cubmichigan

State Issues Additional Aid for Low-Income Utility Customers – Is It Enough?

Earlier this week the Michigan state government announced measures that will help low-income ratepayers deal with the imminent removal of certain protections utilities have been offering since the pandemic began in March. This move will mitigate at least some of the economic harm when, as CUB blogged about last month, a “backlog” of unpaid bills built up over this

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DTE’s Belle River coal plant

New Study Suggests the Way DTE and Consumers Energy Run Michigan Coal Plants Is Costing Ratepayers

The Union of Concerned Scientists has a new study that argues that the incredibly complex wholesale electricity markets in the U.S. have loopholes that are creating heavy costs for ratepayers of regulated electric utilities like DTE Energy and Consumers Energy. This is a very complicated issue that is indecipherable for many people (as is common in utility manners). But

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DTE Energy building

DTE’s Rate Case – A Step Toward Accountability for Poor Service?

The Michigan Public Service Commission’s (MPSC) May 8 order on DTE Energy’s rate increase request could be one of the most important decisions the commission makes this year. It signals that a big change might be coming in the relationship between regulators and investor-owned utilities. The MPSC ordered a major investor-owned utility to propose a system of

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