** DeWine raked in campaign money from AEP after the utility revealed a subpoena from the SEC ([link removed])
------------------------------------------------------------
By Dave Anderson on Aug 02, 2021 10:10 pm
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine received $25,500 in campaign contributions from American Electric Power’s PAC and some of the electric utility’s top executives one month after AEP revealed it received a subpoena from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) connected to a growing corruption scandal.
In a statement released on June 8 ([link removed]) , AEP revealed it recently received a subpoena from the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. The subpoena seeks documents related to the financial benefits AEP received from House Bill 6, the same Ohio law at the center of the federal criminal investigation that forced FirstEnergy to admit to paying millions of dollars in bribes to state officials ([link removed]) .
While state lawmakers repealed some of the provisions of H.B. 6 ([link removed]) that most benefited FirstEnergy earlier this year, AEP continues to benefit from increased coal subsidies ([link removed]) under other parts of the 2019 law that remain in place.
DeWine has been silent on the Ohio Valley Electric Corporation coal plant subsidies that have forced Ohio ratepayers to pay nearly $135 million to AEP, Dayton Power & Light, and Duke Energy since January of 2020 according to a tracker found on the website of the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel ([link removed]) .
On July 26, DeWine received a $10,000 contribution from AEP’s political action committee ([link removed]) (PAC) for his re-election campaign, according to state campaign finance records. The contribution was for a fundraising event on July 22, the same day the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio announced charges against FirstEnergy ([link removed]) and made public the deferred prosecution agreement that FirstEnergy reached with federal prosecutors.
IFRAME: [1][link removed]
DeWine also received $15,500 in individual campaign contributions earlier in July from top executives at AEP ([link removed]) , including $5,000 from the utility’s CEO Nicholas Akins.
The campaign contributions were included in a mid-year campaign finance report filed on July 31 by DeWine’s campaign.
DeWine signed H.B. 6 into law during his first year as governor of Ohio, and since then evidence has emerged that the governor has benefited from dark money spending by AEP ([link removed]) and FirstEnergy ([link removed]) .
DeWine is now facing mounting criticism ([link removed]) over his ties to FirstEnergy from his Republican primary opponent Jim Renacci and Democratic gubernatorial candidates governor Nan Whaley and John Cranley.
DeWine is the only candidate for Ohio governor who received campaign money during the first half this year from AEP or any other major electric utility in Ohio, according to a search of the latest campaign contributions numbers ([link removed]) available online from the Ohio Secretary of State.
Earlier this year, AEP published an updated Anti-Corruption Policy ([link removed]) that counts political contributions as possible forms of bribes and kickbacks. Based on the new Anti-Corruption Policy, AEP employees are supposed to err on the side of caution when it comes to offering “things of value” to government officials.
“A ‘Bribe’ means offering, promising, giving or authorizing others, such as lobbyists and political consultants, to give anything of value, tangible or intangible, either directly or indirectly, to any individual – including Government Officials – to gain an unfair business advantage or to influence improperly an official’s decision-making with respect to the Company,” AEP’s Anti-Corruption Policy states.
“The term ‘anything of value’ is intentionally broad to ensure that careful consideration and scrutiny is given to interactions with Government Officials,” the policy also says.
DeWine received another $5,000 from Dayton Power & Light in connection with a fundraising event held on July 28, according to his campaign finance report.
FirstEnergy has paused making political contributions ([link removed]) as it deals with the fallout from the H.B. 6 scandal. None candidates for Ohio governor reported receiving campaign money in the first half of this year from FirstEnergy’s PAC or employees.
The post DeWine raked in campaign money from AEP after the utility revealed a subpoena from the SEC ([link removed]) appeared first on Energy and Policy Institute ([link removed]) .
References
1. [link removed]
Read in browser » ([link removed])
[link removed] [link removed]
** Recent Articles:
------------------------------------------------------------
** NRECA runs misleading pro-coal ads to sway Illinois lawmakers ([link removed])
** Duke Energy given preferential treatment to shape study of HB 951 by North Carolina Utilities Commission Public Staff, records show ([link removed])
** Four major Ohio utilities shut off customers’ electricity 200,000 times during COVID-19 pandemic ([link removed])
** North Carolina HB 951 could mean windfall for Duke, large rate increases for customers ([link removed])
** Mike DeWine met with Larry Householder early on in racketeering conspiracy ([link removed]
============================================================
** Facebook ([link removed])
** Twitter ([link removed])
** Website ([link removed])
Copyright © 2021 Energy and Policy Institute, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because you opted in at our website via our Contact Us page.
Our mailing address is:
Energy and Policy Institute
P.O. Box 170399
San Francisco, CA 94117
USA
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])
.
Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp
[link removed]
