Smith Applauds the Public Utilities Commission's $250 Million Order Against FirstEnergy

Today, state Senator Kent Smith (D–Euclid) praised the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) for issuing two major enforcement orders totaling $250.7 million in restitution and civil forfeitures against FirstEnergy’s Ohio utilities—following years of investigations tied to the House Bill 6 corruption scandal.

“This decision confirms what many of us have said for years: FirstEnergy broke the rules, betrayed its customers, and put profits and politics ahead of public safety,” said Smith. “These orders are an important step toward accountability, and Ohio utility customers deserve nothing less.”

The PUCO found that from 2017–2019, FirstEnergy collected nearly $458 million through the Distribution Modernization Rider (DMR), a charge approved solely to support badly needed grid modernization investments. Instead, as previous audits and today’s orders confirm, the company failed to use the funds to modernize the grid. The PUCO determined that some of these ratepayer dollars were instead used to improperly subsidize FirstEnergy’s unregulated generation affiliate.

FirstEnergy’s failure to invest in grid modernization had real and painful consequences for Ohioans. On August 6, 2024, a severe storm swept across Northeast Ohio, knocking out power to approximately 430,000 residents—some for more than a week.

“Make no mistake: the storm was serious, but the extent and duration of the outages should never have reached this level,” said Smith. “If FirstEnergy had invested DMR funds as intended, our grid would have been more resilient. Instead, Ohio families suffered extended outages while FirstEnergy diverted dollars elsewhere.”

The PUCO ordered FirstEnergy to return $179.99 million to customers as restitution–an amount that is nearly three times the amount FirstEnergy spent advancing HB 6. The utility is required to pay an additional $6.64 million plus interest to customers for improperly billed costs. Finally, FirstEnergy must remit $64 million in civil forfeitures for various other violations. 

“I applaud the PUCO, in particular Chair French, for continuing to work to restore integrity to a once scandal-ridden agency,” said Smith. “Under her leadership, the Commission has begun to rebuild trust, increase transparency, and deliver real accountability after the failures of Sam Randazzo’s tenure. Yesterday’s decision is another step toward protecting ratepayers and ensuring Ohioans receive the honest oversight they deserve.”

More information on the orders can be found on the PUCO’s website.