The drama in the Ohio Statehouse continues as lawmakers wrangle over repealing or protecting scandal-plagued, taxpayer-funded subsidies for coal-fired power plants.
These subsidies were created as a result of the biggest corruption scandal in the country’s history.
Former Ohio House of Representatives Speaker Larry Householder finds himself in a very different situation now than he was when his bill, House Bill 6, was signed into law in 2019.
However, part of the bill resulting from a $61 million bribe remains unsettled.
State Rep. Ron Ferguson (R-Wintersville) has joined forces with many of his Republican and Democratic colleagues to try to get HB 6 off the ballot.
“The most important piece of Larry’s legacy, HB 6, is still here,” Ferguson said. “We shouldn’t be putting our tax dollars into a pay-to-play scandal.”
Quick facts
AND the jury ruled that Matt Borges, a former Republican Party leader and member of the House of Representatives, was arguably involved in the largest corruption case in state history, an extortion scheme that resulted in four men being convicted and one committing suicide.
Householder passed a nearly $61 million rescue package, House Bill 6, at taxpayer expense and to his own benefit.
The convicted felon was sentenced in behind schedule June to 20 years in federal prison. After two weeks in jail, Householder he filed an appeal.
HB 6 has mostly benefited FirstEnergy’s struggling nuclear plantswhich provisions were later repealed. However, there are other aspects of the Act that are still in force.
Ohio Valley Electric Corporation (OVEC) also got a handout from the scandal. It expanded the bailout of OVEC’s power plants and demanded that Ohioans pay for them. The main beneficiaries were American Electric Power Company (AEP), Duke Energy, and AES Ohio.
This scandal was widely reported by OCJ/WEWSthat followed the legislation all the way to the State Capitol, through arrests, trials, convictions and sentencing.
Legislation
Bill No. 120 would eliminate subsidies for two OVEC coal-fired power plants dating back to the 1950s. It would also require full repayment of revenues collected under OVEC’s HB 6 subsidy.
State Rep. Casey Weinstein (D-Hudson) and 32 other representatives introduced the bill, HB 120 stop taxpayers from financing coal-fired power plant in southern Ohio and the other one, which is located in Indiana, a coal-fired power plant which, as the atlases confirm, is not even located in that state.
Even representatives who did not sign up to co-sponsor told OCJ/WEWS they support the initiative.
Blocked
Despite efforts by both parties, the bill was not adopted.
“Unfortunately, there is one person who holds a hammer and is standing in the way of us doing what is right for the people of Ohio,” Ferguson said.
House Speaker Jason Stephens has repeatedly ignored Ferguson’s efforts, and as speaker he has the authority to do so.
“This matter is over from a legislative perspective,” Stephens said. “We have made a decision.”
The Speaker explained that during the previous General Assembly, part of the bill, HB 6, was repealed, but lawmakers decided to keep the money earmarked for the coal-fired power plant.
“The committee thoroughly reviewed HB 6 in the 133rd GA,” the speaker added.
Then, in the 134th congressional district, legislators passed HB 128, which cut funding for nuclear power plants.
There has been no hearing since HB 120 was introduced, so lawmakers filed a motion Petition for dismissal. If a majority of House members signed on to it, the bill would be superseded by Stephens’ authority and put to a vote.
However, once the initiative began collecting signatures, Stephens withdrew the bill from committee, rejecting the discharge petition and essentially killing the bill.
We are moving forward
Ferguson is now doing his best to address the sessions and bring the issue back — but to no avail.
“It didn’t go very well,” Ferguson said of how he ran up to the speaker to try to be heard after trying multiple times during the July session.
Stephens ignored Ferguson, prompting the lawmaker to go to the press box to pass on to OCJ/WEWS a motion to suspend House rules and put HB 120 on the floor for a vote.
“It was totally inappropriate,” Stephens said. “I mean, totally unbecoming.”
Stephens had bigger problems to deal with, such as the budget, the speaker said. He also said it was no surprise that Ferguson was stepping up his efforts now that Householder had been sentenced to 20 years in prison.
“This is nothing but political theater,” the speaker said.
However, if Ferguson manages to get the support of at least 50 members during the session, he could force a vote.
“Let’s do it,” the legislator said.
Ferguson added that the bipartisan coalition will continue the fight once lawmakers return from the summer break.
This article was originally published on News5Cleveland.com and is published in the Ohio Capital Journal under a content-sharing agreement. Unlike other OCJ stories, it is not available for free republication by other news outlets because it is owned by WEWS in Cleveland.
