The $60 million HB6 bribery scandal revealed how far utility monopolies would go to protect their profits. But that scheme was just the tip of the iceberg. For decades, utilities have used their government-sanctioned monopoly status to jack up rates to please their Wall Street shareholders. All with the blessing of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio.

Now, as data centers proliferate across the state and utility monopolies’ rate increase requests become more frequent, residential electricity rates are outpacing inflation by more than 50 percent in the last three years, while more than a quarter of Ohioans struggle to pay their utility bills. These increased electricity costs are not inevitable. Both utility regulators and state legislators have the power to rein in greedy utility monopolies to lower costs for Ohioans.

Join American Economic Liberties Project on February 5, 2026 at 12:30 pm ET for a webinar to learn more about what can be done to lower energy costs. Our conversation will feature keynote remarks from Ohio State Senators Kent Smith (D-OH-21) and Bill Blessing (R-OH-08), who have partnered on bipartisan legislation in Ohio, as well as utility policy experts and community organizers.

Keynote Remarks: Ohio State Senator Kent Smith, D-OH-21 Ohio State Senator Bill Blessing, R-OH-08

Panelists: Pat Garofalo, Director of State and Local Policy at American Economic Liberties Project Marissa Gillett, Senior Fellow at American Economic Liberties Project Erica Black-Johnson, Community Organizer at Communities United For Action Cincinnati

Moderated by: Morgan Harper, Director of Policy and Advocacy at American Economic Liberties Project