Latest Developments in the HB 6 Householder Trial

This week produced some interesting developments in the House Bill 6-related trial of former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and former FirstEnergy lobbyist Matt Borges.

Householder’s defense team subpoenaed Timothy Burga, the president of the Ohio AFL-CIO. In 2019, the union received $1.4 million from the political non-profit Generation Now — overseen by Householder — to help defeat an effort to repeal HB 6, reports say.

Also, one of Householder’s lawyers questioned the fitness of U.S. District Judge Timothy Black, who is presiding over the trial. The lawyer inquired if Black might hold “personal animosity” toward Householder for the ex-speaker’s political work against the judge decades ago.

The trial is expected to conclude by the first half of March. 2/1/2023