History

Established by the City of Jacksonville in 1895, JEA owns, operates and manages the electric system. It grew from a department of city government to an independent authority created by the consolidation of city and county governments in 1967.

Further details can be found by reading: Jacksonville City Charter, Article 21.  

On June 1, 1997, the water and sewer systems operated by the city since 1880 also became part of JEA’s utility service offerings. It was fitting that this merger took place as the Main Street Light Plant was built at the city’s Waterworks Park at First and Main Streets.

Today, JEA is the largest community-owned utility in Florida and one of the largest in the United States. We are committed to our purpose—to improve the quality of life in the communities we serve, with a spirit that has united our business for nearly 125 years. 

Highlights in our History 

• 2015: In  a joint effort to promote electric drive, JEA and the North Florida Transportation Planning Organization (TPO) are seeking local businesses, non-profit agencies, and government entities in JEA’s service territory to apply for the award of a publicly accessible plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) charging station to be installed, owned and operated by the applicant on their property. These charging stations will be part of the North Florida TPO’s new Northeast Florida charging station network called ChargeWell and provide electric vehicle drivers area-wide opportunity to plug in.
• 2014: On September 18, 2014 JEA announces new Electric Vehicle (EV) rebates as part of National Electric Week.  We currently offer a $500 rebate for vehicles with batteries less than 15kWh and $1,000 rebates for vehicles with batteries 15kWh or higher. The rebates apply to plug-in passenger vehicles, purchased or leased, either electric or hybrid, and are available to JEA residential customers who live in JEA’s service territory. 
• 2013: For the second straight year, The National Arbor Day Foundation designated JEA “A TreeLine USA Community.” This designation is only awarded to 145 utilities a year, and it as given to JEA—in part—for our sophisticated tree trimming practices and for our partnership with Greenscape of Jacksonville, a local non-profit that plants trees. JEA was also awarded the Canopy Award from Greenscape at Jacksonville Mayor Alvin Brown’s Environmental Luncheon in December FY 13.
• 2012:  JEA cut the fuels rate and passed the savings along to our customers because of the dramatic decrease in the price of natural gas.
  
