The Robert Tongren FirstEnergy scandal
It's costing you $15 - 20 every month
 Newspaper editorialsNov 12: "Robert Tongren is gone, but the question remains: Does Ohio really need a state-paid utility watchdog? . . .Who needs a watchdog that doesn’t bark, much less bite?" Toledo Blade. Nov 8: "It's up to State Attorney General Jim Petro to name a new consumers' counsel. Whoever he picks had better be a live wire when it comes to protecting the interests of consumers in utility matters before the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio. Then again, this is a good time to re-evaluate whether Ohio even needs a Consumers' Counsel with a $9 million budget, essentially to watch over the PUCO, which also supposedly exists to watch out for consumers in utility matters. How many utility agencies do we need to take our money only to fail us? How long are we going to put up with blind, toothless watchdogs? Some state legislators are demanding that FirstEnergy consumers be paid a rebate and that a committee probe the dark side of Ohio's utilities deregulation story. That sounds good, especially the rebate," Lorain Morning Journal. Nov 7: "Ohioans need an advocate prepared to give utility companies their fair share and nothing more. The OCC's governing board should find such a candidate, or be prepared to follow Tongren off the plank," Cleveland Plain Dealer. Nov 7: "As a watchdog for Ohio consumers, Tongren could not be excused for this action," Columbus Dispatch. Access fee; no link. Oct 31: "[Tongren] ought to resign," Columbus Dispatch. Access fee; no link. Oct 30: "Tongren has to go. And if [Jerome Solove, chairman of the Ohio Consumers' Counsel Governing Board] can't find the impropriety in Tongren's public-servant charade, Solove should follow him out the door," Cleveland Plain Dealer. Oct 25: "Several consumer groups, including the Ohio Taxpayers Association and Ohio Citizen Action, have demanded Tongren's firing. We can't say that we blame them," Cincinnati Enquirer. Oct 24: "Ohio Inspector General Thomas P. Charles should step in to investigate the office," Columbus Dispatch. Access fee; no link. Oct 23: "The recovery should begin with Robert Tongren stepping down," Akron Beacon Journal. Oct 19: "[Robert Tongren] should be replaced -- now," Cleveland Plain Dealer. |
Latest news
TOLEDO -- "Robert Tongren is gone, but the question remains: Does Ohio really need a state-paid utility watchdog? . . .Who needs a watchdog that doesn’t bark, much less bite?" editorial, Toledo Blade.
COLUMBUS -- "But, in the wake of Tongren's resignation -- and a near decade of criticism that he was too weak an advocate, Ohio Citizen Action's Shari Weir said it may be time to abolish the office. Eastlake Mayor Dan DiLiberto, chairman of the Northern Ohio Public Energy Council, said it may be time to decentralize the operation - so that consumers do not have to go to Columbus to complain," Julie Carr Smyth, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
COLUMBUS -- States with independent setups for utility customers, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
LORAIN -- "It's up to State Attorney General Jim Petro to name a new consumers' counsel. Whoever he picks had better be a live wire when it comes to protecting the interests of consumers in utility matters before the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio. Then again, this is a good time to re-evaluate whether Ohio even needs a Consumers' Counsel with a $9 million budget, essentially to watch over the PUCO, which also supposedly exists to watch out for consumers in utility matters. How many utility agencies do we need to take our money only to fail us? How long are we going to put up with blind, toothless watchdogs? Some state legislators are demanding that FirstEnergy consumers be paid a rebate and that a committee probe the dark side of Ohio's utilities deregulation story. That sounds good, especially the rebate," editorial, Lorain Morning Journal.
CLEVELAND -- "It's not in ratepayers' interests to replace [former Ohio Consumers' Counsel Robert] Tongren with another weak-kneed 'advocate' who wants to play nice with utility companies. Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro, who selects the members of the governing board, must use his considerable leverage to ensure that the OCC selects a counsel committed to consumers. . . Ohioans need an advocate prepared to give utility companies their fair share and nothing more. The OCC's governing board should find such a candidate, or be prepared to follow Tongren off the plank," editorial, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
COLUMBUS -- "Learning from errors; Tongren’s replacement needs to know from Day One that consumers are top priority," editorial, Columbus Dispatch. Access fee; no link.
