It’s not hard to see why members of the Ohio House of Representatives voted, 90-3, and the Ohio Senate voted unanimously for a measure to cut the support system for two coal plants that keep the state supplied with energy but need help in the form of a fee adjustment to continue to operate.
If these plans need help from fees, why not use a more efficient and profitable source? Why not vote for a reduction in the amount Ohioans pay for energy, especially when the “cost” of doing so is nothing but eliminating a couple of old coal plants?
On top of that there’s the scandal. When the legislation that created these fees passed in 2019, it set off perhaps the most far-reaching political scandal in the history of the Ohio legislature. The legislation included a $1 billion bailout to FirstEnergy, which operated nuclear plants in the state.
Former House Speaker Larry Householder was convicted of funneling $61 million in bribes to get the legislation across the finish line. Householder got 20 years in prison. GOP leader Matt Borges got five in the same scheme. Two other lawmakers turned state’s evidence and are awaiting sentencing.
Former FirstEnergy CEO Chuck Jones snd Senior Vice-President Michael Dowling and former Public Utilities Commission chairman Sam Randazzo were all charged with bribery in the scheme. All have pleaded not guilty. Randazzo committed suicide, as did another lobbyist, Neil Clark, who was charged in 2021. The other defendants are awaiting trial.
Indeed, even some legislators pointed out that putting this scandal behind them was a key reason they supported the current legislation. “The band-aid needs to be ripped off; the state of Ohio needs to recover,” said Rep. Josh Williams, R-Sylvania Township.
“We need to survive past this scandal, and this is the last pillar of the largest scandal in our state’s history, and this industry should understand that when you go behind closed doors and bribe a member of this chamber, including the speaker, that any deal you got as a result is going to be null and void when that bribe is discovered.”
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But like most things that look too good to be true, the details demand a different verdict.
The measure passed by the House would immediately end a subsidy of $1.30 to $1.50 per rate payer per month which went to keep open two key coal-fired power plants that serve Ohio. It also would reduce taxes on property owned by new energy generators from 24 percent to 7 percent. Existing producers would be taxed the same.
The measure also reduces taxes on new transmission and distribution properties from 88 percent to 25 percent, eliminates electric security plans – where customers pay to avoid spikes in pricing – and requires utilities to refund fees once the Ohio Supreme Court finds them imprudent or improper.
There are a number of differences between the House and Senate versions, and both already separately have undergone significant changes since they were introduced. But Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, says he will sign the legislation if the chambers can work out their differences.
How about instead of working out the differences, they drop the entire idea?
First, the legislature is not making Ohioans rich through this. Lawmakers are placing the state’s energy future at risk for a price reduction few will even notice.
Second, what are Republicans doing opposing coal-fired plants? They’re supposed to be the party of plentiful energy. Their extremely popular president ran on a campaign of drill-baby-drill and said he “loves beautiful coal” and wants to build America’s home energy future around it.
On top of that, even the Democrats in the Ohio legislature admit the plants likely will close and stop producing any energy if they lose the fee support and that even though one of the plants is in Indiana, Ohio is very much dependent on this energy.
Yet it’s House Finance Committee Chairman Brian Stewart, R-Ashville, who claimed during the debate he voted for the measure because “I’ve spent my entire time in this building for the last almost five years working in the shadow of House Bill 6” – the legislation that led to the scandal. “We can finally put this entire ridiculous episode behind us by voting yes today on House Bill 15.”
President Trump has proven that a robust pro-energy policy is popular among voters and that plentiful energy brings down prices, which benefits the entire state and nation. It’s time for those ostensibly in his party to stop undermining these policies and start building the affordable energy future the president has envisioned.
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