Florida Senate readies ethics bill for utility regulators for early passage
3/3/2010

TALLAHASSEE — Staff and Wire Reports

The state Senate readied a sweeping ethics reform bill for the Public Service Commission on Tuesday after beating back an amendment to weaken the bill.

The bill is sponsored by Sen. Mike Fasano, R-New Port Richey, and backed by the five-member Public Service Commission and Public Counsel J.R. Kelly. It is aimed at setting new ethical standards for the regulatory agency after revelations that some of its staff members exchanged secret messages with a Florida Power & Light Co. lawyer last fall during a hearing on a rate hike request by the Juno Beach-based company.

That and other conflicts of interest did not break any Florida laws, a number of investigations found.

The bill (SB 1034), which the Senate could pass as early as today, would require that all written and oral communications between commissioners and their aides, called ex parte communications, be put in the public record and placed online where anyone can see them. Any electric, water or gas company that violates the ex parte communications requirement could be fined one-tenth of 1 percent of its annual operating revenue.

The bill also would prohibit lobbying by commissioners and staff for four years after leaving the PSC; expand access to utility records to the Office of Public Counsel, the state agency that represents consumers before the PSC; and require PSC commissioners to adhere to much of the state judicial code of conduct.

On Tuesday, Senate Democratic Leader Al Lawson of Tallahassee tried but failed to keep the lobbying limitation to two years, arguing that the restrictions surpass those of even lawmakers who control the state budget.


Source: The Palm Beach Post