Larry Householder, Republican Speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives, was arrested Tuesday in connection with a $60 million bribery scheme.<\/b>
\nOhio State House of Representatives
Ohio State Rep. Larry Householder.
Larry Householder is the Republican Speaker of the Ohio State House of Representatives, who was arrested, along with four other local politicos, Tuesday in connection with a $60 million corruption scheme.
Householder was arrested Tuesday morning at his home, Jennifer Thornton, of the U. S. Attorney\u2019s Office for the Southern District of Ohio, told NPR.
Householder headed up a corrupt scheme that illegally brought in millions of dollars in order to put him in the Speaker seat, then pass a bailout bill benefiting a specific company, and later protect that bill against a ballot initiative, U. S. Attorney David DeVillers alleged at a news conference Tuesday.
Also hauled in were consultant Jeff Longstreth, former Republican chairman Matt Borges and lobbyists Neil Clark and Juan Cespedes, according to the criminal complaint and affidavit obtained by Heavy.
Here\u2019s what you need to know:
U. S. Attorney update on arrest of Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and four associatesU. S. Attorney David DeVillers will provide an update on the arrest of Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and four associates connected to House Bill 6, the FirstEnergy nuclear bailout bill that was passed by the legislature and signed last year by Gov. Mike DeWine. https:\/\/bit.ly\/2OJxC4X #ABC6OnYourSide #BreakingNews ___________________________ Follow WSYX ABC 6 on social media: WSYX Facebook: https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/WSYXABC6 WSYX Twitter: https:\/\/www.twitter.com\/WSYX6 WSYX Instagram: https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/WSYX6 Subscribe to WSYX ABC 6 on YouTube: https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/wsyxonyourside For the day’s top stories, visit our website: https:\/\/abc6onyourside.com\/2020-07-21T19:26:43Z
In an 82-page complaint and affidavit, an FBI special agent lays out an alleged scheme through which Householder and the other defendants took in more than $60 million in bribes from an unnamed energy company in exchange for pushing through a state bailout for two nuclear plants slated for closure after the company declared bankruptcy.
Beginning in 2017 with a flight on the energy company\u2019s private jet, Householder began receiving quarterly payments of $250,000 from the company through a 501(c)(4) non-profit entity Householder created called Generation Now, according to the complaint.
DeVillers said that 501(c)(4)s are required by federal law to exclusively promote social welfare. Generation Now, however, was solely used to bolster Householder\u2019s bid for the Speaker\u2019s seat, which he won in January 2019. In 2018 and 2019, Generation Now spent millions more of Company A\u2019s money to elect representatives who would vote for Householder and for the bailout that the energy company wanted.
Disgram at U. S. District Attorney\u2019s office. Press conference to start in about a half hour. Ohio House Speaker and other political operatives arrested. pic.twitter.com\/n3CHLucH82
Jo Ingles (@joingles) July 21,2020
\u201cMake no mistake: This is Larry Householder\u2019s 501(c)(4),\u201d DeVillers said, calling the alleged scheme the largest bribery, money-laundering scheme ever perpetrated against the people of the State of Ohio.\u201d
In addition to solidifying a \u201cpower base\u201d for Householder in the State House, much of the nearly $61 million went to \u201cline the defendants\u2019 pockets,\u201d DeVillers said. He alleged that at least $300,000 was used for legal fees and to settle a lawsuit against Householder, while around $100,000 went to pay for Householder\u2019s home in Florida.
\u201cThis is bribery, pure and simple,\u201d DeVillers said. \u201cThis was a quid pro quo; this was pay-to-play \u2014 that\u2019s the actual term they\u2019ve used, as alleged in the affidavit.\u201d
FBI Special Agent in charge Chris Hoffman said the case was the first time racketeering charges \u2014 reserved for \u201cthe most egregious cases\u201d \u2014 had been filed against a public official in Ohio\u2019s Southern District.
\u201cWe expect our citizens here to be appalled and to be shocked,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a shameful betrayal of public trust.\u201d
Getty\/Brendan SmialowskiA view of the Perry Nuclear Power Plant in Fairport Harbor, Ohio.
