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Have you
Googled it?
Did you see the John Oliver piece putting Ohio smack in the
middle of a not-so-flattering spotlight of utility corruption?
Please take 2 minutes to watch our latest Crime with DeWine video that features a
clip from that from Last Week Tonight segment and the results
we got when we took Oliver’s advice and Googled our utility company
alongside the word "scandal."
Text messages raise more questions about FirstEnergy's
relationship with regulators
The Energy News Network just
reported that a text message from a former utility regulator
chair to a FirstEnergy executive indicates he knew a rate increase he voted to allow was illegal,
but that the utility would be allowed to keep the $460 million it had
already collected.
If nothing else, the House Bill 6
scandal has revealed exactly how much utilities influence the
regulators that are supposed to be managing them.
Take this absolutely stunning
text exchange between former PUCO chair Asim Haque and FirstEnergy VP
Michael Dowling -- Haque says that he gave FirstEnergy so much that
they should put his picture up in their Akron HQ:
FirstEnergy gets back in the
political giving game
Just in time for the upcoming
elections, FirstEnergy’s political action committee has
lifted its ban on making campaign contributions for the
first time since the House Bill 6 bribery scandal.
While FirstEnergy’s PAC had paused political
spending for the past 19 months, it continued to raise money, having
more than $1.8 million in its bank account.
FirstEnergy spokeswoman Jennifer Young said
that the utility’s PAC decided to resume political donations following
a “comprehensive review” in conjunction with the company’s compliance
and legal groups.
Cleveland City Council resolution calls
on FirstEnergy name to be stripped from Cleveland Browns
Stadium
Ward 16 Councilman Brian Kazy's resolution calls on the FirstEnergy name to
be stripped from Cleveland Browns stadium for the
utility's “failure to fully acknowledge its criminal behavior and
unintentionally implies community support for a criminal
enterprise.”
Kazy’s legislation cites the public money that has
subsidized the stadium and the company; the ongoing FirstEnergy
bribery scandal around House Bill 6; and accusations that
FirstEnergy tried to undermine Cleveland Public
Power.
Please reply to this email if
you're interested in testifying in support of the name
change.
Thanks for your support and membership,
Ohio Citizen Action
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