Companies urge repeal of HB 6 bailout

Facebook, General Mills and Nestle are among about 50 companies that have written a letter to Ohio leaders urging the repeal of House Bill 6, the 2019 nuclear-bailout law that has become the target of federal investigators.

“As businesses, investors, trade associations and employers, we urge the repeal of House Bill 6 in light of the disturbing and shocking allegations made by the Federal Bureau of Investigation,“said the letter, which was sent to Gov. Mike Dewine and the leaders of the state House and Senate.

Repeal of the legislation, which the legislature passed and Dewine signed a year ago, “will help restore public confidence and ensure continued growth of Ohio’s clean energy economy,” the letter said.

Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and four other people have been charged with a racketeering conspiracy that allegedly involved taking $60 million through a dark-money group in exchange for helping to secure the passage of HB 6, which bails out the state’s two nuclear plants — both in northern Ohio — plus two coal-fired plants.

The plants are owned by a former subsidiary of Akron-based power company Firstenergy now called Energy Harbor.

The companies that signed the letter opposed the legislation from the beginning. They favored the energy-efficiency and renewable-energy efforts that were damaged by the legislation.

Legislation has been introduced to repeal HB 6, and Dewine has said he favors repealing the legislation and then replacing it. The governor says the two nuclear plants are key source of clean electricity for the state. mawilliams@dispatch.com @Bizmarkwilliams