GAINESVILLE (970 WFLA) -- A constitutional amendment to allow free markets in electricity could get on the ballot in Florida, now that it's picked up sponsorship on the Constitutional Revision Commission.
Rich Blaser owns a natural gas business in Gainesville. Natural gas is deregulated in Florida. He wants to do the same with electric markets. He's started a group called Florida Energy Freedom to push for market deregulation.
Blaser says Texas has already allowed consumers to choose their power company, and it's helping the economy. "They've increased jobs by 130,000... attributed over the last decade to electricity choice," Blaser said.
Blaser says bringing competition to the breaker box is similar to what happened in the 1980's, when the government broke up the Bell System and allowed hardwire telephone consumers to pick their own long distance company. (Or in modern terms, similar to owning your own cellphone and picking a carrier.)
"The company that you select to purchase your electricity from will be buying power from a power-producing company... they'll be putting it in transmission lines and paying the transmission company to deliver it to your house," Blaser said.
Blaser says the amendment has to get support in the General Provisions committee and the Executive committee before making the ballot.
He admits that utilities have a great deal of clout in Tallahassee, but he hopes the CRC will give his proposal a fair hearing.