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In today's Akron Beacon Jounral there is an interesting column from the head of the Ohio Manufacturers' Association about the electricity re-regulation bill, SB 221.
Here's the part I found to be most persuasive:
Senate Bill 221 would give the PUCO additional tools to redress reliability issues. As voters evaluate the merits of SB 221, they should closely examine who has lined up for and against it.
More than 100 businesses, consumer groups and trade associations support this bill. Supporters include the Cleveland Clinic, which experienced an average of seven power outages per quarter last year; DuPont, where persistent power failures prompted the company's Global Business Director to take a portion of the Circleville facility out of consideration for future expansion; Alcoa, which closed an aluminum smelter in Maryland after skyrocketing electricity prices made the plant no longer cost effective; and Ohio Partners for Affordable Energy, a group that helps low-income residential customers with their heating bills and is watching demand for its services hit an all-time high.
The much shorter list of opponents consists mainly of two groups that stand to make even more money if the rate caps expire: Ohio's politically potent electric utilities, and their allies, the electric marketers. Senate Bill 221 is backed by Gov. Ted Strickland, a Democrat. It passed the Republican-ruled Ohio Senate by a vote of 32-0.
