Comment on Ohio governor not backing bailout for state’s nuclear plants

OREGON (AP) — Gov. John Kasich said Monday that he can’t see supporting a proposed financial rescue that FirstEnergy Corp. maintains is needed to keep alive the state’s two aging nuclear plants. He said it’s up to the utility to figure out how to keep its nuclear plants operating without a state-approved bailout. Akron-based FirstEnergy wants Ohio lawmakers to sign off on an electricity rate increase for its customers to save the Davis-Besse and Perry plants, which sit along Lake Erie and produce 14 percent of the state’s electricity. The plants are vital to the rural towns where they’re located and generate millions in tax money for schools and local governments.