Florida state regulators on Tuesday shut down a green energy program run by Florida Power & Light Co. (FPL), saying the the majority of money collected from customers went towards administrative an marketing costs, instead of renewable energy projects.
The Florida Public Servce Commission voted unanimously to stop the Sunshine Energy Program, which allows customers to pay an additional $9.75 per month to support renewable energy projects. The program had 39,000 participants and was one of the five largest in the U.S.
Green Mountain Energy Co., the Texas-based contractor hired by FPL to run Sunshine Energy, said the high administrative and marketing budget is what allowed the program to attract so many customers.
FPL has angered customers by instituting an 8% rate hike that will go into effect next week.
Read full coverage in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
FPL is a subsidiary of the FPL Group (NYSE: FPL).
