PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 1, 2020

Consumer Advocate Takes Legal Action: Requests Refund of Coal Plant Subsidy if HB6 is Repealed or Modified

“Consumers can’t wait” says Citizen Utility Board of Ohio

COLUMBUS—The Citizens Utility Board of Ohio (CUB Ohio) took legal action on Thursday, calling on the State of Ohio to prepare to refund a new coal power plant bailout fee charged this year to consumers under House Bill 6 (HB6) if the Ohio legislature repeals or modifies that law. HB6 has come under increasing scrutiny in the wake of former Ohio Speaker Larry Householder’s indictment on charges of bribery, racketeering, and corruption.

First Energy residential customers have been paying an extra $1 million every month since January 2020 due to a new mandated subsidy for two uneconomic 65-year old coal plants owned by the Ohio Valley Electric Corporation (OVEC). Business customers are paying additional fees on top of this amount. Under HB6, the charge is slated to continue through 2030—raking in $132 million from customers.

CUB Ohio said that without its action, consumers would be denied a refund, even if HB6 is changed. That’s because prior decisions by the Public Utility Commission of Ohio (PUCO), which sets terms for electric utility fees, don’t allow for the automatic return of consumer charges collected legally at the time of payment but later found to be inappropriate.

“Consumers can’t wait—the PUCO must act now,” said Tom Bullock, executive director of CUB Ohio. “Consumers should be made whole and not bear the cost of legislation passed with the help of an alleged corruption scheme that the U.S. Attorney called ‘the largest bribery, money-laundering scheme ever perpetrated against the people in the state of Ohio.’ Unless PUCO takes timely action now, Ohioans will continue to pay a fee under legislation that should never have passed."

Specifically, CUB Ohio filed a motion to intervene in the case where the PUCO approved applications to collect the fee by the Ohio Edison Company, The Cleveland Electric Illuminating Company, and The Toledo Edison Company. It also filed a motion requesting that the PUCO order the companies to amend their Legacy Generation Resource Rider tariffs established to collect the OVEC charge in order to provide for a refund going forward from the date of PUCO’s order. (A retroactive refund is not provided for by law.)

“The widespread and serious corrupt activity alleged in the U.S. Attorney’s indictment of former Speaker Larry Householder casts major doubt on the validity of HB6, and Ohio legislators are actively considering multiple repeal bills,” said Bullock. “Repeal or modification of the fees in that law are a real possibility, and it’s important that consumers be made whole for charges that are being collected under a law that passed with the help of $61 million in alleged bribery money.”

Read CUB Ohio's refund filing here.

The Citizens Utility Board of Ohio (CUB-OH) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan consumer watchdog that advocates for residential and small business utility customers. Its mission is to educate consumers to reduce their utility bills as well as to work for energy that is affordable, reliable, and clean. Its membership lives across the state and is growing rapidly.