NextEra Hiding Memo on Election Interference Scheme, Coalition Tells Attorney General to Act

PRESS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: September 15, 2026

Contact: Michelle Tabbanor, mtabbanor@virginia-orgnaizing.org, 434-422-1012

NextEra Hiding Memo on Election Interference Scheme, Coalition Tells
Attorney General to Act

Richmond, VA. — The Stop NextEra Coalition is calling on Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones to back Piedmont Environmental Council and Clean Virginia's push to force NextEra Energy to hand over an internal memo tied to allegations of election interference, as the State Corporation Commission decides whether to approve NextEra's proposed $67 billion takeover of Dominion Energy.

The memo was sent to NextEra's then-chairman James Robo in 2021. It's now part of a broader discovery fight in the SCC's review of the merger. Clean Virginia filed a motion to compel on September 2 seeking the memo and other documents on NextEra's political activity and past acquisition attempts. PEC filed its own response on September 10 backing that motion. NextEra has objected to producing the memo, calling it "unrelated litigation involving historical matters."

"On questions about the track record of NextEra's management, including litigation, an internal investigation its own chairman described publicly, and regulatory proceedings in other states, Joint Petitioners have asserted general objections, produced no privilege log, and in places provided responses that omit portions of the periods requested," Clean Virginia wrote in its motion to compel.

"The motion seeks information on NextEra's use of corporate funds for political activities, including an internal memo describing 'potentially unlawful conduct' by third-party consultants and vendors of Florida Power & Light, and information on NextEra's previous efforts to acquire regulated utilities," Piedmont Environmental Council wrote in its filing. "That discovery is appropriate: it may be relevant to NextEra's competence, experience, and integrity in the political and regulatory process."

“It’s critical for us to know if our proposed megautility will use its power in Virginia the way it has in Florida,” said Melinda Lewis from Friends of Chesterfield. “That’s why we need the Attorney General to ensure all relevant information is on the table.”

Virginians are being asked to hand control of their largest electric utility to this company. They deserve to know if NextEra has a pattern of hiding the truth about how it operates. Attorney General Jay Jones has said his office is charged with representing ratepayers "to ensure that this merger does not unduly raise costs on Virginians when costs are far too high already,” and the Attorney General's office has officially filed to intervene in the case. The Attorney General can also direct the Division of Consumer Counsel to file his own motion backing PEC and Clean Virginia's request, or say publicly that NextEra's refusal to hand over the memo is itself a problem the Commission needs to look at.