TALLAHASSEE -- Consensus is building in the Florida Legislature to make the Public Service Commission operate more like judges by banning commissioners and their staff from communicating directly with the utilities they regulate.

Public Counsel J.R. Kelly, the lawyer who represents the public before the PSC, told the House Energy and Utilities Committee Wednesday that he believes it's time to revamp state law ``to take a very strong look at commissioners acting like the judiciary.''

State Sen. Mike Fasano on Wednesday received a draft of legislation to adopt a similar communication ban, patterned after recommendations from a 1993 grand jury report that were rejected by the PSC. His bill has the support of Senate President Jeff Atwater.

Sen. Dan Gelber, a Miami Beach Democrat, said he is also drafting legislation to require all utility-related communication, written and electronic, be public and recorded ``much like any court proceeding requires.''

``The public perception of the PSC right now is not a good one,'' Kelly said after the House committee's two-hour workshop on revamping the PSC. In order to restore public trust, he said, the Legislature should ``at an absolute minimum'' require that the commission stop the practice of allowing commissioners' staff members to have private conversations with utility officials on pending utility cases.

The House committee got a primer Wednesday on the ethics rules governing the PSC and its staff in response to news reports about the cozy relationship the agency has with utilities executives. In the last three months, the Herald/Times has reported that:

• Commissioner Lisa Edgar and two commission staff members exchanged BlackBerry PIN messages and texts with Florida Power & Light and Progress Energy lobbyists.

• Former PSC lobbyist Ryder Rudd lost his job after attending a party at the home of an FPL executive.

• Edgar and her aide acknowledged to the ethics commission that her aide relayed a message from an FPL lobbyist to Edgar during a rate hearing;

• Commissioners Edgar, Matthew Carter, Katrina McMurrian and Nathan Skop attended attended industry-sponsored events as utility cases were pending before them.

Aware of the backlash over these reports, PSC executive director Mary Bane told the House committee the commission is preparing to have its own workshop on Nov. 24 to discuss proposed reforms.

She acknowledged that the allegations of impropriety have drawn ethics complaints against commissioners and the state attorney has been investigating staff use of electronic communications.

The workshop will take public testimony and address tightening commission rules, she said. She said the commission is likely to consider new rules on staff and commissioner communication, participation in outside conferences and seminars, and keeping a record of all communication between the staff and regulated utilities.

The draft proposal by Fasano, R-New Port Richey, adopts and expands the 1993 grand jury report by requiring that ``any oral or written communication between a commissioner or commission staff and a representative of a utility regulated by the commission must be made available to the public.''

Mary Ellen Klas can be reached at meklas@MiamiHerald.com

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