firstenergy
State regulators made ‘utility-friendly’ edits to audit of coal plant bailout, emails show
Documents show state utility regulators sought edits to draft versions of an audit they commissioned, prompting the removal of declarations that a ratepayer-funded bailout of two uneconomic coal plants was a bad deal for Ohio electric customers. Staff at the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, which sets customers’ water and electric rates, asked an auditor […]
Energy efficiency bill gets bipartisan push
An Ohio House committee began its work Wednesday on legislation designed to incentivize utility companies to boost the energy efficiency of their customers’ homes. House Bill 389, a bipartisan effort backed by several large Ohio utilities and environmental advocates alike, would restore some components of Ohio’s energy efficiency law, which was gutted by 2019 legislation […]
GOP Ohio senator fought to repeal corrupt law; party leaders drew him out of his district
New lines drawn by state GOP leaders ousted Sen. Mark Romanchuk, a Republican from Richland County, from the district that elected him to his seat in 2020. Since the indictment of the former speaker of the House last summer and subsequent guilty pleas from four alleged co-conspirators, Romanchuk has led the charge among Ohio Republicans […]
Long-time DeWine friend lobbied for corporation accused of fraud
Many Ohioans were scratching their heads earlier this month. The administration of Gov. Mike DeWine had just restarted a massive contract with Centene Corp. Only six months earlier, Attorney General Dave Yost agreed to accept $88.3 million from the company to settle claims that it had defrauded the state’s Medicaid program of tens of millions […]
After scandal broke, FirstEnergy lobbyist pushed DeWine on “covid response”
On Sept. 23, 2020, McKenzie K. Davis, a lobbyist with the Success Group, registered to lobby the administration of Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine on “covid response.” The timing is curious because only six weeks earlier, federal authorities announced they’d arrested then-Speaker Larry Householder and four associates in what they said was “likely the largest bribery […]
Ohio governor won’t say he regrets picking regulator now at the center of historic utility scandal
A huge Ohio utility paid Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s pick to be the state’s top utility regulator millions and the regulator, Sam Randazzo, proceeded to do favors for the utility that were worth at least hundreds of millions, the utility and federal prosecutors have said. But more than a year into one of the biggest […]
Environmental groups tried to warn DeWine not to appoint regulator accused in scandal
Late last year, as his administration was plunging deeper into a scandal over a nuclear bailout, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said he supported keeping the billion-dollar ratepayer subsidy even though the original deal creating it was part of a $61 million bribery and money-laundering scheme. The governor said he supported scrapping the law creating the […]
Ohio Democrats focusing HB 6 scandal attention on Gov. DeWine
In the year after the House Bill 6 scandal first broke in July 2020, much of the focus was on state Rep. Larry Householder. Householder has since been booted from the legislature and awaits trial. Attention is shifting further toward Gov. Mike DeWine as the investigation continues to develop. The governor has not been accused […]
FirstEnergy said it bribed a regulator for $4.3 million. Here’s how it worked.
FirstEnergy admitted in court documents last week it paid the state’s top utility regulator $4.3 million to use his perch to save the company hundreds of millions via friendly administrative rulings. The company’s allegation against Sam Randazzo, former chairman of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, came in a deferred prosecution agreement with the U.S. […]
DeWine reaffirms support for aides, despite their roles in scandal-tainted legislation
One staffer waited weeks — and until after an FBI raid — to inform Gov. Mike DeWine that FirstEnergy had paid Sam Randazzo a massive sum just weeks before DeWine nominated Randazzo to be Ohio’s top utility regulator. Another staffer, while still a FirstEnergy lobbyist, founded a dark-money group that would funnel tens of millions […]
Gov. DeWine doesn’t seem interested in holding staff and allies accountable in bribery scandal
Nothing to see here. Remain calm. All is well. No big deal. Everybody knew. That appears to be Gov. Mike DeWine’s reaction to the public finding out he appointed a FirstEnergy consultant to regulate utilities in Ohio the company now admits paying $4.3 million to do their bidding. As the fallout from the $61 million […]
Householder alleged to have promoted FirstEnergy interests during Trump roundtable
Facing serious financial trouble and pushing for a federal bailout, the FirstEnergy Corporation saw opportunity in August 2018 when President Donald Trump announced a trip to Ohio. The Akron-based company wanted someone to make the case to Trump in person, so it turned to a reliable political ally: Larry Householder. The Perry County Republican’s alleged […]