COLUMBUS -- "His decision to resign came amid new questions about the propriety of stock interests he had in oil giant Royal Dutch Petroleum Co. The Royal Dutch/Shell Group shares an interest in Shell Energy Services, another of the parties that joined Tongren's office in signing off on the FirstEnergy deal," Julie Carr Smyth, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
COLUMBUS -- "Hunt on for new utility watchdog; Consumers’ Counsel Tongren quits under fire over dumped report, power-company deal," Alan Johnson, Columbus Dispatch. Access fee; no link.
COLUMBUS -- Consumers' Counsel Tongren resigns; Action follows scrutiny related to a deregulation settlement, Susanne Cervenka, William Hershey, Dayton Daily News.
COLUMBUS -- Utility watchdog out; Ohio consumers' counsel quits amid flak over FirstEnergy report, Betty Lin-Fisher, Akron Beacon Journal.
COLUMBUS -- Consumers' counsel quits amid criticism, Julie McKinnon, Toledo Blade.
COLUMBUS -- Eric Stephens, Interim Ohio Consumers' Counsel, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
COLUMBUS -- "Ohio state utility watchdog Robert Tongren has resigned Wednesday following the destruction of a report criticizing FirstEnergy Corporation's cost estimates. Tongren resigned after speaking with top officials from the Ohio Consumers' Counsel's directors board. In a letter to the board, Tongren said he is leaving because he is worried the document controversy is hurting the office's ability to function," Associated Press.
COLUMBUS -- "I am greatly concerned about the intense public attention. . . . ," Robert Tongren, Ohio Consumers' Counsel, letter to Jerome Solove, Chairman, Governing Board, Office of Ohio Consumers' Counsel.
COLUMBUS -- Consumers' counsel resigns amid controversy, Tony Goins, Business First.
MADISON -- Tongren replacement only fixes part of the problem; Citizen Power says the buck stops at the PUCO and calls on the General Assembly to reign in PUCO, David Hughes, release, Citizen Power.
COLUMBUS -- "'He intends to continue serving the residential consumers of Ohio,' [Ohio Consumers' Counsel] Tongren spokesman Ryan Lippe said," Alan Johnson, Columbus Dispatch. Access fee; no link.
COLUMBUS -- "Consumers' Counsel Rob Tongren has a pattern of saying one thing, then amending his comments when information contradicting him is about to be made public. . . . On Tuesday, he told his governing board that he shared the report only with staff of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, with FirstEnergy and with the lawyer representing industrial energy customers. On Wednesday, he told the Senate panel, 'We did use it [the report]. We used it with everybody.' No one asked him to explain the apparent contradiction," Sandy Theis, column, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
TOLEDO -- "If ever there were a need for a pit bull on behalf of residential ratepayers, this is the time. In what looks like a pre-emptive strike, FirstEnergy has filed a request with the PUCO that essentially would allow it to continue charging the equivalent of its stranded costs in exchange for continuing the rate freeze. The company cleverly calls its proposal a 'rate stabilization charge.' So, instead of lower rates as promised by proponents of deregulation, the choice for home customers could be charges that remain high -- or maybe go even higher. Deals like that -- which still must get by the PUCO -- raise the question of whether Ohioans even need a consumer watchdog, especially one on so short a leash," editorial, Toledo Blade.
Consumers' counsel's lost credibility leaves him unable to perform his duties
COLUMBUS -- "The more people learn about the efforts of Ohio Consumers’ Counsel Robert S. Tongren to hide documents, the less faith anyone can have that he is living up to his role as a watchdog for utility consumers. Tongren has betrayed the public’s trust and no longer can serve effectively. He ought to resign. In destroying a $579,000 study that was to help determine how much money northern Ohio utility customers should have to pay under electricity deregulation, Tongren destroyed his credibility," editorial, Columbus Dispatch. Access fee; no link.
COLUMBUS -- "Jerome Solove, chairman of the Ohio Consumers' Counsel Governing Board, says there is no need to fire Consumers' Counsel Rob Tongren, because Tongren engaged in no improprieties. Solove apparently has a very forgiving definition of 'impropriety.' Tongren, ostensibly the state's advocate for residential utility ratepayers, has blatantly abused the public trust. That fact is further verified every time Tongren and his staff open their mouths. . . In the public interest, Tongren has to go. And if Solove can't find the impropriety in Tongren's public-servant charade, Solove should follow him out the door," editorial, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
COLUMBUS -- Tongren receives support, criticism, Julie Carr Smyth, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
COLUMBUS -- "More heat on watchdog; Discarding of report split Tongren’s office," Alan Johnson, Columbus Dispatch. Access fee; no link.
