Jason’s Energy Policy

Jason believes that Florida’s energy policy should prioritize:

  • Accessibility and affordability

  • Economic prosperity for Florida consumers and workers

  • Sensitivity to Florida’s natural environment

  • and that it should not be beholden to political ideology and special interest group influences

This is at odds with Florida’s current energy policy, which prioritizes the desires of for-profit, monopoly utilities.  As a result, Floridians are facing unnecessarily high utility bills, missing critical economic development opportunities, and degrading our natural environment for future generations.  But it doesn’t have to be that way.

In a world where production, supply availability, prices, and technological standards are changing rapidly, it is critically important that the State clearly defines an Energy Policy that works for all the people of Florida, drives the economy, and respects our needs and rights to lessen our energy costs. 

Jason has been involved with various aspects of the energy industry for nearly 20 years.  He’s been a volunteer and Board member of the Community Weatherization Coalition, an Alachua County-based nonprofit that helps our neighbors lower their utility bills and access critical home repair.  He’s a member and current officer of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 1205.  Jason has been an electrical worker, a solar installer, and an electrical apprenticeship instructor.  And he was chosen by the Gainesville City Commission to serve on our Utilities Advisory Board after helping to pass local ordinances related to our community’s energy procurement practices as well as energy efficiency standards for rental properties.

Energy should be accessible and affordable 

Floridians' electric bills are too expensive because we allow the monopoly utilities too high a rate of return, do not require them to invest in efficiency, and fail to properly regulate them.  These high electricity costs comprise too much of the average Floridian’s monthly expenses and can result in residents making tough choices between being comfortable in their home and being able to afford other necessities. 

Furthermore, unnecessary red-tape and regulatory hurdles prevent Floridians from taking control of accessibility and affordability of their own energy supply, by discouraging energy independence initiatives and instead supporting utility-controlled, centralized energy distribution. We will incentivize solar + battery storage systems that give Florida families energy independence during hurricanes and grid failures. No Floridian should have to choose between evacuating and losing everything in their freezer, or staying and hoping the power comes back. Distributed energy with storage is the most resilient grid architecture for a state that faces annual hurricane threats.

Jason has a proven track record of helping people lower their utility bills and will bring this lived experience to Tallahassee.

Energy production and supply should be a driver of economic prosperity for Florida consumers and workers

Approximately 75% of Florida electricity production is supplied by imported fossil gas. Importing gas provides little economic benefit to the people of Florida and exposes us to dramatic price fluctuations based on global market demand. The Sunshine State has a growing industry in solar and battery industry jobs, and we can do even better. The Florida solar industry currently supports over 12,000 jobs statewide. Expanding distributed solar could significantly increase this number, with every installation creating local employment across electrical, construction, and professional services sectors.

While Florida is a leader in utility-scale solar and battery projects, we are lagging in residential installation, which means that the benefits of solar are flowing largely to utility shareholders rather than consumers. Many northern states, such as Massachusetts, have more homes per capita with solar panels than the Sunshine State. Expanding opportunities for distributed energy and storage can drive new investment in both the manufacturing and installation segments, and thus create job possibilities that do not exist today.

Unlike his opponent, who sought to do the utility industry’s bidding by killing solar net metering in Florida (SB 1024/HB 741), Jason will reduce the red tape and increase incentives for Floridians to invest in solar energy and reduce the flow of our consumer dollars out of the state. He will also fight to protect and strengthen solar net metering in our state.

Energy production and distribution should be sensitive to Florida’s natural environment

Florida is uniquely vulnerable to rising sea levels, increased number and strength of hurricanes, and higher ambient temperatures. The economy of Florida is driven to a large degree by tourism and agriculture. Both segments are critically impacted by the negative effects of climate chaos and unpredictability. 

The tourism and vacation industry requires clean beaches, air, waterways and natural lands to thrive. Pollution, catastrophic storms, drought, and extreme high temperatures drive tourists to other locales to spend their disposable resources and time. For instance, after the Deepwater Horizon incident in 2010, Florida sustained over $2.2 billion in lost tourism revenues. Inflation alone would push lost revenues from a similar incident to over $3.3 billion today.

Agriculture has always been impacted by weather events. However, today those events occur more often than previous years. Heat stress contributes to lower crop yields, lower milk production, shorter window for high quality fresh fruits and vegetables and greater impacts of pests and disease (e.g., citrus greening). Agricultural labor must also mitigate the negative effects of higher temperature working conditions.

Jason has a demonstrated track record in his community of balancing environmental protection with common sense economics.  This kind of thinking is much needed in today’s Tallahassee. 

Florida’s energy policy should not be beholden to political ideology and special interest group influences

Oversight and control of utilities that provide energy to most Floridians is the purview of the Public Service Commission, (PSC). It is critical that the PSC perform their duties for the benefit of Florida citizens, instead of the utilities, donors and politicians. Policies that ensure that the appointed board of the PSC conducts their business transparently and in the interest of the people are necessary.

Utilities in Florida are one of the largest political campaign contributors in the State. This money is used to influence legislation to the benefit of the shareholders, to the  detriment of Florida residents in the form of rate increases, service shortfalls, and obstructing residents’ from controlling their own energy sources. 

Safety, economics and science should control the state’s energy agenda, not political ideology and corporate greed. It is imperative to have a third-party, independent, unbiased regulatory framework. True oversight by the PSC, whistleblower protections, and giving communities a real voice in utility decisions that affect their lives provides people power over their own finances and their energy future.

Jason’s opponent has accepted tens of thousands of dollars in political contributions from the major private utilities during a time of record rate hikes. Jason will represent the best interests of Florida ratepayers.  He has also been a leader in the struggle for local control of his community’s utility and will continue to fight for your rights in Tallahassee.