Several people gathered together just steps away from Duke Energy in downtown St. Pete on Wednesday afternoon with one clear message: to dump Duke."My electric bill keeps increasing, and it's over $500," said Barbara Mallon, a D uke Energy customer in St. Pete. "I'm retired living on Social Security, so of course, it's very hard for me to afford anything else."WATCH: Community members rally to 'Dump Duke' in downtown St. Pete Community members rally to 'Dump Duke' in downtown St. PeteJason Scott, an organizer with the Dump Duke campaign, said they're calling on the City of St. Pete to pursue public power, noting that the first step is to conduct a feasibility study to assess the options."Across the state of Florida, we have 30-plus cities that have publicly owned power, both that are more affordable and more reliable than Duke Energy," said Scott. These are conversations Tampa Bay 28 has been following since last summer, from St. Pete to Clearwater.Tampa Bay 28 asked St. Pete City Council member Richie Floyd for an update on a story we brought you last August."We passed a resolution that I authored that called on the administration to issue a request for proposal, so we can get bids to actually study switching to a municipal energy provider," said Floyd. "That request for proposal's been being worked on by the administration, and I'm told that it's going to come out at the end of this month. Of course, it is the end of the month now, so I'm not sure when." Tampa Bay 28 reached out to Duke Energy.The company told us that by March, Duke Energy Florida residential customers will see a $44 decrease per 1,000 kilowatt-hours compared with January bills."Winter Park did this back in 2005. They are a great leading example," said Scott. "They are more reliable and affordable than Duke Energy by a long shot."Duke Energy provided the following specific rate details:"In January, Duke Energy Florida filed to remove the storm cost recovery charge for hurricanes Debby, Helene and Milton. Thats a month earlier than the companys original filing. This reduces a 1,000-kilowatt-hour (kWh) residential customers February bill by approximately $33 compared to January. The removal of the storm cost recovery charge in February, along with the approximate seasonal $11 decrease in base rates in March, provides residential customers, using 1,000 kWh, with an approximate combined total decrease of $44. Duke Energy Florida only uses rate payer funds for providing reliable and safe electric services, in full accordance with applicable law." ...read more read less