COLUMBUS -- State consumer guru touts work; Fedor claims coverup in Edison deal, James Drew, Toledo Blade.
COLUMBUS -- Consumers' Counsel defends utility decision; Not all legislators as easy on him as Jacobson was, Susanne Cervenka, Dayton Daily News.
Jeff Darcy, Cleveland Plain Dealer, Oct 29, 2003.
COLUMBUS -- "After denying news media requests for the consultant's documents, Tongren's office destroyed them last July after it shortened the period that it retains such records to one year from two. Until this week, Tongren had denied knowing that the records-rentention policy had been changed. Yesterday's disclosure that he not only knew about the change but also had specifically discussed destruction of the LaCapra documents came amid an inquiry by the Ohio Consumers' Counsel Governing Board. . . . State Sen. Teresa Fedor, the Senate Public Utilities Committee's ranking Democrat, dubbed Tongren's actions a "cover-up" yesterday. She said she plans to call for his resignation today during the committee's own inquiry into his actions. Three other groups -- Ohio Citizen Action, the Ohio Taxpayers Association and the Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council -- have also said Tongren should go," Julie Carr Smyth, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
COLUMBUS -- Path to FirstEnergy case, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
ATHENS -- Two-party system: the utilities and the racetracks, Tom Suddes, column, Cleveland Plain Dealer. "In one of many spicy coincidences, Attorney General Jim Petro, a Greater Cleveland Republican who wants to be governor, appoints the board the consumers' counsel reports to. But the bookkeeping is double-entry. Entry One: Summit County GOP Chairman Alex Arshinkoff lobbies for FirstEnergy. Entry Two is an offset: Petro isn't Arshinkoff's biggest fan."
COLUMBUS -- Trashing of report defended; State officials say consultant's view of FirstEnergy was among dozens destroyed under new policy, Andrew Welsh-Huggins, Associated Press.
COLUMBUS -- "FirstEnergy's electric deregulation proposal was a $3.5 billion ripoff of consumers, a Boston energy consultant was prepared to testify in 2000. But the consultant, LaCapra Associates, never got the chance to air that view in court. Ohio Consumers' Counsel Rob Tongren never made public the firm's dollar estimates in the case -- and then scrapped the testimony," Julie Carr Smyth, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
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Draft LaCapra testimony, 511 KB pdf.
- LaCapra's Limited Summary of PUCO Staff Report on FirstEnergy's Transition Plan, 77 KB pdf.
COLUMBUS -- "[Attorney General Jim Petro] notified the consumers' counsel governing board late last week that he was sending his people over to interview Tongren’s staffers to find out what they knew and when they knew it about any deal with FirstEnergy. . . .It seems that Petro's latest concern might be less about the destruction of records than it is about finding a point of entry to a case that’s going to get a lot of ink, especially in vote-rich northeastern Ohio. This is an issue that resonates with consumers. Anyone riding in on a white horse to help with this potentially explosive utility case will score points, and Petro is all about piling up points for his campaign for governor in 2006," Lee Leonard, column, Columbus Dispatch. Access fee; no link.
COLUMBUS -- Consumers' counsel again receives report; Consultant's findings were destroyed in July, Associated Press.
COLUMBUS -- "[Ohio Taxpayers' Association President Scott Pullins] professes to be concerned about the [LaCapra] report's content and destruction, but there are signs that his motives are less than pure. . . . Now, Pullins has formed an odd alliance with SBC, Ameritech's successor. Ever since he came under fire for sitting on the sidelines in the Ameritech case, Tongren has adopted a more combative persona, challenging SBC on everything from its request for a late- payment fee to its application to offer long-distance services in Ohio. SBC, which had grown accustomed to Tongren the lap dog, feared he would evolve into Tongren the watchdog. So SBC fought back - with a little help from Pullins. Pullins' group has joined Inform Ohio, an SBC-funded organization that touts the economic benefits of the company's entry into Ohio's long-distance market. Pullins won't say whether the phone company or its affiliates is giving the Ohio Taxpayers' Association or its affiliate any money, but it's clear that Pullins is doing SBC's bidding," Sandy Theis, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
COLUMBUS -- "Discarded utility report surfaces; Agency will review suggestions given to watchdog counsel," Associated Press. Access fee; no link.
