South Miami Mayor links to FPL questioned

Things may be heating up for Mayor Horace Feliu of South Miami, who apparently was caught off-guard last night during a packed hearing on FPL Turkey Point 6 & 7 Transmission line routes up US-1 and through South Miami.

A reader writes in to tell Stop FPL that Feliu stuttered, stammered and momentarily lost his cool when one member of the audience questioned the link between Turkey Point 6 & 7 transmission lines coming through South Miami and his voluntary January 2008 testimony in favor of Turkey Point at a Florida Public Service Commission meeting at Miami-Dade College.

But, that may not be the half of it ... a coy "Anonymous" comment appeared at Eye on Miami late yesterday linking FPL to campaign contributions to Feliu's 2008 re-election campaign, which was ongoing right at the the time of his pro-Turkey Point testimony to the FPSC at Miami-Dade College. According to the Eye on Miami tipster:

Turns out that South Miami Mayor Feliu's 2008 Campaign Finance Report is a rather interesting read. Other than being chock full of Baptist Health/South Miami Hospital officers and directors who felt compelled to pony up huge campaign contributions to His Honor, there are an unusually large number of folks whose listed addresses are within a stone's throw of FPL's north Palm Beach headquarters (courtesy of MS Virtual Earth) who had the overwhelming urge to send large campaign contributions 90 miles south into the Mayor's bulging campaign coffers.

Feliu apparently took it upon himself to testify at the January 2008 MDC hearing on Turkey Point 6 & 7, where he told commissioners that the two additional nuclear reactors are ""right in line with exactly what we had in mind. We know it's a clearn energy source. FP&L has been an environmentally-friendly corporate neighbor to all of us, and I'm here just to speak on that and just basically let you know how we feel about it ... I'm in favor of this project."

When asked directly if his stance was backed by his constituents, Feliu said that lack of any vocal opposition to Turkey Point from the citizens of South Miami (20 miles to the north of Turkey Point), he told the FPSC that "we've always had public discussions at the commission meetings, and no one has ever spoken against this project. And we're very close to that Turkey Point location. We're in South Miami."

Just two months later (as detailed in a Miami Herald report, here) in March 2008, the FPSC approved the Turkey Point 6 & 7 reactors project.

Credit to Eye on Miami for having noted Feliu's presence at the MDC hearing back in Jan. '08.

The full Feliu testimony is contained in minutes of the FPSC hearing at MDC, online here.

And, we've also excerpted the Feliu testimony below, for those who don't care for the sometimes slow PDF download of the full minutes:

CHAIRMAN CARTER: Next we'll ask Horace Feliu, the Mayor of South Miami. And please forgive me if I mispronounce your name. It wasn't my pronouncing. It as the writing that I saw before.

MR. FELIU: You were very close. It's Feliu. Thank you, Mr. Chair and esteemed Commissioners. Thank you for coming down here and taking time from your busy schedules to listen to the public.

About two years ago I sponsored a Resolution in the City of South Miami, which basically is the Freedom From Fossil Fuels Acts. We requested from our county officials, our state legislators and our federal government to do their part in freeing ourselves from the use of fossil fuels and at the same time create a type of situation or incentives whereby we eliminate the greenhouse effects and carbon-based products that contaminate our environment. So this is right in line with exactly what we had in mind. We know it's a clean energy source. FP&L has been an environmentally-friendly corporate neighbor to all of us, and I'm here just to speak on that and just basically let you know how we feel about it.

We realize that there's issues regarding the use of water and everything else, but that is being addressed. FP&L has done their homework. I've listened carefully to their presentation at the county level, which was passed pretty much unanimously, and I'm in favor of this product -- of this project. Thank you.

CHAIRMAN CARTER: Thank you. One moment, please. Commissioner Argenziano.

COMMISSIONER ARGENZIANO: Same question, have you heard from the citizens of your city of South Miami?

MR. FELIU: Basically when I found out about it it was in the paper. And we always have public discussions at the commission meetings, and no one has ever spoken against this project. And we're very close to that Turkey Point location. We're in South Miami.

COMMISSIONER ARGENZIANO: Thank you.

MR. FELIU: You're welcome.

UPDATE: Residents want to stop FPL high-voltage lines along US 1, Florida East Coast Railroad

Has FPL over-expanded capacity? CEO says customers "cutting back"

Electric utilities may not be going the route of the belly-up banking industry, but Andrew Gordon of Investor’s Daily Edge suggests that there are reasons for investors to sell off stocks as the “recession has finally caught up to the utilities.”

