Blackshear Celebrates Passage of Energy Overhaul Legislation

Today, state Senator Willis E. Blackshear Jr. (D-Dayton) commended the Ohio Senate’s passage of Senate Bill 2, which makes significant changes to Ohio’s energy policies to protect consumers, increase power generation, and improve the state’s electric grid.

“The passage of Senate Bill 2 is terrific news for Ohioans,” said Blackshear. “This bill increases oversight into Ohio’s public utilities and finally repeals the bailouts to the OVEC coal plants, which Ohioans have been paying since the corrupt enactment of House Bill 6 in 2019 and has cost utility customers over $449 million in total.”

If passed, Senate Bill 2 would:

• Promote accountability and transparency for consumers by requiring utilities to routinely come in for rate cases and justify how they spend ratepayer-collected money;
• Immediately end the “Legacy Generation Rider” so that Ohioans no longer have to foot the bill for OVEC subsidies, saving Ohio ratepayers nearly $450,000 per day;
• Create a permissive school energy efficiency loan program to reduce energy costs for public schools; and
• Protect consumers by codifying that they receive refunds for improper charges.

Senate Bill 2 now heads to the Ohio House of Representatives for consideration.