True Crime story.
Already has reached the Republican Speaker of the Ohio House, but threads run to the Republican Governor’s mansion. Bear with me.
A little background first.
FirstEnergy’s 10 regulated distribution companies form one of the nation’s largest investor-owned electric systems, based on serving 6 million customers in the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. Stretching from the Ohio-Indiana border to the New Jersey shore, the companies operate a vast infrastructure of more than 269,000 miles of distribution lines and are dedicated to providing customers with safe, reliable and responsive service.
Ohio’s former top utility regulator surrendered Monday in connection with a $60 million bribery scheme related to a legislative bailout for two Ohio nuclear power plants that has already resulted in a 20-year prison sentence for a former state House speaker.
Sam Randazzo, former chair of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, faces an 11-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury Nov. 29 centered on allegations that he accepted bribes from Akron-based FirstEnergy Corp. in exchange for regulatory favors, U.S. Attorney Kenneth L. Parker’s office announced. Randazzo made his initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Cincinnati.
The long-awaited indictment is the latest development in what has been labeled the largest corruption case in Ohio history, and while the $1.3 billion bailout was partly repealed after the scandal broke, advocates say the stunning and systemic disdain for utility consumers that was displayed has yet to be addressed with adequate new safeguards.The $1 billion-plus nuclear bailout provisions of HB 6 were repealed in 2021. However, ratepayers continue to pay more than $130,000 daily for the costs of two 1950s-era coal plants. Bills to repeal the subsidies stalled in the last legislative session, and the Public Utilities Commission has not yet decided audit cases dealing with those charges. Ohio’s clean energy standards also remain gutted.
US Department of Justice – Southern District of Ohio:
Samuel Randazzo, 74, of Columbus, self-surrendered at U.S. District Court in Cincinnati this morning. Randazzo is charged in an 11-count indictment that was returned on Nov. 29 and he will be scheduled for an initial appearance later today.
–
Randazzo was the PUCO chairman from April 2019 until November 2020, when he resigned. According to the indictment, Randazzo allegedly received more than $4.3 million from an energy company and its affiliates to provide favorable official actions for the company through PUCO proceedings.
The Justice Department has finally followed the logic of the July, 2021 deferred prosecution agreement with FirstEnergy which stipulated that a $4.3 million payment to Mr. Randazzo was a bribe to help pass legislation worth $2 billion to the Akron utility (“Former utilities regulator is indicted, faces 11 counts,” Tuesday).
Mr. Randazzo’s alleged crimes amount to working for FirstEnergy when his duty was to the citizens of Ohio. Former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder is serving a 20-year prison sentence over the same criminal issue.
The evidence from Mr. Householder’s trial, Mr. Randazzo’s indictment, and FirstEnergy’s plea bargain indicates the bribes were authorized by FirstEnergy CEO Charles Jones and Vice President Michael Dowling. Both Mr. Jones and Mr. Dowling deny wrongdoing but the Justice Department must be as aggressive in combating corporate crime as they are in prosecuting state government corruption. It literally takes two to tango.
We hope the indictment of Mr. Randazzo will spur the Ohio legislature to strengthen state law against corruption. House Bill 16, a comprehensive ethics reform package sponsored by Rep. Derek Merrin (R., Monclova Township) in response to the FirstEnergy bribery scandal, has languished after two perfunctory hearings.
Legislation recommended by the Ohio Ethics Commission, also as a direct result of the federal corruption investigation, was ignored by state lawmakers. There have been no proposed reforms from Gov. Mike DeWine and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted. Mr. Husted followed up on his work to make Mr. Randazzo PUCO chairman with the unprecedented step to take a paid corporate board position. Representative Merrin’s proposed ethics legislation would prohibit Ohio Constitutional officers from serving on a corporate board.
Now, to be clear, a bribe is a bribe no matter what. But paying him before he even applies for the position begs the obvious question: how were they already so confident he’d get the job—before he even applied for it—that they sent him $4.3 million in advance?
Were they really willing to part with $4.3 million—not only as a promise for later, but actually shipping it out the door—on a hope that he’d get picked later? That his resume would simply rise to the top? That his application would impress or that he’d nail the interviews?
Or was someone on the inside, or at the top, of the State’s selection process already giving them assurances—assurances so secure that they were that comfortable parting with $4M?
In other words, did they know parting with the $4.3M wasn’t a risk at all? Because it was already a done deal? Before he ever applied?
Since most entities aren’t willing to place $4.3 million wagers without knowing the odds, common sense answers the question.
But in this case, that common sense is supported by numerous records:
The Answer, with Receipts
Who are the key decision makers for an appointment such as this? The newly elected Governor and Lt. Governor, that’s who.
And who is also all over the broader timeline of events taking place when the payment and appointment are made? Let’s take a look:
- Shortly after winning their close race for Governor in November 2018, Mike DeWine and Jon Husted share dinner with First Energy executives, including one directly involved with the bribe. Afterward, the First Energy CEO sends Randazzo a text “indicating they discussed the open PUCO seat,” and that they discussed Randazzo in particular with DeWine and Husted.
- Randazzo later testified publicly about who “recruited” him to serve in the PUCO role: “He specified during the confirmation hearing that Husted and Laurel Dawson, DeWine’s chief of staff, were among those who helped recruit him.” (Husted, as Speaker of the Ohio House, had also recruited Randazzo to be on the commission years before (2007) as well.)
- At one point, as they are texting about what becomes a two-appointment plan in January, one of the executives messages another that “Four people in [State Official 1] world” know about the plan. “State Official 1” is Governor DeWine.
David Pepper’s X thread unrolled:
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1732064576932372682.html
Hartmann: “How is it that Ohioans put up with this?”
Ohio is phenomenally gerrymandered to hand control of the state to Republicans.