In an online post at the blog Offshoreinn, titled No Shelter for Safe Investors in Utilities, Gordon is quoted as saying FPL is cutting back spending and citing FPL CEO Lewis Hay for the reason why:

“A lot of people think demand for electricity is inelastic. It’s not. Our customers are cutting back, and they’re not paying their bills, either.”

So, did Florida Power & Light just think the heady days of development and expansion would last forever? Did they simply over-expand, lobbying legislators and cities and counties for more power-plant construction and transmission line extension without anticipating that someday it would all come grinding to a halt?

And, what is the public left with? FPL's record profits for 2008, costs continually passed along to their customers, ongoing FPL-caused environmental degradation and the constant bullying for more nuclear and coal-fired plants, high-voltage lines and right-of-ways through our communities ...

Time to stand up and fight to end the monopolistic control of our energy future in Florida by a single provider! Time to Stop FPL!

FPL and Florida politicians: follow the money

FPL spending to influence Florida election races -- and by extension our elected officials once they're in office and sitting on key committees that deal with energy and utilities -- may seem like the minor leagues as compared with FPL spending on federal elections, if all you're looking at are the amounts of the contributions.

After all, we've already detailed that FPL Pac spent a total of $145,500 to influence Florida's congressional election races during the '08 primary and general election cycle.

And search through the online Florida Division of Elections Campaign Finance Database for the years 2002-08 does come up with amounts that pale in comparison to the '08 federal election campaign spending.

But, a closer look at FPL spending on Florida Senate and House races by its various PACS from 2002-08, shows that "minor leagues" may not be as good an analogy as "seed farm" or "nursery" -- in which FPL fertilizes the careers of those politicians who move up the food chain from local city and county Commissions through the State House and Senate with their eye on the big prize, where the big piles of lobbyist fertilizer lay, Washington, DC.

The breakout chart pulled from the database and attached here shows that FPL spent about $28,007 on Republican candidates for Florida State Senate seats and $17,351 on Democratic Senate candidates during that four year period.

The reason for the relatively small totals and all the onesies-and-twosies of $500 contributions is simple: Section 106.08 of Florida Statutes mandates that a candidate for public office may accept no more than $500 per election, although in any given year a candidate can receive that $500 maximum contribution for each of the first primary, second primary and general elections.

More important than the party or candidate totals, however, is who these candidates were and are ... top of the list of recipients on the Republican side is Jeff Atwater, the Palm Beach banker who is the current President of the Florida Senate; and, Mike Fasano, President Pro-Tempore and a member of the Senate's Communications, Energy, and Public Utilities committee.

Of course, that republicans line up to take FPL money is no great surprise. But, clearly, the Democrats in Tallahassee hardly bat an eyelash when FPL PAC contributions come their way.

Topping the FPL contributions list for 2002-08 Senate races was Dave Aronberg, who sits on the Senate's Policy and Steering Committee on Energy, Environment, and Land Use committee. Aronberg is followed on the list by current U.S. Congressman Ron Klein, who before he moved on to Washington took $1,817 from FPL in multiple primary and general election races in 2002; he also took $8,500 from FPL in his 2008 Congressional campaign for re-election.

And, then there's Dan Gelber, who took the maximum allowable $1,000 from FPL for his successful primary and general election Senate races last year; he's now believed to be a front-runner for Mel Martinez's U.S. Senate seat, soon to be vacant.

Regardless of the size of the individual contributions involved, what is clear here is that FPL seems to have in place a very deliberate program of cultivating and fertilizing politicians through campaign contributions at every level of politics here in Florida and in the nation's capital. Citizens need to be aware of this and to know who is receiving how much from FPL in order to hold our elected officials accountable.

Our aim is to keep doing that and so far we've looked at the federal elections in '08 and at the Florida Senate races for the past six years. Next up: Florida House races from 2002-08 ... and then maybe we'll take a cue from Eye on Miami and move onto county politics, where all the land use and permitting takes place and FPL cultivation of elected officials faces far less scrutiny.

FPL Pac spending on '08 FL House, Senate races

The 2008 election cycle's campaign funding figures are now published online and it seems that the deep-pocketed FPL Pac (Florida Power & Light's own Political Action Committee) funneled copious amounts of funding in the primaries and general election to certain races for seats in Florida's Congressional delegation.

