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The Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), which manages the grid in most of Michigan and much of the central United States, has launched one of the most ambitious transmission expansion efforts in decades. Its Long-Range Transmission Plan (LRTP) calls for thousands of miles of new high-voltage lines, an effort which promises to deliver billions in […]

One of the Upper Peninsula’s largest utilities claims that compliance with state renewable energy standards would necessitate decisions that would lead to drastic bill increases for ratepayers. In its request to the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) for approval of its Amended Renewable Energy Plan (Case U-21813), Upper Michigan Energy Resources (UMERC), argued that to

Photo by Brendan Wood, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0   For over 40 years, the federal government’s Low-Income Heating and Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) has been assisting ratepayers across Michigan. In 2025, the program provided about $160 million for low-income and emergency assistance in Michigan alone. That is why ratepayer advocates across our state were alarmed to

Public comments keep rolling in to the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) regarding two cases in which the MPSC is considering granting certificates of public convenience and necessity for the Michigan portions of two major proposed transmission lines: Case U-21471, regarding the line proposed between the Oneida Substation in Eaton County and Nelson Road Substation

Customers of the three-largest gas utilities in Michigan are on track to see their bills soar over the next few decades, as the utilities continue sky-high spending on gas infrastructure, a new report released by the Citizens Utility Board (CUB) of Michigan reveals. In addition to the bill impacts, utility gas infrastructure investment plans are

Data centers have been behind one of the biggest news stories of the past few years in both tech and energy – and for energy consumers, it’s not all good news. A recent Harvard Law study found that rate contracts between data centers and utilities are often shifting costs onto regular electric customers, or in

In September of last year, the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) released the results of a comprehensive distribution system audit conducted by third-party firm The Liberty Consulting Group (see this blog post containing some initial takeaways from when the audit was first released), giving DTE and Consumers Energy until mid-November to respond. The responses, both

On Jan. 23, the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) issued an order on DTE’s electric rate case (U-21534) that raised rates by about $217 million, increasing residential rates by 4.65%. That rate hike was only about half of what DTE asked for, but several steps not taken by the MPSC, (but proposed by groups including

Northern States Power – Wisconsin (NSP-W), a subsidiary of Xcel Energy, is the regulated electric utility serving most of Gogebic and part of Ontonagon counties in the western-most part of the Upper Peninsula. CUB recently took part in a settlement agreement in NSP-W’s rate case that reduces the rate increase for NSP-W customers by 52%

Michigan regulators have open cases considering whether to grant certificates of public necessity and convenience that would allow the Michigan portions of two interstate transmission lines to be built. CUB has tried to spread the word about how these transmission projects will lead to cost savings for consumers, and new evidence is surfacing that the