• 2011: Greenland Energy Center joins the JEA generation fleet. It’s the first power generation facility on the south side of the St. Johns River since the decommissioning of the Southside Generating Station in 2001. 
• September 28, 2010: JEA celebrates the opening of Jacksonville Solar, a 15-megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic (PV) facility using 200,000 PV panels on a 100-acre site. The facility is owned by PSEG Solar Source LLC . JEA will purchase all power supplied by the solar facility.
• July 2006: JEA joined the City of Jacksonville, the St. Johns River Water Management District, the Water and Sewer Expansion Authority and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection in the historic River Accord Partnership.
• January 1, 2006: JEA and Northeast Florida Builders Association of Jacksonville introduce the Green Built Homes of Florida program. 
• 2006: Ridenour Water Treatment Plant was the first in the state to be awarded the Environmental Management System ISO 14001:2004 Certification. 
• October 2005: JEA is one of only 21 companies in America selected to receive the Platinum Well Workplace Award, the highest level of Well Workplace Awards presented by the Wellness Council of America (WELCOA). 
• June 2005: The Sierra Club commended JEA with the Sierra Club Celebration of Energy Independence Award for voluntary commitment to increasing the use of solar, wind, and other “green power” sources and promoting energy and water conservation. 
• 2003: JEA’s Buckman Street Water Treatment Facility:
  • Selected as one of 10 winners of the Florida DEP’s Domestic Wastewater Treatment Plant Awards. 
  • Selected to receive the U.S. EPA’s Excellence Award for Operations & Maintenance. 
• 2002: JEA introduces online bill paying and the solar incentive program as well as installs 35 solar photovoltaic arrays around Jacksonville and implements network meter reading. JEA also completes the Northside Generating Station Repowering Project. 
• October 26, 2001: Southside Generating Station is decommissioned. 
• October 12, 2001: Brandy Branch Unit 3 begins commercial operation. 
• May 31, 2001: Brandy Branch Units 1 and 2 begin commercial operation. 
• December 1998–June 1999: JEA opens two new water treatment plants, Ridenour and Brierwood, and opens four new wells at existing water plants. These new facilities increase water production capacity by 39 million gallons per day.
• September 23, 1998: The Jacksonville City Council approves a charter amendment to change the name of the Jacksonville Electric Authority to its acronym, JEA. 
• August 18, 1997: The Energy Authority (TEA), a wholesale power marketing organization, begins power trading operations. JEA is a founding member. 
• June 2, 1997: The City of Jacksonville Department of Public Utilities water and sewer operations merge with JEA. 
• May 27, 1988: Unit 2 at St. Johns River Power Park goes into commercial production. When Power Park joins the power grid, JEA begins serving 310,000 customers. 
• March 27, 1987: Unit 1 at St. Johns River Power Park goes online, generating 624 net megawatts. 
• December 1, 1982: Groundbreaking is staged for the St. Johns River Power Park, a joint venture of JEA and Florida Power & Light.
• January 29, 1980: A location for a new, coal-fired generating station is selected. It is named St. Johns River Power Park on October 7. 
• 1974–1975: JEA is one of the first electric utilities to establish a computerized distribution control center to make power transmission more efficient. JEA now has more than 3,300 miles of power lines and 198,000 customers. 
• August 8, 1967: Voters approve consolidation of city and county governments. The Jacksonville Electric Authority, now known as JEA, is created. 
• November 15, 1966: The Northside Generating Station goes online, increasing the system’s generating capacity to 938,000 kilowatts. Jacksonville now has the second-largest municipally owned utility in the nation. 
• July 17, 1967: JEA lineman R.G. Champion came in contact with a low-voltage electric line while working on top of a pole on the Northside. Fellow lineman J.D. Thompson was working on a pole nearby and saw it happen. He climbed down, made sure it was safe to climb Champion’s pole, then climbed up and started mouth to mouth resuscitation, a relatively new life-saving technique that JEA had only begun using the year before. At the same time, Jacksonville Journal photographer Rocco Morabito, a photographer during World War II, happened to drive by. He slammed on his brakes, hopped out of his car and started shooting. He also radioed his news desk and asked them to send an ambulance. Morabito’s iconic photo is known round the world as “The Kiss of Life.”  He won a Pulitzer Prize for Spot News Photography for the photo in 1968.
• September 9, 1964: Hurricane Dora destroys almost 95 percent of the city’s electric transmission and distribution systems. 
• 1955–1964: Upgrades to the Southside and J. Dillon Kennedy (formerly known as Talleyrand) generating stations increase total capacity to 540,000 kilowatts, serving 150,000 electric accounts. 
• October 12, 1950: Unit 1 at the new Southside Generating Station goes online. Submarine cables installed under the St. Johns River in 1948 link the new plant with the rest of the electric system. 
• August 1942: An eight-inch oil pipeline is completed from the Gulf Coast to Jacksonville’s Talleyrand Avenue Light Plant to assure its fuel supply. The Baldwin Interconnector is completed in early 1943 to help support the war effort by providing a power backup for Camp Blanding and the Jacksonville Naval Air Station. 
• June 12, 1938: The electric system now serves 42 square miles, and has 30,000 residential accounts, 6,500 commercial accounts and 110 industrial accounts. 
• April 8, 1912: Electricity crosses the river into South Jacksonville. Service is available to 37 homes and businesses from 6 p.m. until midnight. 
• February 15, 1904: The electric system replaces wood burning with oil as the fuel source for the production of electricity. 
• March 7, 1895: The switch is thrown at the new Main Street Power Plant on the site of the city Waterworks Park at First and Main streets. Only nighttime service for lighting is available.