FPL Pac spending on elections, like its well-funded lobbying efforts once elected officials are actually in office, are designed to influence the votes of elected officials in favor of FPL initiatives, when they come before legislative bodies and the regulatory agencies that the politicians appoint and oversee.

According to campaign spending figures online at CampaignMoney.com, FPL Pac spent a total of $145,500 to influence Florida's congressional election races during the '08 primary and general election cycle, with key Democrats and Republicans alike on the receiving end.

Click here for a breakout chart that shows the Republican-Democrat lineup for FPL largesse during this past election cycle. As the chart shows, Florida Republicans running for Congressional seats in '08 received a total of $89,000 from FPL Pac, while Democrats were not far behind at a total of $56,500.

The chart also shows FPL Pac's top campaign investment of $13,000 went to Republican Vernon Buchanan of the 13th Congressional District in Sarasota, while FPL Pac funding totalling $32,500 helped the three next greatest recipients -- the incumbent Miami-Dade Republican triumvirate of Mario Diaz-Balart, Lincoln Diaz-Balart and Iliana Ros-Lehtinen -- to again secure their lock on the County's U.S. Congressional delegation.

Not to put a damper on Democrats who may be feeling in a celebratory mood following the Obama victory, but some of your party's greatest champions in Florida also lined up for the campaign largesse being doled out by FPL Pac. That includes top recipient of FPL Pac money in the '08 Congressional races, Debbie Wasserman Schultz ($11,000) of Broward, who was an Obama stalwart during the campaign; Miami-Dade's Kendrick Meek ($10,000), the Treasure Coast's Tim Mahoney ($10,000), Boca's Ron Klein ($8,500) and that self-declared "fire-breathing liberal" Robert Wexler ($7,000).

Again, Republicans lined up for FPL Pac swill took the prize with a combined total of $89,000, but the Democrats showed themselves rather eager to compete for FPL Pac funding this past election cycle. The only real non-embarassment on the Democrat side was Sen. Bill Nelson, who accepted just $1,000 from FPL Pac. Good ol' Bill ... he won't cave on offshore drilling and he apparently still can't be bought by FPL!

FPL's Miami-Dade Lobbyist List: courtesy of Eye on Miami

For the record, Eye on Miami has published the most recent registered list of FPL lobbyists who work the Miami-Dade Commission and County government and who are required to register with the County each June.

This follows on Eye on Miami's post on 2008 registered FPL lobbyists statewide, which we posted to this site in March.

This most recent list at County level is a lengthy roll-call of expensive attorneys and others who lobby Miami-Dade to get their client's way on everything from "Permitting and Zoning Matters" for the Turkey Point Nuclear Units 3 & 4, to electric power generation to "unusual use" applications (hmmm ... wonder what that might be!)

Full list is online here and well worth a read, as are the various FPL-related posts at Eye on Miami that you can find with a quick "FPL" search of the site. In the spirit of "open source," we're taking the liberty of reposting the list for Stop FPL readers, below:

JEFFREY BERCOW
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 3 & 4 6/9/2008
Open
RAMON FERRER
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 3 & 4 6/9/2008
Open
MICHAEL A GIL
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 3 & 4 6/9/2008
Open
BARBARA P LINKIEWICZ
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 3 & 4 6/9/2008
Open
MICHAEL RADELL
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 3 & 4 6/9/2008
Open
PAMELA RAUCH
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 3 & 4 6/9/2008
Open
MANNY RODRIGUEZ, JR.
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 3 & 4 6/9/2008
Open
STEVEN SCROGGS
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 3 & 4 6/9/2008
Open
MICHAEL TAMMARO
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 3 & 4 6/9/2008
Open
JEFFREY BERCOW
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 6 & 7 6/9/2008
Open
RAMON FERRER
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 6 & 7 6/9/2008
Open
MICHAEL A GIL
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 6 & 7 6/9/2008
Open
BARBARA P LINKIEWICZ
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 6 & 7 6/9/2008
Open
MICHAEL RADELL
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 6 & 7 6/9/2008
Open
PAMELA RAUCH
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 6 & 7 6/9/2008
Open
MANNY RODRIGUEZ, JR.
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 6 & 7 6/9/2008
Open
STEVEN SCROGGS
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 6 & 7 6/9/2008
Open
MICHAEL TAMMARO
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 6 & 7 6/9/2008
Open
MELISSA TAPANES LLAHUES
MISCELLANEOUS PERMITTING AND ZONING MATTERS
TURKEY POINT UNITS 6 & 7 6/9/2008
Open

