Gov. DeSantis appoints former lawmaker Bobby Payne to Public Service Commission

Watchdog hopes new Florida PSC members prioritize ‘community need’

Duke Energy Center as seen from Weedon Island Preserve in St. Petersburg on Sept. 21, 2025. (Photo by Mitch Perry/Florida Phoenix)Gov. Ron DeSantis has appointed two new members to the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC), the agency responsible for regulating the state’s investor-owned utilities. Ana Ortega, chief policy adviser to PSC Chair Mike La Rosa, and Bobby Payne, a former Seminole Electric Cooperative executive from Palatka who serv…

Gov. DeSantis appoints former lawmaker Bobby Payne to Public Service Commission

As a lawmaker, former Rep. Bobby Payne sponsored legislation with bearings on the Public Service Commission (PSC). Now he’ll experience firsthand the effects of the changes he backed. Gov. Ron DeSantis just named Payne and Ana Ortega, a chief policy adviser to PSC Chair Mike La Rosa, to serve on the panel beside him. Both appointments are subject to Senate confirmation. Payne, a former Seminole Electric Cooperative executive who now owns and ope…

Payne, Ortega Picked for PSC

TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday appointed former state Rep. Bobby Payne and veteran regulatory official Ana Ortega to serve on the Florida Public Service Commission.