At the recent Ohio Manufacturers’ Energy Conference, panelists debated the effectiveness of the state of Ohio’s ability to police against corruption and undue utility influence in the wake of the House Bill 6 bribery scandal.

Panelist Ashley Brown depicted how global anti-corruption scholars regard Ohio’s PUCO as “a complete failure in regulation.” Brown, a former PUCO commissioner himself, and faculty member at Harvard’s Electricity Policy Group, also detailed FirstEnergy’s Distribution Modernization Rider order in which then-chief regulator Asim Haque knowingly approved improper customer payments for the Akron-based company to pad profits.

OMA energy counsel Kim Bojko described how the PUCO’s blind acceptance of utility load forecasts is an ongoing example of continued problems with the agency. Tim Ling of OMA member company Plaskolite humorously likened the PUCO to “fight club.” Read more courtesy of the Hannah Report. 10/2/2025