House Democrats call for immediate repeal of House Bill 6 as Generation Now pleads guilty to federal racketeering charges

Sponsors of the House Democratic legislation to repeal the House Bill 6 energy bailout issued statements after Generation Now Friday signed a guilty plea admitting involvement in a multi-million dollar bribery and racketeering scheme to pass and protect a $1 billion corporate bailout. 

“Today’s news that Generation Now is pleading guilty to federal racketeering charges makes it abundantly clear that we must repeal House Bill 6 immediately,” said Rep. Michael J. Skindell (D-Lakewood). “Corruption has no place in our politics, and this bill is the most corrupt piece of legislation I’ve seen in my time in the legislature. We must act to overturn HB 6 to restore the public trust and protect taxpayer dollars.”

“House Bill 6 was founded on a scheme to defraud taxpayers, and now as the key players admit their guilt one-by-one, it’s high time we repeal this tainted, corrupt legislation,” said Rep. Michael O’Brien (D-Warren). “As lawmakers, we’re sent here to be responsible stewards of taxpayer dollars, not to use our positions of influence to enrich ourselves. This latest Republican corruption scandal is a disgrace and a black eye on our institution. To restore the public’s trust, we must immediately repeal HB 6.”

Reps. Skindell and O’Brien introduced House Bill 57 this week to repeal HB 6, a $1 billion bailout for Ohio's two nuclear power plants, which was signed into law in July 2019. Former Speaker Rep. Larry Householder (R-Glenford) and several associates were allegedly paid tens of millions of dollars to pass HB 6 and to prevent a referendum against the law from coming before Ohio voters. Householder was arrested on July 21, 2020 for his role in the alleged racketeering scheme.