House Republicans introduce ethics reform bill on eve of public corruption trial

As the federal trial for Ohio's largest public corruption scandal begins this week, a group of Republican representatives has introduced the "Ohio Ethics and Financial Disclosure Reform Act."

"We are on the eve of a very important criminal trial, which is embarrassing to my side of the aisle," Rep. Phil Plummer, R-Dayton, said. "The Republican side of the aisle is involved in this trial, and the Republican side of the aisle is now going to fix these problems."

The legal case centers around former Republican House Speaker Larry Householder and four associates. Federal prosecutors allege that the men accepted more than $60 million from FirstEnergy in exchange for a bailout that would have given the company more than $1 billion in subsidies over seven years.

More:Corrupt scheme or politics as usual? Trial of ex-Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder begins

"This was a quid pro quo. This was pay-to-play," then-U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio David DeVillers told reporters the day Householder was arrested in July 2020.

But in the two and half years since his arrest, Ohio's ethics and disclosure laws for elected officials haven't changed.

"This bill will change the status quo and be proactive in regaining Ohioans' trust," Rep. Derek Merrin, R-Monclova Township, said.

Here's how he plans to do that:

There are five major parts of the bill, and the first would require all lobbying income to be reported and sourced directly to the clients they represent.

"If you have Company X that gave $400,000 in the year 2022 to a specific lobbyist, that's important information to know," Merrin said. "Then, we would like to be able to see what that lobbyist lobbied on."

This is something that came up during the push to pass House Bill 6, the legislation Householder is accused of pushing on behalf of FirstEnergy. The company hired lobbyists, but how much they were paid for work in Ohio isn't disclosed.

"In many of these cases, these corporations are located in multiple states, so they may disclose the total amount they spend on lobbying, but we don't know the total amount they spent in Ohio ...," Merrin said. "What this will do is say how much did you spend in Ohio?"

The next change also sprung from the upcoming federal case.

It deals with what needs to be disclosed about people hoping to serve on the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio. That's the state agency that regulates utility companies like FirstEnergy.

This bill would require nominees to disclose any income, previous business relationships or ties to entities regulated by the PUCO by the time they are submitted to the governor for an appointment.

Sam Randazzo, the chairman of the Public Utilities Commission when HB 6 was adopted, resigned after FBI agents raided his home following the disclosure of a $4.3 million payment to Randazzo's company by FirstEnergy Corp.

"That has to be disclosed, and it needed to be disclosed before he was put on that commission," Merrin said.

More:Powerful Ohio utilities regulator steps down following FBI search of his home

Third, the bill would prohibit elected officials from getting paid to serve on corporate boards unless the seat was held prior to taking office and the official has ownership in the corporation.

A community bank in the Columbus area hired Lt. Gov. Jon Husted as a board member in May 2022.

When asked whether this change was in response to that appointment, Merrin said, "I think this is a serious issue that needs to be investigated. It's not about any one individual."

Fourth, the bill would require the financial disclosure statements submitted by all candidates and elected officials to be posted online in an easily searchable format. Lawmakers' financial disclosure statements are currently posted online by the Joint Legislative Ethics Committee. But reports filed by more than 10,000 state, local and school officials are available by request through the Ohio Ethics Commission.

And finally, the bill would make it clear that the Ohio Ethics Commission and the Joint Legislative Ethics Committee could ask Ohio's Bureau of Criminal Investigation for help investigating allegations of misconduct.

The bill doesn't have a number because the House hasn't passed operating rules for this General Assembly, something that needs to happen before legislation can be formally introduced. Two factions of House Republicans, one led by Merrin and one by new House Speaker Jason Stephens have not decided on leadership roles for the new General Assembly causing the delay.

Minority Leader Allison Russo, D-Upper Arlington, said she couldn't wade in the weeds on a bill she hasn't seen, but the talking points sounded awfully familiar.

"I love it when they take our good ideas," she said.

House Democrats have introduced multiple reform bills since Householder was arrested, including ones to change campaign finance laws and shine some light on how dark money groups get funded.

Podcast:What is dark money? How was it used in the House Bill 6 scandal?: Ohio Politics Explained

"There's nothing that has been done since his original arrest and indictment to prevent this from happening again ...," Russo said. "The environment remains exactly the same as it was before his arrest."

But she was glad to hear that the majority party wants to make changes now and is open to possibly partnering with Democrats.

Merrin called Wednesday's press conference a "first step to delivering comprehensive reform" and said he and his GOP colleagues are open to any changes people might have.

"We're going to need help to get this through ...," Merrin said. "I think this is going to ultimately be a joint effort where we join together and say we need to really do what's best for Ohio."

Anna Staver is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Republicans introduce ethics reform on eve of public corruption trial