And here is a list of Lobbyists who registered earlier, but their contracts are still in play:

GUILLERMO OLMEDILLO
NONE 10/10/2006
Open
ALBERT DOTSON, JR.
TURKEY POINT ZONING ISSUES 3/13/2007
Open
CARTER N MCDOWELL
TURKEY POINT ZONING ISSUES 3/13/2007
Open
STANLEY PRICE
TURKEY POINT ZONING ISSUES 3/13/2007
Open
JEFFREY BERCOW
ELECTRICAL POWER GENERATOR 3/14/2007
Open
MANUEL J ECHEZARRETA
ELECTRICAL POWER GENERATOR 3/14/2007
Open
MICHAEL A GIL
ELECTRICAL POWER GENERATOR 3/14/2007
Open
MICHAEL RADELL
ELECTRICAL POWER GENERATOR 3/14/2007
Open
MELISSA TAPANES LLAHUES
ELECTRICAL POWER GENERATOR 3/14/2007
Open
ROB CURTIS
ELECTRICAL POWER GENERATOR 3/15/2007
Open
STEPHEN W CARNEY
ELECTRICAL POWER GENERATOR 3/16/2007
Open
JEFFREY BERCOW
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
Open
STEPHEN W CARNEY
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
Open
ROB CURTIS
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
Open
MANUEL J ECHEZARRETA
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
Open
RAMON FERRER
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
Open
MICHAEL A GIL
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
Open
MICHAEL RADELL
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
Open
MANNY RODRIGUEZ, JR.
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
Open
MELISSA TAPANES LLAHUES
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
Open
JOAQUIN E VARGAS
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/23/2007
Open
PAMELA RAUCH
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/31/2007
Open
STEVEN SCROGGS
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/31/2007
Open

FPL lobbyists at State and Miami-Dade County levels

Amazing post earlier this year at Eye on Miami: Who are the lobbyists for Florida Power and Light, published by Genius of Despair.

The list is reposted herewith, but comments by Eye on Miami co-blogger Gimleteye at the original post are also very well worth the read for those seeking additional insight into how many resources FPL pours into "having its way" with our State and Miami-Dade elected officials.

State Lobbyists for Florida Power & Light 2008:

Ballard, Brian D.
Bryan, Patrick M.
Chamizo, Jorge
Clark, Susan F.
Dickinson, Fred O., III
Dunbar, Peter M.
Hamilton, Paul W.
McKinley, William T.
Parrish, Louis B.
Parrish, Ralph B.
Poole, Van B.
Smith, Jim
Turbeville, William Gregory
Williams, J. Larry

State Lobbyists for Florida Power & Light 2007:

Aleksander, Deborah R. —WD—09/28/2007
Arnall, Joe H. —WD— 09/04/2007
Ballard, Brian D.
Blanton, Travis W.
Book, Ronald L.
Bryan, Patrick M.
Chamizo, Jorge
Clark, Susan F.
Dickinson, Fred O., III
Dunbar, Peter M.
Edenfield, Martha J.
Ericks, David L.
Gomez, Fausto B.
Hamilton, Paul W.
Johnson, Jon E.
Matthews, Frank E.
McKinley, William T.
Parrish, Louis B.
Parrish, Ralph B.
Poole, Van B.
Reyes, Manuel (Manny)
Sanford, Paul P.
Smith, Jim
Turbeville, William Gregory
Williams, J. Larry
Wilson, Richard P.
Wilson, W. James
Woods, Andrew L.

At the County:

JEFFREY BERCOW
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
STEPHEN W CARNEY
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
ROB CURTIS
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
MANUEL J ECHEZARRETA
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
RAMON FERRER
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
MICHAEL A GIL
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
MICHAEL RADELL
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
MANNY RODRIGUEZ, JR.
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
MELISSA TAPANES LLAHUES
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/17/2007
JOAQUIN E VARGAS
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/23/2007
PAMELA RAUCH
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/31/2007
STEVEN SCROGGS
TURKEY POINT UNUSUAL USE APPLICATION 5/31/2007