Although the energy company is only referred to in the redacted court records as \u201cCompany A,\u201d multiple local outlets Monday identified it as FirstEnergy.
Cleveland.com noted that the complaint and affidavit quote former FirstEnergy Corp. President and CEO Charles Jones, without identifying him.
\u201cWe are advocating for Ohio\u2019s support for its two nuclear plants, even though the likely outcome is that [Company A] won\u2019t be the long-term owner of these assets,\u201d the unnamed Company A president was quoted as saying in the affidavit.
Jones can be read in a journal of the American Public Power Association saying that exact quote during an earnings call.
\u201cEveryone in this room knows who Company A is,\u201d U. S. Attorney David DeVillers told reporters at a news conference Tuesday, noting that prosecutors will continue to use the pseudonym, as no one at the company has yet been charged.
FirstEnergy Corp. did not respond to Heavy\u2019s request to comment, but posted a brief statement late Tuesday afternoon, confirming that the company had received subpoenas.
\u201cThis afternoon, FirstEnergy Corp. received subpoenas in connection with the investigation surrounding Ohio House Bill 6. We are reviewing the details of the investigation and we intend to fully cooperate,\u201d it read.
FirstEnergy Corp. stock shares were down 15.2 percent as of 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, the Motley Fool reported.
Ohio State House of RepresentativesState Rep. Larry Householder
Householder was first elected to the State House in 1996, where he served until 2004, according to his official Ohio State House biography.
He also served as speaker from 2001 to 2004, but resigned after reports of corruption came out, although charges were never filed, prosecutors said in the complaint. He won his House seat back in 2016, then was re-elected Speaker in 2019 under circumstances prosecutors called \u201cunusual.\u201d
The complaint alleges that Householder aggressively campaigned for the seat by using money provided by \u201cCompany A\u201d through his Generation Now 501(c)(4) to support handpicked House candidates who would be sure to support his election as Speaker. It was eventually successful, according to the complaint.
Remember when the HB6 campaign, illegally funded by @firstenergycorp \u2013 err Company A \u2013 paid people to harass and attack petitioners trying to get the bill repealed? https:\/\/t.co\/HaBK8yPOdM
\u2014 NEO Sierra Club (@NEOSierraClub) July 21,2020
FirstEnergy Corp.\u2019s bailout was worth $1.1 billion dollars and faced substantial taxpayer opposition for years, after the company filed for bankruptcy and sought public help to keep operating, the Intercept reported.
The company spent millions in both Ohio and Pennsylvania lobbying for bailouts and targeting specific legislators for replacement with more sympathetic voices, the Energy and Policy Institute reported in 2018.
Former chair of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission told the Intercept that the bailout package was \u201cappalling.\u201d
\u201cWind and solar creates a brand new economy, which is going to be a future-looking economy, rather than a dying economy,\u201d he told the outlet. \u201cNuclear is dying. It\u2019s dying in Ohio.\u201d
According to the Environmental Defense Fund, at a 2019 House hearing on the bailout, opponents of it outnumbered supporters, 73-2.
\u201cH. B. 6 is corporate welfare, it is cronyism on full display; in other words, a bailout,\u201d Micah Derry, state director of Americans for Prosperity, Ohio, said at the hearing, summarizing the concerns of dozens of other speakers, according to EDF.
Google Street ViewOhio Southern District Court
Householder and his four alleged conspirators all made preliminary courtroom appearances on Tuesday afternoon, according to Thornton.
According to Thornton and the DOJ, Borges, 48, is a lobbyist who has served as chair of the Ohio Republican Party. Longstreth, 44, was described as Householder\u2019s \u201clongtime campaign and political strategist.\u201d Clark, 67, is a lobbyist who owns and operates Grant Street Consultants and once served as the Ohio GOP\u2019s budget director. Cespedes, 40, was described as a \u201cmulti-client\u201d lobbyist.
Each of them could face up to 20 years in prison on the racketeering charges, Thornton said.
Attorney information for Householder was unavailable late Tuesday afternoon.
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