The head of the committee tasked with reviewing legislation to repeal a controversial Ohio nuclear bailout law, House Bill 6, will hold a hearing Wednesday on a bill that would put the bailout on hold but won’t necessarily repeal it.
Rep. Jim Hoops’ (R) proposed HB 798 wouldn’t overwrite HB 6, but would instead delay the original bill’s proposed rate increase for a year while a third party audits former FirstEnergy Corp. subsidiary Energy Harbor’s finances to ensure the increase is needed for the company to break even. The rate increase would otherwise start in January.
The Ohio House’s Select Committee on Energy Policy and Oversight is scheduled to hold the bill’s first hearing at 2 p.m. Wednesday.
The Ohio state legislature passed HB 6, which bails out two nuclear plants owned by Energy Harbor, in 2019. Then-Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder (R) was indicted in July of this year for what prosecutors alleged was a pay-to-play scheme in which Householder and allies accepted campaign contributions ahead of the 2018 election in exchange for a promise to pass a bailout once elected.
A bipartisan group of Ohio lawmakers came out in support of HB 6’s repeal after Householder’s indictment. If the bill isn’t repealed, Ohio ratepayers get an increase of $0.85 or more on their utility bills starting in January. Despite support from both sides of the aisle, the legislature hasn’t been able to come to a consensus about the legal mechanics of a repeal.
Because it’s too late to pass the bill through the normal legislative process, Hoops’ proposed law will need to be approved by two-thirds of each chamber of the Ohio legislature in order to be implemented by January. There are other legislative remedies proposed for HB 6.