COLUMBUS -- "Consultants' findings once thought to be destroyed turned up late yesterday at the office of Ohio Consumers' Counsel Rob Tongren. Tongren's decision to keep the findings from the public during Ohio's deregulation debate in 1999 and 2000, and his office's destruction of them last summer after a records-policy change, prompted the launching of four inquiries in the past week. Ohio Consumers' Counsel spokeswoman Maureen Miller said the documents were discovered by the consultant, Boston-based LaCapra Associates, and delivered yesterday to the Ohio utility watchdog. The papers are expected to contain critical figures on how much LaCapra believed FirstEnergy was entitled to recover for its past investments under deregulation. Sources have said the number is between $2 billion and $4 billion -- far less than the estimated $8.7 billion that the company eventually received after negotiations with Tongren," Julie Carr Smyth, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
CINCINNATI -- Utility cost: report destroyed; Don't cut the public out, editorial, Cincinnati Enquirer.
COLUMBUS -- Consumer counsel comes under fire; State official blasted for actions, Susanne Cervenka, Dayton Daily News.
COLUMBUS -- "Attorney General Jim Petro broadened his office's role in investigating Ohio Consumers' Counsel Rob Tongren yesterday -- layering another level of questioning onto a growing pile. In a letter pointing to Petro as 'an advocate of open government and government accountability,' First Assistant Attorney General D. Michael Grodhaus said the office will begin its own look into the actions that caused documents detailing $579,000 in consulting work to be 'destroyed so quickly,'" Julie Carr Smyth, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
EASTLAKE -- NOPEC calls for probe of shredding; Consumer group says official should resign if report destroyed early, Betty Lin-Fisher, Akron Beacon Journal.
COLUMBUS -- "Whose watchdog? Puzzling actions lead to questions about Ohio consumers’ counsel," editorial, Columbus Dispatch. "Something has to smell pretty foul for the Ohio Taxpayers Association and Ohio Citizen Action to join forces on an issue. The odor emanating from the Ohio Office of Consumers’ Counsel, ostensibly the watchdog for residential utility customers, has caught the attention of both groups, who have called for the resignation of Robert S. Tongren. Legitimate questions have been raised about how well he is fulfilling his role, and Ohio Inspector General Thomas P. Charles should step in to investigate the office." Access fee; no link.
COLUMBUS -- "Three inquiries into Ohio Consumers' Counsel Rob Tongren's handling of a consultant's sensitive findings began to take shape yesterday -- even as Tongren's office continued to search for stray copies of documents it says it legally destroyed. . . . The [Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council] request sought information on private meetings that Tongren held with FirstEnergy to discuss extending stranded-cost recovery beyond 2005. The Akron-based utility asked Tuesday to replace the stranded-cost recovery, which is to expire at the end of 2005, with a 'rate stabilization charge' that consumers would pay through 2008. 'Under the circumstances, it would have been very awkward for Tongren if a report had surfaced showing FirstEnergy was only entitled to $2 billion to $4 billion in stranded costs, not the estimated $8.7 billion Tongren agreed to,' NOPEC Chairman and Eastlake Mayor Dan DiLiberto said in a release. 'The fact that his office destroyed the report before it could be made public certainly was convenient for him,'" Julie Carr Smyth, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
- June 17, 2003: NOPEC challenges secret meetings, release, Joe Dirck, Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council.
- June 27, 2003: NOPEC demands details of secret negotiations between Consumers’ Counsel and FirstEnergy, release, Joe Dirck, Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council.
Consultants told PUCO that FirstEnergy should get half of its request
COLUMBUS -- "Now the company wants permission to extend the agreement three more years. By one estimate, it has raised utility bills $15 to $20 a month. . . . Shari Weir, spokeswoman for Ohio Citizen Action, a consumer organization, cried foul. 'FirstEnergy should be refunding stranded costs rather than continuing the scam,' she said. 'This comes at a time when there's no consumer advocate; he's already given away the store.' Weir’s organization called for the ouster of Consumers' Counsel Robert S. Tongren after it was revealed last week that he had signed off on the FirstEnergy deal despite the findings by La Capra. . . .As in the first round of negotiations, Tongren’s office was involved in private talks with FirstEnergy that took place during the spring and summer. . . [FirstEnergy spokesman Ralph DiNicola] denied that Tongren signed off on the three-year extension. He did say that it was 'reflective of concerns' expressed by Tongren and others," Alan Johnson, Columbus Dispatch.
