Ohio schools get some relief from cuts: Capitol Letter
Updated Jan 25, 2021;
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Rotunda Rumblings
Director’s cut: Gov. Mike DeWine is restoring some of the state education money that he previously said would be cut, Andrew Tobias reports. Last year, DeWine cut about $776 million from the state’s general operating budget for 2020, including $300 million in cuts to K-12 school funding and $110 million in cuts to higher education funding. But under the new order, DeWine is restoring $160 million in funding to schools this year, and $100 million to higher education. The DeWine administration is working on finalizing its budget proposal and plans to unveil it on Feb. 1.
Four finalists sent to Gov. Mike DeWine for state utilities commission spot
Updated Jan 22, 2021;
Posted Jan 22, 2021
Gov. Mike DeWIne has received four finalists for an expiring seat on the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, which regulates and helps set state utility rates. (PUCO)
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COLUMBUS, Ohio A state screening panel has sent Gov. Mike DeWine four names for an expiring spot on the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, including the incumbent commissioner whose term is expiring.
The PUCO Nominating Council advanced Dennis Deters to be reappointed to his seat, as well as Angela Amos, a policy adviser to the federal equivalent of the PUCO, and two energy lawyers, Ronald Russo and Stephen Serraino.
31 applicants seek spot on PUCO after Randazzo resignation
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The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio attracted 31 applicants who are vying for a position on its board after Sam Randazzo, the organization s chair, resigned in the wake of the House Bill 6 scandal.
Included in the list of applicants, who would serve for three years of the five-year term, are Northeast Ohioans including Jade Davis, vice president of external affairs for Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority; James Pawlik, a Cleveland State University adjunct instructor; and Andrew W. Smyser, director of energy services for the Greater Cleveland Partnership.
A number of outgoing or former politicians have also thrown their hat into the ring. Two of the applicants, Ohio Supreme Court Justice Judith French and Ohio Sen. Sean O Brien (D-Cortland), lost their seats this November, while others including two former members of the Ohio House of Representatives, William Schuck (35th District) and Mike Verich (66th D
Among the 31 applicants for an open commissioner seat on the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio are outgoing state Sen. Sean O’Brien, former state Rep. Michael Verich and Ohio Supreme Court Justice Judi French, a Sebring native who lost her re-election bid last month.
The seat, with a term that expires April 10, 2024, became available when Sam Randazzo, PUCO chairman, resigned Nov. 20, shortly after the FBI raided his house.
FirstEnergy Corp. wrote in a Securities and Exchange Commission report the day before his resignation that it paid $4 million to a firm run by a person who matches Randazzo’s description, without providing his name, to end a consulting contract. After learning of the payment during an internal review related to a federal investigation into a controversial House Bill 6 nuclear bailout approved by the state, FirstEnergy fired top executives for violating company ethics policies.