Ohio Supreme Court Ruling May Add Transparency To Utility Pricing

The Ohio Supreme Court decided this week that First Energy can keep a $43 million refund it owed ratepayers. But the decision wasn’t just a victory for the power company.

When First Energy purchased renewable energy credits, it overpaid.

Then the power company charged customers fees not only to cover the cost of buying those credits but also the cost of overpaying.

The justification for those charges is usually confidential.

But the Supreme Court’s decision this week changed that. It required state regulators to make the documents public.

Madeline Fleisher, attorney for the Environmental Law and Policy Center, said this part of the ruling could lead to more transparency.

“We were able to get a good ruling that information about these sorts of transactions can’t just be labeled confidential and tucked away behind closed doors," said Fleisher.

She said regulators should also have the power to require rebates.

The ruling this week could weaken the public utility commission’s authority to do that.

In this case, First Energy purchased the renewable energy credits from its own subsidiary, First Energy Solutions. It overpaid itself.