Report shows scandal-plagued Ohio utility made $108 million in errors. It wants customers to pay

The following article was originally published in the Ohio Capital Journal and published on News5Cleveland.com under a content-sharing agreement.

As it was in the midst of financing a $61 million bribery scheme, Akron-based FirstEnergy also improperly claimed millions in construction expenses, according to a new report.

The company classified lobbying and donations as construction expenses at the same time that it funded the bribery scandal, although it’s not clear if any of that money was paid in bribes.

Now that $108 million in such errors have been found, the utility is asking Ohio regulators for permission to charge its customers for them.

Otherwise, they’ll be billed to FirstEnergy shareholders — which prominently include the company’s own executives.

Corruption surcharge

Ohioan