Ohio Citizen Action (OCA) and the Ohio Consumers Power Alliance (OCPA) are proud to endorse the bipartisan SB 346, which would enact a full, clean repeal of HB 6.

Last year, we fought hard to stop HB 6 because we knew it would be a disaster for our climate and our economy. The revelation that it took $61 million for this bill to pass (and then only passed with one vote to spare) confirmed what we knew all along—HB 6 is rotten to its core.

Since former Speaker of the House Larry Householder was arrested on charges of racketeering, we’ve been pressuring our state’s elected leaders to repeal the product of his alleged corruption, HB 6. Nearly four months later and with only a month and half before the end of this General Assembly’s legislative session, we saw the Senate Energy and Public Utilities Committee finally hold a hearing for proponent testimony on SB 346.

In her written testimony to the committee on behalf of OCPA, OCA Executive Director Rachael Belz stated, “The bigger question is – during a pandemic that currently has no end, and with all of the economic uncertainty in Ohioans lives – why should we continue to pay for FirstEnergy and Larry Householders’ bribes and greed? Where does the buck ACTUALLY stop here in Ohio? It could stop with the legislature – who initially passed this at the end of the nasty HB 6 fight by only ONE VOTE.”

Deputy Director Melissa English and Cleveland Program Director Anastazia Vanisko also submitted testimony to the committee as individuals, highlighting their own reasons for wanting to repeal HB 6. English emphasized that it’s in the best interest of legislators to repeal this bill, both for their wallets, their health and their reputations. Vanisko noted that if legislators had listened to the public from the beginning, they never would have passed HB 6.

Both as an organization and as individuals, we believe that SB 346 will provide a complete—and necessary—repeal of HB 6. Our legislature must pass this bill by the end of the year.

To read the testimonies mentioned here, as well as the other 75 testimonies submitted in support of this bill, go to http://www.ohiosenate.gov/committees/energy-and-public-utilities/document-archive