"Fortunately, and finally, there are some signs of progress on the HB 6 front in the Legislature's lame duck session. Lawmakers in both chambers are discussing bills that would either repeal or make significant changes to HB 6, which, as it stands now, would fund $1.6 billion in utility subsidies starting Jan. 1 through a new customer surcharge, offset by the elimination of some charges that pay for renewable energy projects and energy efficiency programs.
One piece of legislation, House Bill 798, would delay the subsidies for a year. Importantly, Cleveland.com reported, it would end a provision of the bill known as 'decoupling,' which 'ensures a guaranteed level of income for FirstEnergy and (theoretically) other utilities.' That provision, according to Cleveland.com, 'allows FirstEnergy to charge ratepayers a total of $355 million more through 2024 to guarantee the company a yearly revenue of $978 million.' This bill may have the juice to make it, since it was introduced by the chair of the Ohio House's special HB 6 study committee and has the support of Bob Cupp, the new House Speaker.
An alternative, Senate Bill 346, is a full-on repeal, which might be more satisfying, but at this late hour in the legislative session is considerably dicier.
We're in better-late-than-never territory now, and a delay of the subsidies would give the Legislature another chance to get things right. But it's still a pretty dispiriting statement on leadership in the state that we're cutting it so close in trying to right an obvious wrong."
-- Editorial, Cleveland Crain's Business