JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — JEA is proposing a rate increase that could raise your monthly utility bill. Next month, JEA leaders will vote on changing the current electric, water, and sewer rates.
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If this is approved, starting Apr. 1, JEA said the average customer would see about a 50-cent per month increase for water. Meanwhile, they’re changing the tier structure for water bills.
A separate rate increase for electricity would amount to about $4.50, starting in April, ahead of another nearly $8 increase in October.
JEA said these numbers apply to residential customers using 1,000 kilowatt hours or less and 6,000 gallons of water or less.
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Therefore, if a monthly bill costs $205, for electric, water, and sewer with the rate change, it would be about $210 in fiscal year 2025. And then about $221 in fiscal year 2026.
The proposed rate increases are prompting community advocates to speak out against them.
“We demand that you, the JEA board, reconsider the rate increases,” said Kelly Frazier, the president of the Northside Coalition of Jacksonville. “We call you to put the needs of the community first and to find more effortless solutions for JEA’s financial challenges.”
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However, JEA leaders want to assure customers that they will continue the work to educate the community on ways to save.
JEA wants to stress the main driver for this change on the electric side is payments for Plant Vogtle. On the water spending side, it’s due to the utility’s capital improvement projects.
The JEA Board of Directors will vote on the proposed rate adjustments at its meeting on Mar. 25.
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