COLUMBUS -- Electricity cost report partially recovered , Julie Carr Smyth, Cleveland Plain Dealer. "The discovery came as pressure mounted for [Ohio Consumers' Counsel Robert] Tongren to explain why he failed to make public LaCapra's work during the deregulation battle in 1999 and 2000, and why a records retention policy was changed in February that allowed the sought-after document to be scrapped. Senate Energy Chairman Bob Spada requested a rare Senate inquiry into Tongren's handling of LaCapra's findings, and hearings are expected next week. Spada joins Attorney General Jim Petro and Inspector General Tom Charles, who have also sought further investigation."
COLUMBUS -- Lost utility report spurs query; Ohio attorney general wants to know why data on FirstEnergy deregulation case were destroyed, Associated Press.
COLUMBUS -- FirstEnergy gives PUCO proposal; Company wants to offer choice between auction-based system, rate stabilization, Jim Mackinnon, Akron Beacon Journal.
COLUMBUS -- "Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro yesterday urged a board he controls to examine Consumers' Counsel Rob Tongren's handling of closely guarded consultant's findings that were kept from the public and later scrapped. . . Petro -- who appoints members to the Consumers' Counsel Governing Board -- said through a spokeswoman he is "deeply concerned about the allegations" and has conferred with members of the board about pursuing the issue. . . [Petro spokeswoman Kim] Norris said the Ohio attorney general's office was not consulted when Tongren's office changed its records retention policy earlier this year, nor was it consulted when the office got rid of the report in July. Ohio Inspector General Tom Charles also opened an investigative file on the matter yesterday, following a request by State Sen. Bob Hagan, a Youngstown Democrat," Julie Carr Smyth, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
COLUMBUS -- "Destruction of records questioned; Watchdog didn’t keep documents in deregulation case," Alan Johnson, Columbus Dispatch; Access fee; no link.
COLUMBUS -- The jurisidiction of the Ohio Inspector General encompasses "wrongful acts or omissions," defined as "an act or omission, committed in the course of office holding or employment, that is not in accordance with the requirements of law or such standards of proper governmental conduct as are commonly accepted in the community and thereby subverts, or tends to subvert, the process of government," Ohio Revised Code, sections 121.41 (G), 121.42.
COLUMBUS -- Consumers' Counsel conducting exhaustive search beyond public records requirements, release, Office of Consumers' Counsel. "'As a result of recent public interest in these documents, we are determined to leave no stone unturned to find any items pertaining to LaCapra's preliminary electric restructuring research and analysis,' said Robert S. Tongren, Consumers' Counsel. . . .In addition, the agency has requested LaCapra to conduct a similar computer network scan in an attempt to discover any other documents related to its work for the OCC. In August 2003, the OCC made every reasonable attempt to find documents related to LaCapra in order to comply with a public records request. Under the law, a public office is required to search and retrieve records in the manner that those records are kept and accessed by the office in the normal course of its business. After completing a search in August, the agency believed that all records related to LaCapra's work were properly disposed of in accordance with the OCC's records retention schedule for case-related files."
CLEVELAND -- "I am writing to ask you to intervene to help bring the scandal at the Ohio Consumers' Counsel to a prompt conclusion. Since the Office of Consumers' Counsel was created over a quarter-century ago, the Ohio Attorney General has carried the responsibility for appointing members of the Counsel's Governing Board, to which the Ohio Consumers' Counsel is statutorily accountable. The Attorney General is the popularly-elected official closest to the agency. It appears that neither the Consumers' Counsel nor the chair of the Governing Board understands the situation they are in, and they could benefit from your guidance," Shari Weir, Cleveland Program Director, Ohio Citizen Action, letter to Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro.
