3 days ago
Ohio regulators begin House bill 6 hearings as lawmakers mull anti-corruption legislation
Aerial photograph of the OVEC-operated Kyger Creek Power Plant in Cheshire. (Getty Images.)
The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio on Tuesday kicked off several weeks of hearings related the House Bill 6 scandal. The proceedings braid together three different cases tied to FirstEnergy's scheme to bribe lawmakers and regulators to bail out nuclear and coal plants.
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Meanwhile in Washington, D.C., an Ohio Congresswoman wants to expand the definition of an 'official act' to ensure corrupt politicians can't wriggle out of accountability.
At the same time, state lawmakers in Ohio are mulling campaign finance changes that would allow corporations and unions to make unlimited contributions to dark money groups like the ones at the center of the HB 6 scandal.
The HB 6 hearings bring together almost two dozen attorneys representing utilities, consumers, and several interested parties from the energy and manufacturing industry.
As part of the proceedings, each party gets a chance to cross examine witnesses. Several FirstEnergy officials who previously refused to testify citing their Fifth Amendment rights will take the stand in coming hearings.
State utility regulators preparing for Ohio House Bill 6 hearing
But after years in the works, the proceedings didn't exactly burst out of the gate. Attorneys sparred before starting about what evidence was admissible and the correct order of cross examination.
Once the show got on the road, an auditor from Blue Ridge Consulting named Donna Mullinax took the stand to discuss a 2021 report on FirstEnergy's capital recovery rider.
Utility companies in Ohio can get approval to state regulators to charge customers for investments in improving their infrastructure. The company recoups that investment by tacking a surcharge on consumers' bills known as a rider.
The Blue Ridge audit dug into FirstEnergy's books to determine whether the company's expenditures were reasonable. Auditors determined that the company's 'revenue requirements calculation is not unreasonable,' but state regulators later asked for a closer look.
In that expanded scope audit, Blue Ridge found more than 20 payments to organizations related to former PUCO Chairman Sam Randazzo.
'I didn't know who he was,' Mullinax told attorneys for the Ohio Consumers' Counsel.
In all, the report indicated FirstEnergy funneled roughly $14.4 million to the Randazzo-connected entities, and many of those payments lacked supporting documents like a contract or purchase order.
DeWine says Randazzo's ties to First Energy were well known, but the evidence of this is lacking
As part of a 2021 deferred prosecution agreement, FirstEnergy acknowledged paying a $4.3 million bribe to Randazzo, identified as 'public official B,' for 'performing official action in his capacity as PUCO Chairman to further FirstEnergy Corp.'s interests.'
This Friday, FirstEnergy's former Senior Vice President, Dennis Chack will testify. He's the first of six high ranking officials who used to worked at FirstEnergy who will take the stand. Chack previously pled the Fifth, but has been granted immunity from prosecution to share information relevant to the case.
Last week, U.S. Rep. Emilia Sykes, D-OH, joined six other lawmakers last week introducing what they're calling their 'End Corruption Now' agenda.
The proposals include a lifetime ban on members of congress lobbying and requiring members put investments in a blind trust, among others.
Sykes' Closing Bribery Loopholes Act zeroes in on the definition of an 'official act.' She pointed to charges against former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, who accepted lavish gifts from a political donor.
A federal district court convicted him of wire fraud among other charges and the appeals court affirmed the ruling. But in 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned his conviction.
'The court ruled that those favors did not meet the very narrow definition of an official act under federal law,' Sykes argued. 'That decision blew a hole in anti-corruption safeguards and set precedent that made it easier for public officials to sell access, influence and prestige without facing any consequences.'
She explained the issue is important to her in light of Ohio's recent history; Sykes was serving in the Ohio House at the time of HB 6's passage and voted against the bill. She argued Ohio 'had a lot of work to do' in the wake of the scandal that landed former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder behind bars.
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'Unfortunately, that work has not started in the state house of Ohio,' Sykes argued, and so she's attempting to address the problem at the national level.
Just two months ago, state lawmakers finally approved legislation eliminating the HB 6 rider propping up aging coal plants.
More recently, the Senate's version of the state budget includes provisions allowing corporations and labor unions to make independent expenditures in political campaigns — like running ads for or against a given candidate.
Unlike donating directly to a candidate's campaign, which is capped, independent expenditures have no upper limit.
With the Senate's changes in place, the money FirstEnergy funneled to dark money groups controlled by Householder would be perfectly legal, so long as the expenditures were properly reported.
'Let me clear, when we allow public officials to use their power for personal gain and shield them from accountability, it undermines democracy itself,' Sykes insisted.
'This bill and the broader end corruption now agenda is about restoring public trust and ensuring that no one — no one — is above a law,' she said. 'Not a governor, not a president, not a Speaker of the House.'
Follow Ohio Capital Journal Reporter Nick Evans on X or on Bluesky.
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