s beaches dark and uncluttered at night can help protect sea turtles that return to nest on our beaches,” said Dr. Robbin Trindell, who heads the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s (FWC) sea turtle management program. “Many agency partners, such as nature centers, marine turtle permit holders and local governments, contribute greatly to sea turtle conservation. But caring beachgoers can also make a significant difference in helping nesting and hatchling sea turtles survive.”

Exactly when sea turtle nesting season starts depends on where you are in Florida. While it begins in March on the Atlantic coast from Brevard through Broward counties, it starts later in the spring, in late April or May, along the northeast Atlantic, the Keys and Gulf coasts.

Wherever you are, other ways to help sea turtles include properly disposing of fishing line to avoid entanglements, and reporting those that are sick, injured, entangled or dead to the FWC’s Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-FWCC (3922) or #FWC or *FWC on a cellphone.

Purchasing a “Helping Sea Turtles Survive”  Florida license plate at Buyaplate.com contributes to sea turtle research, rescue and conservation efforts. People also can donate $5 and receive an FWC sea turtle decal.

Go to MyFWC.com/SeaTurtle for more information on Florida’s sea turtles, and click on “Research,” then “Nesting” for more data on sea turtle nesting.

CFO Jimmy Patronis: Freezing Credit Should NOT Cost Consumers

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Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Jimmy Patronis issued the following statement regarding the unanimous approval of Senate Bill 1302 by the Florida Senate Committee on Rules.

“In 2017, 16.7 million people in the United States were affected by identity fraud, criminals stole more than $16 billion from accounts, and new-account fraud increased by 70 percent. It has even been reported that the Equifax data breach was worse than originally thought.

“As criminals become more creative, it’s important for consumers to use the best tool to protect themselves from fraud: freezing their credit. Considering this alarming data, there should be no question as to the value of Floridians easily freezing their credit without added costs. I look forward to seeing this measure become law this year.”

The next stop for SB 1302, sponsored by Sen. Jeffrey Brandes, is the Senate floor.

Secretary of State Announces Second Annual “March of Museums” Initiative

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Florida Department of State and museums statewide
partner to share variety and versatility of museums

Secretary of State Ken Detzner and the Florida Department of State today announced the second annual “March of Museums” celebrating the variety and versatility of museums in Florida’s communities. In 2017, the department piloted March of Museums with partner museums in Tallahassee. Building on this successful launch, the 2018 March of Museums has expanded statewide to include the vast and diverse array of museums that populate the Sunshine State.

“As Florida’s Chief Cultural Officer, I am proud of the success of last year’s ‘March of Museums’ and I am excited to expand this initiative statewide,” said Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner. “From art to animals, from sports to science, and from history to horticulture, Florida has an incredible array of museums that encourage exploration and learning. March of Museums celebrates the important services museums provide to our communities.”

Museums statewide have partnered with the Florida Department of State to encourage Floridians and visitors to Florida to experience the many ways that museums serve their communities.  The department is hosting MarchofMuseums.com, which offers a listing of museums by region and highlights the mission, collections, and/or events of each institution during the month of March.

The department encourages visitors and Floridians to take advantage of this initiative to visit one of the partner museums for a new experience, to spend some time at one of their favorite museums and to share their pictures on their favorite social media platform using #MarchOfMuseums.