CLEVELAND -- ". . .there's a contemptuous theme here, played once too often by the Ohio Consumers' Counsel: Don't you little folks worry your pretty heads about electricity deregulation. So it's no wonder that this consultant's report became a victim of 'systems.' Or that advocacy groups with concerns about negotiations with FirstEnergy get the brushoff. . . .The latest episodes add to a pattern that shows Tongren to be a poor advocate for Ohio's consumers. He should be replaced -- now," editorial, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
COLUMBUS -- "Watchdog too cozy with utilities, some say," Alan Johnson, Columbus Dispatch. "On many warm-weather Fridays during the past year, Ohio utility watchdog Robert S. Tongren could be found on the golf course rather than in his state office at Broad and High streets. Paid $130,445 as the consumers’ counsel representing Ohio’s residential utility customers, Tongren didn’t work a full Friday three-fourths of the time from May 2002 to June 2003, according to a Dispatch review of his time sheets. Most Fridays, he took off all day or worked just two or three hours. But more significant than Tongren’s work habits, critics argue, are Tongren’s frequent golf partners -- officials from SBC, Columbia Gas, FirstEnergy and other utilities -- all companies that Tongren is supposed to negotiate with and sometimes fight in court on behalf of Ohio ratepayers." Access fee; no link.
COLUMBUS -- Consumers' Counsel stands by its actions, statement, Robert Tongren, Ohio Consumers' Counsel.
COLUMBUS -- "Ohio Citizen Action called on the board that oversees [Ohio Consumers' Counsel Robert] Tongren's office to convene an emergency meeting to fire the utility watchdog. . . Shari Weir, Cleveland-area program director of Citizen Action [said], 'The very fact that FirstEnergy had access to the research but we the public, who he represents, did not, is unbelievable.' Weir said FirstEnergy customers pay $30 a month for the stranded costs addressed in the report. Adoption of the consultant's estimate could have shaved $15 to $20 a month off that price, she said. . . .Ohio Senate Energy Chairman Bob Spada said he was disturbed at the 'horrendous difference' between the consultants' estimate and what FirstEnergy received in its settlement, and is looking into the matter. He said he has instructed his staff to try to find a copy of the report, despite claims that all copies have been destroyed," Julie Carr Smyth, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
TOLEDO -- Shredding of report draws fire; State office paid $578,946 for FirstEnergy rate study, Jon Chavez, Toledo Blade.
COLUMBUS -- "Consumer groups seek advocate’s resignation; Lawmaker seeks probe of documents’ disposal, fees passed to consumers," Lee Leonard, Columbus Dispatch. Access fee; no link.
COLUMBUS -- Consumers' Counsel responds to Citizen Action attack, statement, Robert Tongren, Ohio Consumers' Counsel.
CLEVELAND -- "On behalf of our 100,000 members statewide, Ohio Citizen Action calls on you [Jerome Solove, board chair, Ohio Office of Consumers' Counsel] to convene an emergency meeting of the Ohio Consumers' Counsel Board to fire Consumers' Counsel Robert Tongren. He should immediately be dismissed because he negotiated a deal to give FirstEnergy twice the stranded costs they were entitled to, and then destroyed the consultant's research that could have exposed what he had done. The Office of Consumers' Counsel has only one job -- to protect customers against excessive utility bills. The $9 billion deal violated that obligation," Shari Weir, Ohio Citizen Action.
COLUMBUS -- FirstEnergy customers lose chance to save billions in electricity costs "The office charged with protecting Ohio utility consumers has destroyed a closely guarded consultant's report that might have saved billions of dollars for customers in FirstEnergy electric territory. Ohio Consumers' Counsel Rob Tongren conceded yesterday that his office got rid of the document in late July - after his staff changed a records-retention policy that would have required it to be held a minimum of five years," Julie Carr Smyth, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
COLUMBUS -- Study of FirstEnergy deregulation costs trashed, Associated Press.
COLUMBUS -- "Watchdog ignored research, OK’d deal; Northeastern Ohio customers paying FirstEnergy’s costs," Alan Johnson, Columbus Dispatch. Access fee; no link.
COLUMBUS -- Did Consumer Advocate "Sell-Out" Consumers?, Bill Cohen, Ohio Public Radio.
COLUMBUS -- Utility watchdog disputes groups' calls to step down, Associated Press.
COLUMBUS -- Statement, Jerome Solove, Chairman, Ohio Consumers' Counsel Governing Board. "I wholeheartedly support the work and benefits that Rob Tongren and his staff at the Ohio Consumers' Counsel daily bring to Ohio's residents. . . . our Board will consider the issues raised."