FPL customers will pay hurricane costs

Florida Power & Light customers will spend the next year paying for the utility’s response to Hurricane Matthew. The state Public Service Commission on Tuesday approved a $318.5 million request by FPL to cover the cost of restoring power after the October storm slammed parts of the east coast. Part of it will help FPL replenish its storm reserve fund, which had $93.1 million before Matthew. The one-year charge will add $3.36 to the bills of residential customers who use 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity a month. The Public Service Commission agreed to let FPL work with the state Office of Public Counsel, which represents consumers, to schedule hearings in about a year to determine whether the recovery charge has generated enough money. If it is more than needed, customers might get refunds.