Ohio’s new power policy takes step forward

The end to nearly $500,000 in taxpayer daily subsidies for two coal-fired power plants, one in Indiana, has taken a major step forward.

Despite objections from a Washington, D.C.-based conservative energy group, the Ohio Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 2, a Republican priority for overhauling the state’s energy policy.

“This is a major step forward in meeting Ohio’s ever-changing power needs,” said Senate President Rob McColley, R-Napolean. “We wanted to do more than just enough to keep the lights on, my colleagues and I prioritized a policy that makes Ohio a net exporter of power.”

If passed by the House of Representatives and signed by Gov. Mike DeWine, the bill would end the state’s legacy generation rider and nearly $450,000 in daily subsidies to Ohio Valley Electric Cooperative, the owner and operator of the coal plants.

Legislation to end the payments has been introduced for several years following the House Bill 6 scandal, which sent former House Speaker Larry Householder and several others to prison.

The bill provided billions of dollars for a nuclear energy bailout for private companies.

“As someone who has spent years working to lower energy costs for Ohioans, I’m proud of the progress we’ve made, especially in ending the OVEC bailout that sent hundreds of thousands of dollars a day to support a defunct coal plant in Indiana,” said Sen. Casey Weinstein, D-Hudson. “This was a massive waste of taxpayer money, and stopping this financial drain is a victory for families across Ohio.”

Power The Future, a D.C.-based organization, said the bill does not advance President Donald Trump’s energy agenda and favors Biden administration-era policies, despite Trump signing executive orders that ended renewable energy projects on public lands and stopped federal funding for climate and clean-energy projects.

The group also pushed for ongoing taxpayer subsidies to private energy, saying policies in the legislation could lead to blackouts and higher energy prices experienced in other states.

Senators say the plan would position the state as a natural gas exporter, while requiring more accountability of power companies by requiring financial disclosure before approval of rate hikes.

“I want to thank my colleagues for taking a truly visionary approach to what Ohio’s power policy should look like in the 21st century,” said Sen. Bill Reineke, R-Tiffin, the bill’s sponsor. “I’m confident that these reforms will not only place Ohio among the top power suppliers but also provide the reliability and accountability that should come with that for consumers.”