AP: “Former Republican Speaker Larry Householder was expelled from the Ohio House in a vote Wednesday following his indictment in an alleged $60 million federal bribery probe, only the second time the state Legislature has pushed out a member and the first time in 150 years. The Republican-led House voted 75-21 to remove Householder, of Perry County, approving a resolution that stated he was not suited for office because of the indictment.”
“The full House voted after lawmakers forced the measure to the floor instead of waiting for the expulsion resolution to work through the committee process. Reps. Brian Stewart and Mark Frazier, both Republicans representing districts that border Householder’s, encouraged their colleagues to ‘do the right thing’ and vote to expel. ‘This has been a distraction. This has been a stain on the institution and it is time for us to come together as one body,’ Frazier said, adding that ‘this institution is greater than any one man.’ Householder and four associates were arrested in July in an investigation connected to legislation containing a ratepayer-funded bailout of two Ohio nuclear power plants. The $1 billion rescue would have added a new fee to every electricity bill in the state and directed over $150 million a year through 2026 to the plants near Cleveland and Toledo.”