CLEVELAND — FirstEnergy is asking the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio for a $190 million increase in what it charges customers for electric distribution.

That’s not for the energy you use but rather costs related to sending service to your home through their power lines.

Based on typical customer usage, it would mean a $13 a month increase for Cleveland area Illuminating Company customers or just over $150 a year. The rate hike for Ohio Edison customers would be less at $2.99 a month and Toledo Edison at $1.56.

As part of their review process, the PUCO is holding hearings on the rate hike request, where at least one of the five PUCO commissioners will be in attendance.

“So its consumers’ chance to be face to face with a PUCO commissioner, letting him or her know how the case would impact them,” said JP Blackwood of the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel, the state agency whose job it is to watch out for and represent Ohio consumers.

At a local public hearing, consumers can share their views face-to-face with at least one of the five PUCO commissioners who will decide on the case. Those who testify will have their comments included as evidence that the PUCO must consider in ruling on the utility’s request.

The three meetings slated are;

• Cleveland: 5 p.m., Thursday, April 3, 2025, Cleveland Public Library, Learning Commons Space, 325 Superior Ave., Cleveland, OH 44114,
• Akron: 6 p.m., Monday, April 7, 2025, Akron-Summit County Public Library, 60 S. High St., Akron, OH 44326.
• Toledo: 6 p.m., Monday, April 14, 2025, Board of Lucas County Commissioners, One Government Center, Suite 800, Toledo, OH 43604.

As part of their review process, the PUCO’s staff conducted their audit of the rate hike request, and they concluded that instead of a $190 million hike, a more modest $8.5 million jump was more appropriate. But the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel review of the application found that the PUCO should force FirstEnergy to cut its rates.
“Using the numbers from FirstEnergy’s application, just the information about how they’re providing the electricity they deliver and how they’re working,” said Blackwood. “We are proposing actually an $18 million decrease for Cleveland Illuminating Company rates and overall more than $100 million decrease for the entire rate case.”

In a statement Ma,ureen Willis, Agency Director of the Office of Consumers’ Counsel, said further, “instead of a $190 million distribution rate increase, the FirstEnergy utilities should be getting a haircut. Consumers’ electric utility bills are already packed with soaring transmission costs and rising energy prices. Affordability remains a key issue for Ohio families and businesses.”

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Severe weather is on the way, and local officials are getting prepared.

Bryan Kloss, Emergency Operation Center manager for the Cuyahoga County Office of Emergency Management, said severe weather is one of their focus areas.

“So we’re always looking at, what’s the risk? What’s the threat? What are the hazards?” he said.

For this weather event, he said they’re expecting flooding and rain, so that’s what they’re focused on.

“So our process is we’ll obtain the information from the National Weather Service,” he said. “We’ll identify how high our risk is. This weather’s pretty standard for our time in April/May months for this type of weather.”

They coordinate with local emergency services such as fire and police to let them know about the weather ahead of time, offering them tips, tricks and best practices.

On the public side, he said they try to remind people about what to watch. If there’s water on the road, turn around. Don’t attempt to drive through it. Always be cautious of moving water and keep a preparedness kit.

Kloss said people should keep a kit both in their home and in their vehicle. Car kits should include road flares, jumper cables, emergency blankets, water and food, Koss said, along with a communications method. 

Kits at home should include enough food, water and medication in case of a power outage. Kloss also said homes below the water line should make sure their sump pumps are working properly and they have a battery backup.

“The other big tip, and it’s not necessarily a failure point on the public, but to just stay informed,” he said. “We always want the public to stay informed and have weather alerts set up on their phone with whatever platform they prefer.”

According to the Ohio EMA, there is the potential for heavy rain, strong wind, hail and even tornadoes.

“These hazards have consequences including flooding, property damage, power outages, injury and even death,” Sandy Mackey with the Ohio EPA said in an email. “Being aware of the hazards that may impact your location is important and can help you prepare and stay safe.”

They said they advise Ohioans to never drive through flooded roads and always look for an alternative route, adding it’s important to know where to go to seek shelter prior to storms. They added it’s important to have multiple ways to receive emergency notifications, whether it’s via radio, text or county-wide mass notification systems.

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – Congresswoman Shontel Brown (OH-11) has confirmed the U.S. General Services Administration’s (GSA) plan to sell the Anthony J. Celebrezze Federal Building in Downtown Cleveland, calling the decision a “slap in the face” to Cleveland.

Rumors over the potential closure and sale of the AJC building have been swirling since its appearance on a GSA disposal list earlier this month. The building had been listed for sale, then removed days later with no explanation given by the GSA.

The building was on the “non-core property list”, which identifies buildings that the U.S. General Services Administration deems are not “core to government operations, or non-core properties”.

“The Trump Administration is delivering a slap in the face to the City of Cleveland by rushing to sell the Celebrezze building,” said Congresswoman Brown. “The Celebrezze building is a critical cornerstone for Cleveland’s federal operations and a vital anchor for the downtown economy. This reckless and short-sighted fire-sale will disrupt essential federal services and undermine the City’s critical investments in the downtown economy. What’s more, it will inflict further trauma on public servants, who have been relentlessly attacked by DOGE and this Administration with return-to-work orders and indiscriminate firings. Our city and our people deserve better than being treated as collateral damage in DOGE’s reckless cost-cutting schemes.”

Congresswoman Brown says the federal government will look to short term leases for the 4,000+ employees that use the building within multiple federal departments. She fears that it would leave to even greater uncertainty:

“There is no guarantee that suitable relocation options will even be secured. The likely outcome is therefore not merely disruption—it is a direct reduction in federal employment in Ohio, with serious consequences for the local economy.”

The AJC building would be sold within the next three years, with the Congresswoman’s office telling 19 News that the federal government would need to find leases for every agency in the building, ensuring there is enough space, and physically move all equipment.

Agencies in the building include: Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

19 News has reached out to the GSA for comment and have yet to hear back.

Last week, Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb and Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne called on the federal government to keep the building under federal ownership to keep these agencies downtown.

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