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Opponents Say Poll Shows Little Support For HB6

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (Statehouse News Bureau) — A group calling for the repeal of a sweeping energy law that bailed out nuclear power plants says they have public opinion on their side. The coalition of organizations against HB6 says polling shows little support for the legislation at the center of a federal corruption investigation.

FILE – This April 4, 2017, file photo shows the entrance to FirstEnergy Corp.'s Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station in Oak Harbor, Ohio.
FILE – This April 4, 2017, file photo shows the entrance to the former FirstEnergy Corp.’s Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station in Oak Harbor, Ohio. [AP Photo | Ron Schwane, File]
A group of environmentalists, government watchdogs and energy producers called the Coalition to Restore Public Trust wants the law repealed.

The coalition asked Clout Research for a survey on support for HB6. Pollster Fritz Wenzel says the results show a majority of voters wouldn’t support a legislator who voted in favor of the bailout.

“That just screams that it doesn’t matter what the value of the policy is, whether it’s good public policy anyway. Voters don’t like it,” says Wenzel.

But supporters argue the bailout that creates subsidies for nuclear, coal, and solar while cutting renewable energy and energy efficiency mandates is still good policy, despite the process of becoming law which allegedly involved a bribery scheme. They also argue that the bill saves jobs at Ohio’s two nuclear plants and protects zero-carbon emitting energy generation.

However, those calling for a repeal of HB6 says lawmakers should scrap the law and go back to the drawing board on energy policy that deals with those issues.