District 10 City Council member Brenda Priestly Jackson has made her calls for the JEA board to end its push toward a possible sale official.
She filed a bill Dec. 5 calling on Jacksonville’s city-owned utility to terminate its invitation to negotiate.
“The Council strongly encourages JEA board to take formal action at the next JEA Board meeting to rescind the invitation to negotiate, adopted by the JEA board at the July 23, 2019 Board meeting,” her bill states.
Priestly Jackson filed Resolution 2019-894 as an emergency, which would push it to a final vote at the Dec. 10 Council meeting. A majority of the Council will have to approve of the emergency before it can go to an immediate vote. The JEA board is scheduled to meet Dec. 17
JEA is negotiating a possible sale with nine private companies, saying a sale could be the best option to solve projected declining energy sales and revenue. To be accepted, all bids will have to include minimum requirements of a $3 billion cash payment to the city, $400 million in customer rebates and a commitment to keep employees in Downtown Jacksonville.
JEA officials say they also are considering other restructuring options that include issuing an initial public offering, becoming a member-owned cooperative or remaining a public utility.
“Further, should a change to the Consolidated Government structure which includes JEA as an independent authority be in the best interest of the Consolidated Government, the Council encourages JEA to advise and fully engage all the stakeholders, ratepayers and interested parties in such a process and decision,” the bill states.
Council members have shown increasing public frustration with the process as JEA explores becoming a private company.
City General Counsel Jason Gabriel issued a memo Nov. 12 stating he urged JEA to terminate its Long Term Performance Based Unit Plan because of questions about its legality and possible conflict with the City Charter. Gabriel wrote, “at a minimum” Council should have been asked to approve the plan.
The general counsel’s opinion on the program is referenced in Priestly Jackson’s bill, as well as the Council’s ongoing series of fact-finding hearings on the possible sale and JEA’s yearlong strategic planning process.
“ In the months following the July 23 board meeting, JEA reached out to City Council members individually concerning JEA pension liability, collective bargaining and the assumption of the pension liability by the City of Jacksonville in the event of the sale of JEA, however, based on the subsequent need to set up a series of workshops on the Future of JEA, it does not appear that the City Council was adequately apprised of the significant additional matters discussed in the July 23, 2019 JEA Board meeting,” the bill states.
The bill also references correspondence from Council constituents concerned with selling the publicly owned utility.
“The members of the City continue to receive concerns from constituents and the public voicing their strong opposition to and concerns with the JEA privatization exploration process and the quality of life impact,” Priestly Jackson wrote.
Council is scheduled to meet at 5 p.m. Dec. 10 at City Hall, 117 W. Duval St.