Florida Public Service Commission

Following the national trend, Florida consumers continued to shift from landline telephone service to wireless and cable/VoIP services in 2017. Data also indicates that residential migration might be increasing slightly.  Carriers reported about 17 percent fewer wireline access lines in Florida than in 2016, according to the Florida Public Service Commission’s (PSC) annual Report on the Status of Competition in the Telecommunications Industry. [Read more…] about PSC Telecom Report Shows Competition Drives Consumer Choice

The Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) today issued a declaratory statement that affirms Vivint Solar Developer, LLC can offer residential solar equipment leases in Florida. Commissioners agreed that Vivint’s 20-year, fixed-payment solar equipment lease is not a retail sale of electricity.

PSC rules have long allowed leasing of renewable energy equipment, but the lease terms cannot be structured to, in effect, sell electricity to the customer. Homeowners can purchase or lease equipment to generate electricity for personal use and also benefit from interconnection and net metering with their local utility.

“As solar becomes more affordable and, therefore, more attractive to residential customers, the PSC supports ways to continue to ‘prime the pump’ for renewable energy adoption,” said PSC Chairman Art Graham. “This declaratory statement helps provide more residential solar options for Florida’s ratepayers.”

In its declaratory statement, the PSC found today that:

• Vivint’s residential solar equipment lease, as described in its petition, does not constitute a sale of electricity;
• Offering its solar equipment lease to Florida consumers will not cause Vivint to be a public utility under Florida law; and
• The residential solar equipment lease will not subject Vivint or its customer lessees to Commission regulation.

Vivint is a dedicated residential solar, storage, and energy services company with over 125,000 customers in 21 states and the District of Columbia.

In April, the Commission issued a similar declaratory statement for Sunrun, Inc. A PSC declaratory statement is not required by rule or statute for a company to lease solar equipment to Florida residents, if the lease is not a retail sale of electricity.

For additional information, visit floridapsc.com.

The Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) will hold a Commission Conference on Tuesday, August 7, 2018, at 9:30 a.m. Items scheduled for consideration can be found here. Public comment may be taken on any item noticed for public participation. [Read more…] about Florida PSC Commission Conference on Tuesday

The Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) today issued its report on electric utilities’ hurricane preparedness and restoration actions and found that, overall, the length of power outages was reduced, indicating that storm hardening practices work. [Read more…] about Florida PSC Issues Report on Utility Storm Hardening and Restoration Actions