(CLEVELAND, Ohio) — Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost has secured more than $250,000 in fines from a contractor who used foreign steel instead of American steel to complete eight state-funded projects.
“Ohio’s policy is America First—and in this instance, it’s not just a good idea, it’s the law,” Yost said. “This won’t be the last time we bring a lawsuit to make sure the law has teeth.”
Ohio law states that domestic steel must be used on state-funded projects. Miller Builders of Ohio used foreign steel on eight Ohio Department of Transportation projects, which included storage buildings and road salt canopies.
An investigation by the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission found Miller Builders used foreign steel on those projects and, per statute, was fined 1.5 times the cost of the steel used on the projects.
Per statute, when a fine is collected by the attorney general it is to be distributed to the school district in which the project is located.
The Cleveland Metropolitan School District, for example, received a check for $80,738.
District CEO Eric Gordon said the money would go to CMSD’s Project ACT, which provides services to homeless students. He said the funds would benefit a group particularly hard hit by the disruption of the pandemic.