COLUMBUS — A Franklin County judge on Monday blocked the subsidies from a $1 billion nuclear bailout law at the center of a $60 million bribery probe.
Franklin County Judge Chris Brown sided with the cities of Columbus and Cincinnati and Republican Attorney General Dave Yost in granting a preliminary injunction that would block the subsidies that were set to be added to every electric bill in the state starting Jan. 1.
Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein called the decision “a win for all Ohioans.”
“H.B. 6 was passed through deceit, deception and corruption and this decision means that Ohio ratepayers will keep their hard-earned dollars instead of paying for a massive corporate bailout,” he said.
Columbus and Cincinnati filed a lawsuit in October seeking to strike down H.B. 6 as unconstitutional.
“Today’s ruling proves that the powerful can be held accountable and that corruption will be rooted out. Everybody who pays an electric bill whether for their own home or a job-sustaining manufacturer, is the winner today. Your pocket will not be picked,” Yost said in a statement from his office.
His decision came as state lawmakers scrambled to decide the fate of the bailout law and nominees were chosen to succeed a utility regulator who resigned amid the investigation.
The bill is at the center of a bribery and corruption scandal that led to the arrests of former House speaker Larry Householder and four Republican political operatives.