A Dec. 1 order from the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) will cut DTE’s proposed electric rate hike by over 40%, down to about $368 million, compared to the $619 million originally requested by the utility. As a result, DTE residential customers will see their rates increase by about 6.4%%, rather than a 13.9% increase if DTE had had its way.
“Decisions like these from the MPSC are needed to turn around DTE’s abysmal record on reliability and affordability,” Citizens Utility Board of Michigan President Keith Cooley said. “The Commissioners agreed with CUB’s position that the utility failed to show that much of its grid investments are justified. DTE needs to be held accountable and prioritize reducing outages for its customers over earning profit for its shareholders. CUB is hopeful that this decision, as well as the MPSC’s order in DTE’s last rate case, indicate that the utility is being held to a higher standard of accountability than it was in the past.”
CUB, in cooperation with the Michigan Environmental Council, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Sierra Club, sponsored expert witness testimony showing that DTE’s spending proposals are not cost-effective and the utility is overlooking ways to improve the distribution grid and reliability while also spending ratepayer dollars more effectively.
In DTE’s last electric rate case, decided this February, the MPSC rejected 90% of DTE’s request.
###
The Citizens Utility Board of Michigan is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization whose members are individual residential customers of Michigan’s energy utilities. CUB of MI advocates in support of more reliable power, cost-effective investment in energy efficiency and renewable energy and against unfair rate increase requests.